Category Archives: Outreach
Should a “Bee City” Ban Honey Bees?
In February, Toronto became Canada’s first certified Bee City. This week, a bedroom community just outside Calgary became Canada’s second. I heard the news last night on a CBC radio interview of Dr. Preston Pouteaux, a hobby beekeeper who apparently … Continue reading
Posted in Ecology, Outreach, Save the Bees
Tagged Alberta, Bee City, Chestermere, Native Bees, pollinators, Ralph Cartar
8 Comments
Rooftop Bees
There’s a jolly fat man up on the roof. With a smoker and hive tool. Rooftop beekeeping seems modern, trendy, and new, but it’s been happening for generations. Ever since homes had rooftops. I’m surprised there isn’t a Rooftop Beekeepers … Continue reading
Posted in Bee Yards, Culture, or lack thereof, Humour, Outreach, Save the Bees
Tagged Bee Yards, Einstein, Laureen Harper, New York City, rooftop beekeeping
4 Comments
The Greatest Show on Earth
My home town – Calgary, Alberta, Canada – hosts an annual 10-day cowpoke fest called the Calgary Stampede, aka, “The Greatest Show on Earth”. I’m not a cowboy, but I’ve been lucky enough to help friends with spring branding and … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Friends, Outreach
Tagged bee, Calgary Bee Club, Calgary Stampede
1 Comment
Dozens of Bees
You know that a hive of bees may contain 50,000 insects. You probably also know that you can often open a hive and work its frames with just short-sleeves, sandals, and a bit of smoke. We tend to forget that … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Outreach, Save the Bees, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged bees, Toronto, Yukon
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The Wonders of Beekeeping
I’m wondering if anyone reading this blog has seen a movie called The Wonders. It’s a beekeeping movie. Sort of. From what I’ve read about the film (and seen in the trailers) it appears to be an Italian Ulee’s Gold … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, Movies, Outreach
Tagged beekeeping in Italy, Italy, The Wonders, Ulee's Gold
11 Comments
Calgary’s ALS Fundraiser
This is a beekeeping blog, I know. But I sometimes write non-bee stuff. Once a year I go entirely off-topic and write a bit about our annual Calgary ALS fundraiser, Betty’s Run. Thank you for indulging my digressions. I have … Continue reading
Bees on Leashes
Back in November, the City of Halifax in Nova Scotia, Canada, accidentally made it illegal to keep bees. Or wasps, hornets, yellow jackets and fire ants. (What? No more pet fire ants?) Now they are trying to amend the prohibition … Continue reading
Posted in Outreach, Strange, Odd Stuff
Tagged Halifax, illegal beekeeping, Nova Scotia
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Sound and Honey (as seen in BeesCene)
The editor of BC’s BeeScene bee magazine picked up an earlier blog post of mine. Last month I wrote about my 13-year-old’s science fair project where Daniel used ultrasound to liquefy comb honey. The results were promising, but not overwhelming. … Continue reading
Posted in Comb Honey, Honey, Outreach, Science, Tools and Gadgets
Tagged BeesCene, granulation, honey, science fairs, ultrasound
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May 20: World Bee Day
There’s a small country in Central Europe, a very beautiful alpine country, called Slovenia. Slovenia has only about two million people, but this tiny country is very big in beekeeping. Tucked between Italy and Austria, it has both mountains and … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, or lack thereof, History, Outreach, Save the Bees
Tagged Anton Jansa, honey bees, Slovenia, World Bee Day
13 Comments
Friends Among the Bees
I spent a few hours in the bees today. This was part of our bee club’s beginner beekeeping course and I was one of the instructors, showing 50 new beekeepers the mysterious inner workings of our club president’s hives. The … Continue reading
