Health & Pests
Controlling Varroa Mites with Oxalic Acid Drizzle Method
By David Bridgers, North Carolina My research project was a collaboration with N.C. State University and Dr. David Tarpy on the control of varroa mites. It is essential that beekeepers …
Read More
What Bugs Your Bees in Winter? Know the Lineup of Beekeeping Pests.
Even before we open our first beehive, we are warned about pests that may live within. Small hive beetles, wax moths, and varroa mites are things we dread, so early in our training we learn how to deal with them. …
Read More
Let’s Talk About Losing Bees
Like many beekeepers, we lost bees this winter. New packages failed to build up in a normal way last summer and were unusually slow to build comb and put away stores into fall. In September, aggressive yellow jacket predation weakened them further leaving them unable to carry themselves through the cold.
Read More
Deep Winter & Preparing For Spring With Bees
By Tom Theobald As I said in the last article, we share a long and intimate history with the honeybee, much further back than most would ever imagine. There’s little …
Read More
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 …
Read More
Movements of the Winter Bee Cluster
The honey bee cluster moves up in winter and down in summer. The downward movement is easiest to see in a feral colony built into a tree or a building. …
Read More
How Do Honey Bees Survive the Winter Without Fresh Pollen?
All during the foraging season, honey bees collect pollen and nectar. They use nectar for energy to keep going from day to day. Any extra nectar is turned into honey …
Read More
What is Honey Bee Dysentery?
Beekeeping is rife with confusing terminology that can baffle even experienced beekeepers. Honey bee dysentery is a perfect example. In humans, dysentery is a contagious illness caused by bacteria that …
Read More
The Varroa Mite: Know Your Enemy
By Josh Vaisman – Honey bees currently face three difficult challenges to their survival — a lack of quality nutrition, ubiquitous pesticides in the environment, and the scourge of the …
Read More
How do Bees Mate?
An interesting and deadly dance takes place all across the world; in fact, it’s necessary for human survival and yet goes unnoticed by humans year after year. The dance is …
Read More