Glen Echo Country Club Golf Course Management: Some of Nature's Wonders at Glen Echo

As we speed through our daily work on the golf course or the rounds of golf that are played on a daily basis at our club, there are some interesting wonders of nature that we should take notice of as we make our way around the golf course. There are a number of colonies of honey bees that inhabit our property. Normally, we are not able to view their work because it usually occurs in a hollowed tree but a few weeks ago, a colony formed to the left back corner of #5 green and the blue tee on #6 out in the open on a lower limb of a pine tree. Initially, I thought it was a hornet nest forming which we would spray and kill but once I examined the site more closely, it was honey bees. Over a few weeks they worked very hard to supply food for the colony and protect their queen. Last week, I noticed the colony was beginning to disband and were in a frenzy as they were preparing to leave this new site. Bees were flying everywhere, especially in the Barton's yard as they were preparing to move on. Once they finally left the area, I was able to get a couple shots of the honeycomb left behind.

Also included in the pictures below are the work of a busy spider in the front lawn spinning a web between a flower bed and the dogwood tree which grows in the center of the bed. I'm not overly thrilled with being too close to spider either but I am amazed at the work they can perform in a short period of time.

I've also included a picture of a bluebird resting on the tee sign of #14 tee. You can see multiple families of bluebirds fluttering around between holes 3,12,13 and 14 tee as well as along the main road near the 10th tee. They will be very active feeding over the next few weeks.