Hibernating Bumble Bees

Bumble Bees are solitary critters, don't live in swarms or hives, hang out all on their lonesome, and when the weather gets cold and their food goes away they creep down through the upper layers of soil and settle down to hibernate, staying below the roots of the grass until it warms up enough that plants start to flower when they perk up and crawl back out and merrily buzz around gathering pollen and nectar to build up their reserves for the next winter. I've no idea how long they can live, how many turns of the season they can have.

So, like, I know this about Bumble Bees partially through reading, but also partially through personal experience, to wit: No *bleep*, there I was, merrily pealing away the top layer of soil, that which the grass had put down roots in, and what do I come across in the cold, damp soil, underneath the roots, but a Bumble Bee! And the shine doth sun, um, the Sun doth Shine upon said Bumble, warming it slightly, and it doth look up, say "no way Jose!", and burrow down through the soil some more until it can return to hibernating, for indeed, it is still far too chill for a Bumble Bee to be a-bumbling about.

Also came across a big old grub, several worms, and the knowledge that grass does surface roots, and various other plants come up from under the grass and stay behind if you are pealing away the grass. Like onions. Of which we have a-many, descendants of onions planted five plus years agone and never harvested, and some other plants which I'm not sure what they are, not aware of having seen them afore, but which are popping up all over in the wake of the unlamented Clematis and Blackberries, said viney types having held done and sorely oppressed many other plant species who are now putting forth greens and announcing to the world, "We are here!" and daring me to name them Weed, daring me to identify them as useful or non, being full healthy already and even bringing forth flowers, some of them. And the onions grow forth, quitely sending up their green tubes in some areas, and slightly different, more leeklike growths in other parts of the yard where I peeled back grass last fall whilst hunting out the Ivy which had snuck in under cover of the Clematis.

And no, I have seen no Clematis, for truly it seems to be gone, vanished, iradicated like the vile verminous viney vamp that it is, not root nor branch to be seen these several months agone. It, and the Blackberries and Ivy are gone, to appear no longer in this yard, slain by "clearcut" Mead himself, removed, banished, repudiated, evicted and exterminated, no more to annoy me with their ne'er ceasing shouts of "neener neener neener" as they creep out from yet another hiding place, gone they art!

[following a quick expedition to the back yard] Yep, still gone.

So, last fall was getting rid of stuff, this year may actually see vegetable gardening occur.

Well, enough, the focus it goeth and the writing thus becomes blurry of topic, hmm?