There are some topics guaranteed to cause blazing arguments even between friends and family, such as Brexit, or in the case of British beekeepers; the Black Bee (Apis mellifera mellifera). I love all bees and think it would be a disaster if any particular sub-species were to die […]
I have just been directed to this by hivemaker on the beekeeping forum (Peter Little) and it really is groundbreaking stuff. It seems extremely likely from this work that the varroa mites feed on the bees’ fat body material rather than blood, and 95% of mites attach to […]
Firstly, my dear Dad died last week. Apart from being a Dad, which is a pretty big thing to be, he was a loyal reader of this blog. Dads are meant to be supportive of their son’s endeavours, and mine was. I know that he learned a bit […]
As I slump in my incredibly comfortable La Z Boy chair in front of my super amazing iMac computer, I can still feel the bulk of my birthday meal progressing steadily through my walrus body. That meal was yesterday, and very delicious it was too, but birthdays are […]
For those that do not know, which probably means all non-beekeepers, supersedure is what happens in a beehive when the bees make a new queen to ultimately replace the existing queen. The other way of doing this is by swarming. In supersedure, the bees do not swarm, theoretically, […]
Gosh, it’s been a long time since I wrote a blog post. Perhaps I have some sloth DNA somewhere in me. Maybe long ago a wayward walrus mated with a sloth and generations later the characteristics of our three-toed slow-moving friends popped up in me. It’s surprising how […]
I knew that Peter Little was a nice guy, having had a few telephone conversations with him at various times, but I had no idea until I met him just how highly skilled he is in so many technical areas. He is all about being self-sufficient with all […]
Our local club President, Danny Cannon, delivered one of the best lectures I’ve ever sat through at a MSBA meeting a few years ago. It was titled Flexibility in Beekeeping, Being Flexible in Beekeeping, or some such similar title. That lecture keeps ringing through my brain lately and […]
When I drove down to the Headquarters of Airborne Honey in Leeston on New Zealand’s South Island, it was a scorching hot Summer’s day, not unlike today’s weather six months later here in the UK. I’m on my second summer this year, which is excellent! Airborne Honey is […]
We are having an actual Summer here in the UK this year, which is a very welcome, if unexpected, treat. Most beekeepers seem to be reporting that it’s a good year for honey. I always find that most of my honey comes off a handful of big colonies […]
