Do you want to know if your colony is alive without using an infrared camera or a stethoscope? Try an instant-read hive thermometer. This neat idea was sent to me by Ken Armes, a beekeeper in Ontario, Canada. Ken wanted to know if his colony was surviving, but he didn’t think he could get an […] Read more
The first question to ask yourself is “Should I hide my bees?” If you want to hide a beehive because beekeeping is illegal where you live, then I don’t recommend it. It’s probably easier to keep the bees elsewhere because courts, fines, appearances, and lawyers are no fun at all. If beekeeping is legal where […] Read more
Bumble bees are among the earliest bees of spring, so it won’t be long before beekeepers begin to hear the inevitable questions. Honey bee keepers, it seems, are expected to know all the answers, so here’s a short refresher to get you started. Where do bumble bees go in winter? Bumble bee colonies do not […] Read more
Honey bees produce a number of different enzymes that are important to their survival. One of these is invertase, the very same enzyme that is used in the baking industry. So what is invertase and what does it do? First, let’s define a few words. In biochemistry, an enzyme is a substance that helps a […] Read more
“If one more speaker starts yapping about Varroa mites, I’m gettin’ up and walkin’ out!” The grumbler sitting next to me in the audience didn’t know me and didn’t know I was the next speaker. And yap I did. My topic? Deformed wing virus. Honestly, I can’t blame the guy for feeling that way. I […] Read more
Chicken soup is made by dragging a dead chicken through a pot of boiling water. At least, that’s what my father concluded after eating a particularly watered-down version. From what I understand, cannabis honey results from a similar process. After flying over a cannabis plant, honey bees make cannabis honey, right? Close encounters of the […] Read more
Feeling discouraged about the bee thing? You are not alone. Haunted by losses, Bill Castro, a thirty-year beekeeper from Maryland, shared the details of his disastrous 2016 bee season. The numbers are scary. Abysmal losses Update on the rusty-patched bumble bee In related news, due to policy changes in Washington DC, the inclusion of the […] Read more