September 18, 2020

Pollen patties usually contain no pollen but are designed to simulate real pollen. They can be purchased ready-to-use, can be made at home from a purchased mix or can be made at home from scratch using a variety of recipes. The thing to understand about pollen or pollen substitute is that it is used to […]

Honey bees are not picky about the color of their hives. As long as there is no paint on the inside, your bees will be fine. It’s more important to please the beekeeper. Here are some considerations: In the past, most hives were white. White is especially good in the warmer climates where a light

Sometimes you need to find your queen, and sometimes you only need to know that she is alive and well. The presence of eggs means she was there sometime during the last three days. The presence of larvae (uncapped brood) means she was there between three and nine days ago, depending on how large the

To feed or not to feed? That is always a question. Like anything else in beekeeping, there are many valuable thoughts on this. Here’s ours. A mild winter like we’ve had so far actually presents a challenge to the bees. Warmer temperatures mean more activity in the hive, and more activity means more food consumption

The first time I saw extracted honey in a jar with no comb, I wondered why anyone would do that. Why would someone separate two things that belong together? Imagine eating a yolk without the white or a chocolate chip without the cookie. What’s the point? Where I grew up in the foothills of the