Bees, the Orchard & What's in the Fruit Stand

We heard from Anatoli, (one of the people who keep bees at the orchard) that when he went to check his hives last week he found over half the bees dead. He isn't sure what happened, but thought that it was very strange that so many of them would suddenly die.

In the photo above you can see how the orchard looks right now. The lack of leaves and blossoms makes it possible to see almost from one end of the orchard to the other. In the foreground of the photo are a few bee hives that are tended to by Hoshan, another bee keeper. The bee hives found with so many dead bees are at the end of the orchard by the pond and eucalyptus grove.

Here's what's at the fruit stand now:

• Fresh Persimmons--Hachiya , gyombo (soft)
  
• Dried Persimmons (Hoshigaki)--strips only
  
• Oranges--Nodahara's Navel variety, (very large)
  
• Lemons--Meyer, Eureka
  
• Kiwi
  
• Vegetables--Jerusalem artichoke
  
• Gourds--for decorations and crafting