Category Archives: Beekeeping

Nuking the Bees

Posted on June 29, 2017 by Ron Miksha

If you’re a beekeeper, you probably already know all about nucs, the little hives from which big things are supposed to grow. If you’ve made nucs for fun or profit, then you have your own system – maybe two frames … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Hives and Combs | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Backstory for the Bees

Posted on June 28, 2017 by Ron Miksha

Yesterday evening, I brought a small hive of bees to my back yard. It was thrilling. That may seem odd to those of you who read this blog regularly. (Did you miss my Urban Beekeeper post?)  Surely I’ve got dozens … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Books, Commercial Beekeeping, History | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Keeping the Cougars out of your Bee Yard

Posted on June 24, 2017 by Ron Miksha

Ever been chased by a mountain lion? How about a cougar, panther, or puma? Me neither, but I’ve probably passed within metres of all four. (I’m told that they’re all the same species – Puma concolor.) A new study from … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Yards, Beekeeping, Diseases and Pests, Strange, Odd Stuff | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Urban Beekeeping Mug

Posted on June 19, 2017 by Ron Miksha

Yesterday, Father’s Day, my family surprised me with this homemade mug. They had conspired to co-create this bit of art for the past few days. I heard the hushed tones and I saw people and things quickly disappear when I … Continue reading →

Posted in Bee Yards, Beekeeping | Tagged , | 9 Comments

Miel Carlota – Once the World’s Biggest Bee Farm

Posted on June 5, 2017 by Ron Miksha

One of the world’s largest honey farms was a Mexican outfit started by a couple of guys on holidays from Germany. The Second World War broke out while they were rambling around the Mexican coast, so they stayed for an … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Books, Commercial Beekeeping, History, People, Queens | Tagged , , , , | 25 Comments

Mind the Gap!

Posted on June 2, 2017 by Ron Miksha

If you travel metro in London (and many other cities) you might hear a polite admonition from the public address system, “Mind the gap!”  It’s advising you not to get your footwear stuck between the train and platform while boarding. Beekeepers … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Ecology, Honey Plants | Tagged , , | 15 Comments

Swarm Season

Posted on May 31, 2017 by Ron Miksha

It’s swarm season here in the north. That will end soon enough, but right now it’s pushed by long days and a heavy dandelion flow. Hives just can’t help themselves. In the old days of skep and gum beekeeping, a … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Friends, History, Swarms | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Bee’s Eye View

Posted on May 27, 2017 by Ron Miksha

Looking down from a light aircraft gives insights you just can’t match on the ground. At 6,000 feet, you appreciate how close flowers are along a beeline from hive to field. Beeing in the air is useful for a beekeeper … Continue reading →

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Long Live the (New) Queen

Posted on May 26, 2017 by Ron Miksha

During the past week, we looked at how to requeen a hive. On Monday, we considered the reality of queen troubles and how our hives differ from feral colonies. Tuesday was about identifying a queen’s quality from her brood pattern, … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, Queens | Tagged | 5 Comments

Sticking the Queen In

Posted on May 25, 2017 by Ron Miksha

Over the past few days, I’ve written a little about identifying poor queens by examining brood patterns. Then we discussed  finding and pinching her failing heinousnesses.  The next step in your requeening saga is inserting the caged queen. Here in … Continue reading →

Posted in Beekeeping, History, Queens, Tools and Gadgets | Tagged , , | 2 Comments