A ventilated gabled roof is one of my favorite pieces of beekeeping equipment. Warm air holds moisture, and the warmer the air, the more moisture it can hold. Since a summer beehive is loaded with moisture from both bee respiration and drying nectar, the hive can quickly become a damp, mold-infested environment that is not […] Read more
In spite of all the winter alterations I’ve made to my Langstroth hives, I’ve never done anything to my top-bar hive. Previously, when the temperature dipped into the 20s for more than a day or two, I’ve moved it into the garden shed, a space I keep in the 40s so things don’t freeze. I […] Read more
Summer is coming to a close even though it was nearly a “non-summer” here on the Pacific Northwest coast. The corn hasn’t tasseled; the peaches look like walnuts. Nevertheless, my bees are healthy and I had a good honey harvest—much better than expected. My honey was capped and my hives are dry inside. What more […] Read more