About the Author
Josh Vaisman
Articles by Josh Vaisman
Your Seasonal Beekeeping Calendar
When you are new to beekeeping, it’s good to have a game plan. Today let’s explore a seasonal beekeeping calendar and your to-do’s throughout the year.
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How Many Frames of Capped Brood is Optimum in a Double Deep During Summer?
Tyler from Montana writes: How many frames of capped brood is the optimum in a double deep during summer?
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Should I be Worried About my Walkaway Split?
There are a couple of versions of a split (or divide) that simulate this. One is by using swarm cells in the split(s). The other, which it sounds like is what you did, we call a “walkaway split.” I just did one yesterday so I’ll explain how I did it.
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Why Did My Newly Installed Bees Make a Queen Cell?
Mary writes … Today was inspection day and I found what appears to be a queen cell … yikes!
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How Do I Prepare a Dead Hive for New Bees?
Unless the colony died because of a nasty disease like American Foulbrood, you can definitely re-use the equipment. AFB would present as a horrible smelling hive with rotting, brown, slimy brood. You don’t want to re-use equipment if the colony had AFB because it will pass on the new bees.
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Why Did My Bees Leave the Hive? What is NOT a Swarm!
Cartoons and movies give us an (incorrect) idea of what swarming bees look like. So when the time to ask questions came up in my first beekeeping class, I asked, “Why might my bees leave the hive?”
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Feeding Honey Bees Successfully
When I participated in the Northern Colorado Beekeepers Association beginning beekeeping class, I was exposed to more than 15 hours of education. Needless to say, much of it was new to my brain and I felt regularly surprised (in a good way!) by what I learned.
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How Do You Catch a Swarm of Bees?
The simplest answer to “how to catch a swarm of bees” is this — get the queen and all the ladies in something you can safely transport them in back to your apiary.
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Can Honey Bees Rehab Comb Damaged by Wax Moths?
Oh man, there are few things more frustrating than a wax moth infestation. They are so destructive to the comb! The brief answer is yes, in most cases the bees can rehab comb damaged by wax moths.
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LIST: Common Beekeeping Terms You Should Know
It seems like every hobby comes with its own set of words and sayings. Beekeeping is no exception. I recall the first time I heard an experienced beekeeper talk about her “ladies” during a beginning beekeeping course. Looking around the room and seeing both woman and men, I was all sorts of
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