I hate to spend time re-inventing the wheel, but that’s exactly what I’ve been doing. Whenever I take pictures for this blog, I always end up getting propolis stuck to my camera. I’ve tried wearing gloves or not, tried wrapping plastic bags around my camera, and tried cleaning my hands between shots. Nothing works. When […] Read more
It’s been over a year since I last treated for mites. However, due to a recent increase in deformed wing virus, I decided to treat for mites before winter sets in. I prefer winter bees (those that live many months cooped up in the hive) that have not been directly exposed to any mite treatment. […] Read more
As far as I can tell, the unauthorized feed of my blog at http://www.beekeeperguide.com has been taken down. Thanks to everyone for your help and support. Many excellent ideas came this way and although I don’t know which ones worked, something did. Please be aware that lots of people run my feed on their websites. […] Read more
Scientists in Turkey and Iran recently discovered a tiny bee that uses flower petals to build nest capsules. The bee, Osmia avoseta, uses only the petals of Onobrychis viciifolia for this important work. I somehow missed this story, which was run by NPR on May 6, 2010. But it’s not too late to follow the […] Read more
One of the worst parts of honey extraction is the accumulation of sticky, gooey frames that remains after the process. These frames of uncapped comb, known as “wet” frames, are a storage nightmare until they are cleaned of all traces of honey. Fortunately, honey bees are more than happy to do the job. They lick […] Read more
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
If you detect a reeking, putrefying, gagging odor near your beehives this time of year, it could be the aroma of dead drones. Phillip at Mudsongs.org and I both detected it yesterday, and we both went through moments of self-doubt when we wondered what was happening to our hives. Having forgotten the lessons of the […] Read more