For the beginner beekeeper, determining the best way to uncap frames can be difficult. You can go the easy but messy route, which can be done more quickly but will leave you with less honey. Or, you can go the more time-consuming route, which requires extra concentration but results in more harvested honey. There are many options already out there with …
Hive beetles are an invasive nuisance for both bees and beekeepers alike. They can vary in size, though small beetles are more common in beekeeping. They can fly, and as a result, they relocate from one hive to the next with ease. They then spread to the entire apiary and your bees suffer as a consequence. Integrating pest management to keep …
Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) has plagued beekeepers since 2006 when it was first reported. In the fallout from CCD, around the time it was first chronicled, adult honeybees simply started disappearing from their hives. Very few dead bees could be found in or around the hives, and high colony losses ensued. This perplexed beekeepers, as the queen and brood (immature bees), …
For beginning beekeepers, it can be easy to be confused by all of the terminology surrounding the wonderful world of beekeeping. At Dadant & Sons, we want you to be as knowledgeable as possible when it comes to taking care of your bees. We’ve organized some need-to-know terms into five different categories. Peruse these terms at your leisure, and come back whenever …
In popular conception, the true pay dirt for beekeepers is honey. While honey is indeed a valuable commodity, busy honey bees also create another treasure: beeswax. Here, we'll explore the most effective, easiest ways to separate beeswax from the honeycomb. The bees produce wax in their glands. It serves multiple functions, primarily as the essential building block of the beehive – …
Honey bees don't just produce delicious, nutritious honey and multi-purpose beeswax – they also serve critical roles in the larger ecosystem that keep Mother Earth functioning as natural design intended. Without the bees, we'd be in a world of trouble – as environmentalists and biologists are increasingly discovering by way of the growing threats to honey bees. Here, we'll dive into the …
The honeycomb design is unmistakable and iconic – lending its likeness even to famous cereal brands. Honeycombs don't just look cool and utterly unique; behind the impressive architectural facade, there is genius functionality. Here, we'll explore why honeycombs look the way they do. Honeycombs Are the Building Blocks of the Hive Before we get into the reasons for the unique design of honeycombs, …
Many people choose to keep bees for a variety of reasons, including: to do their part for the environment by boosting and restoring bee populations for pollination purposes if they grow crops and flowering plants for honey production and hive by-products like beeswax, royal jelly, pollen, and venom Whatever your reasons for beekeeping, it's important to do your research and avoid …