Whoever said a picture is worth a thousand words could have been thinking of this one. You can see the glee in the wasp’s eyes as she makes a beeline for the all-you-can eat cafeteria. Michael Skeels, a regular reader and frequent contributor to this site, lives in Montana and owns the hive on the […] Read more
Dogs. Cats. Mice. Your next-door neighbor. What do they all have in common? One answer is a moveable lower jaw. In fact, lots of creatures have one movable jaw—known as a mandible—and one stationary jaw or maxilla. But your bees, along with many other invertebrates, have two movable jaws, both known as mandibles. Not only […] Read more
Wasps can be a problem for beekeepers in the autumn of the year. In fact, we usually don’t think about wasps at all until they begin casing our hives, looking for fresh meat. The biggest threat comes from eusocial species—those that are “truly social,” like yellowjackets. In all but the warmest regions of North America, […] Read more
One of the very first things you learn in agricultural school is the definition of a weed. According to knowledgeable professors wearing ties and mud boots, a weed is “a plant out of place.” This tidbit of wisdom shows up in books, slide shows, bulletin boards, and multiple choice tests. What this means is that […] Read more
I once described trapping out as a not-so-satisfactory way of removing a colony of bees from an enclosed structure or tree. Trapping requires much beekeeper input during a multi-step process. Even when things go well, a trap-out can leave a dead queen and her brood to decay, and may allow untended honey stores to ferment […] Read more
Harvest season is here, so now is the time to save reeds and stems for bees to use next spring. Since I started saving various stems a few years ago, I discovered that cavity-nesting bees really like all-natural materials, and they fill cut stems quickly and uniformly. Plants vary from place to place The type […] Read more
Huge colonies are an impressive sight! These photos were taken by Debbie Fyda in Ohio. She says she already removed three supers of honey, and those that remain are full of not-yet-capped nectar. Debbie was surprised the colony took off, especially after bad weather in spring was followed by June rains. But once July heat […] Read more