Category Archives: Beekeeping
Bees in the Snow
New beekeepers (and some of us old ones) worry when we see ‘lots’ of bees in the snow during winter. The black dots (above) are frozen stiffs – bees that left their hive and didn’t make it back. To me, … Continue reading
The Bees are Fine
My favourite line from one of my favourite movies was spoken by Peter Fonda, playing Ulee Jackson in a film about a Florida beekeeper. When Ulee visits his son, who is in prison for robbery, the son asks about the … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Commercial Beekeeping, Honey, Movies
Tagged Canadian honey, Commercial Beekeeping, statistics, Ulee's Gold
7 Comments
Free International Symposium
Global Trends in Beekeeping. This two-day symposium is being held in Moscow. Registration is free, but if you are in the western hemisphere, be prepared for a couple of very early mornings. (The Congress begins at 10am, Moscow; 3am in … Continue reading
Posted in Apitherapy, Beekeeping, Culture, or lack thereof
Tagged Apimondia, bee conference, Moscow, Russia
1 Comment
Waxing in the Waning Days of Summer
Our summer is drawing to a close. After record-breaking heat, we’re now getting seasonal temperatures (though no frost yet, which is unusual). Fortunately, we are having some much-needed rain. In the heat of summer, I set up our solar wax … Continue reading
September Bears
Our part of the world (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) has been home to black bears and grizzlies for about ten-thousand years. In recent days, they’ve mostly resided in the zoo and probably as household pets in a few basements – though … Continue reading
The Story of my Life (in less than two hours)
I had a wonderful interview with Sylvia and Luca from Vitamina Bee, an Italian videography/website. We touched on everything from veganism to bee-on-bee competition, the history of beekeeping, my Master’s research, and my early life on a farm with nine … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Books, Commercial Beekeeping, Ecology, History, Personal
Tagged Bad Beekeeping, beekeeping in Italy, honey bees, Saskatchewan, video, Vitamina Bee
1 Comment
Free Beekeeping Information!
A couple of evenings ago, I Zoomed into a Western Apicultural Society mini-conference. This is a new monthly affair for the 43-year-old educational organization. The mini-conference is one of the few positive results of the dreadful Covid lockdown. Virtual conferences … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Outreach
Tagged American Bee Journal, Bee Culture, Jerry Bromenshenk, Medhat Nasr, podcast, WAS
1 Comment
Should you feed pollen supplement?
In mid-March, Stevo Sun, a Calgary resident, sent some gorgeous pictures of honey bees foraging on silver maple. Maple is an ornamental here, at our elevation and latitude. But for less than $250, you can pick up a young tree … Continue reading
Better Hives: Dzierzon’s Boxes
Here in North America, we believe that modern beekeeping began with Langstroth, who discovered bee-space and movable frames. But Europeans are celebrating the Polish beekeeper, Johannes Dzierzon, for the same accomplishments. On the continent, it’s Dzierzon, Dzierzon, Dzierzon, everywhere you … Continue reading
Resolutions
Most of my New Years’ days have passed without resolutions. This year, I resolved, would be different. Along with the typical (exercise more and eat less), the necessary (write more), the obvious (finish that grad degree), the impossible (learn Hungarian), … Continue reading
Posted in Beekeeping, Ecology, Native Bees, Personal, Save the Bees
Tagged Native Bees, University of Calgary
6 Comments
Bad Beekeeping Blog 