Author Archives: Ron Miksha
Too Hot for Bees? Arizona Heat, Drought, and Rescuing Bees
How hot is too hot for a honey bee? That question doesn’t mean much sitting here in Calgary on a mild (20°C) summer day. It becomes important to my niece, keeping bees in southern Arizona where the thermometer was pushing … Continue reading
Where Have All the Bugs Gone?
A few weeks ago, I drove from Calgary to Banff and back again. It was a beautiful summer day. The mountains were spectacular, the wildflowers were in bloom, and the bumble bees were busy. When I returned home, however, something … Continue reading
What happens to beekeepers if Alberta leaves Canada?
Alberta has a separatist movement with a minority (20%?) of people out here thinking Alberta should become an independent country, then join the USA. I talked about this in detail on my latest podcast (which also includes a recap about … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Commercial Beekeeping, Culture, or lack thereof, Honey, Podcasts, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged Alberta, Alberta joining USA, Alberta referendum, beekeeping, beekeeping economics, bees, Canola honey, CFIA, Commercial Beekeeping, honey bees, Honey production, package bees, USDA
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The 3-in-1 Bee Tree: Linden, Lime, and Basswood
Basswood is nice, if you don’t mind hanging around with a tree accused of murdering millions of bees. Falsely accused. For over a hundred years, people have found dead bumble bees under basswood trees. Starved? Poisoned? Do you remember the … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Books, Comb Honey, Ecology, Honey, Honey Plants, Native Bees, Save the Bees
Tagged basswood tree, bee trees, beekeeping, bumble bees, Comb Honey, honey, honey bees, Honey Plants, lime tree, linden blossom tea, linden tree, pollinators, Tilia
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Bees on the Rocks
Combs clinging to rock ledges and human foragers climbing to harvest part of the sticky sweet honey gathered by wild bees on the edge of the Himalayas conjures up images of a way of life few of us will ever … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Ecology, Honey, Honey Plants, Native Bees, Save the Bees, Travels
Tagged beekeeping, Himalayas, honey bees, mad honey, Nepal
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Dandelion: The Bee Plant That Doesn’t Need Bees
Some things I didn’t know about dandelions until today: Dandelions don’t need bees. Or any other pollinators – not even wind or gravity to move their pollen. Each dandelion flower is made up of a hundred florets, each an individual … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Ecology, Honey, Honey Plants, Native Bees, Save the Bees
Tagged beekeeping, dandelions, honey bees
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March is Orange Blossom Month
I just released a podcast episode about citrus trees. I’ve been trying to find honey plants in bloom during each month. I’ve been surprisingly consistent since I started this series in July with sweet clover. This is March, there is … Continue reading
Posted in Bee Yards, Beekeeping, Commercial Beekeeping, Culture, or lack thereof, Honey Plants, Podcasts
Tagged beekeeping, Florida, honey bees, orange blossom
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Serving the Perfect Cup of Tea
The perfect cup of tea starts with honey. At least, that’s how the royals do it. It’s hard to argue that anyone else would know better. They’ve got history, experience, connections and money. And tea is important in their part … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Honey
Tagged English royalty, food, honey, tea, Umi
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When Bees Finally Get a Bathroom Break
March is a confusing month here in Calgary. Three weeks of it belongs to winter. Snow sits around in gray crusty patches that melt, refreeze, and melt again. Nights are cold enough to freeze the ground solid. But when I … Continue reading
An Apiary in a Box
The image above is from the BeeCube website. Inside that box is an entire apiary. It can be loaded on the back of a truck and hauled off to a new location – wintering spot, spring build-up, pollination, summer honey … Continue reading
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