In contrast to a swarm-control split where you need to know the whereabouts of your queen, a walkaway split can be made without having to find the queen. The steps for setting up a walkaway split are easy: The queenless portion will soon begin to raise a queen of their own from very young larvae. […] Read more
Last time I wrote about a simple way to split a hive to prevent swarming. It is quick and easy and results in two fairly equal hives. However, if your original hive is loaded with swarm cells you may be able to raise a few extra queens or start more than one hive. Let’s say […] Read more
Hives can be split for many reasons. A beekeeper may split a hive in order to increase the number of hives, to raise queens, to increase the number of workers, or to keep a hive from swarming. There are dozens of ways to do a split, depending on what you are trying to do and […] Read more
A skep is a traditional round hive made of straw or dried grass. Multiple strands of straw are bundled together to form a thick rope and the rope is then coiled and bound together to make the skep. The skep is generally empty so it provides protection for the bees but little else. There is […] Read more
The idea that small-cell foundation may limit the reproduction of Varroa mites resurfaces frequently. However, some research has shown that mites may actually increase on small cell foundation. An insightful paper on the subject by Berry, Owens, and Delaplane was recently published in the journal Apidologie and can be downloaded here. In the states, small-cell […] Read more
Here in western Washington it is a great day for honey bees. The temperature is hovering around 55° F in the shade and my bees are out in droves. All my hives are misted with bees, but my two nucs—stacked one above the other—really surprised me. The great cloud of bees milling around them is […] Read more
According to the National Honey Board, the acidity of honey ranges from a pH of about 3.4 to about 6.1, with an average of 3.9. The acidity of any honey is directly related to the floral sources that created it. Honey contains a number of different acids, including about 18 amino acids, many different organic […] Read more