Honey Bee Origins and Why It Matters

Posted January 1, 2015

Honey Bee Origins and Why It Matters

It can be inconvenient when new information comes along and changes things. A few years ago this happened to me in a small way (ok, a very small way), and it forced me to revise the exams I give students and Master Beekeeper candidates. The original question and answer went like this: (True or False) …

Posted January 1, 2015

Acquiring Bees and Queens

One must have bees in order to be a beekeeper. It is not always easy to find and purchase bees, especially if one is a new beekeeper and does not know how to obtain bees. Furthermore, bees can be hard to acquire given the level of beekeeper demand for bees today. I have been keeping …

Posted January 1, 2015

The Classroom January 2015

Q Small Hive Beetle Control Jerry….. I am looking to make some small hive beetle (SHB) traps and use Checkmite. We need a smaller/different sized strip. I am looking for someone at Bayer to contact and see if it’s possible and the cost involved. It would be a large-scale project. Charles Lindner A Hey Charles, are …

Posted January 1, 2015

Chemical Synergies: When 1 + 1 Does Not Equal 2

Introduction The agricultural environment is a source of chemical exposure for bees, with pesticides, their degradation products, and other ingredients in pesticide products (adjuvants, solvents, and other chemicals added to formulated products) dominating the scene. Because multiple pesticide products are applied to a crop, honey bees foraging on or near the crop will typically bring …

Posted January 1, 2015

Comb Honey Corner – January 2015

Comb honey production, like all honey production, relies on beeswax production. The difference between comb honey production and extracted honey production is that new wax must be produced every season when comb honey is the objective. Wax production is expensive for any colony of bees. Weak colonies cannot produce comb honey efficiently. Keeping colonies strong …

Posted January 1, 2015

Beekeeping By the Numbers

The concept of the increase or nucleus hive is directly credited to L. L. Langstroth in his original The Hive and the Honey Bee. Langstroth’s hive was based upon movable frames that honored and respected the bee space—the thickness of two worker bees on opposite combs that allows them to work without bumping into each …

Posted January 1, 2015

The Small Hive Beetle Is in Europe to Stay

The small hive beetle (Aethina tumida) is an exotic pest originally from South Africa which can infest honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies, destroying combs and brood often causing total colony loss. It invaded the southern USA in the 1990s causing significant economic loss, and has later been found in Australia, Canada and elsewhere. It is …

Posted January 1, 2015

USDA to Provide $4 Million for Honey Bee Habitat

Announcement Builds on Previous Investment in Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin WASHINGTON, Oct.29, 2014 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today that more than $4 million in technical and financial assistance will be provided to help farmers and ranchers in the Midwest improve the health of honey bees, which play an important …

Posted January 1, 2015

A Monk in the Bee Hive

A Monk in the Bee Hive weaves together the threads of nature and spiritual practice, sitting, silence and the sound of bees. Beekeeping and monasticism have for centuries been partners, and here this ancient practice continues, combining the mystery of the soul with the magic of the hive. Skye’s story brings sweetness and simplicity into our …

Posted January 1, 2015

January 2015 Cover

A giant open-air colony with Bob van der Herchen standing beside it (copyright Bob van der Herchen). Bob operates a bee removal service in Florida. Read more about “Bizarre Nesting Sites of Honey Bees” in Robert Weast’s article in this issue beginning on page 37.

Honey Bee Origins and Why It Matters

Posted January 1, 2015