Monoculture diets and honey bee health
As I mentioned in an earlier post, pollen is virtually the only source a colony has for protein, lipids, vitamins, and minerals. Colonies that pollinate large monocultures—such as almonds—have a severe...
View ArticlePollen: a tough package wrapped in color
One of the first thing beekeepers notice about pollen is its color. Depending on where you live, pollen loads come in many shades of yellow, white, orange, pink, blue, gray, and purple. And because...
View ArticleUncapped honey fermenting in the comb
To produce honey, bees collect nectar, add enzymes from their honey stomachs, and fan the mixture with their wings until it dehydrates to a moisture content of about 16 to 18.5 percent. If the moisture...
View ArticleThe CCD connection: what I believe about colony collapse disorder
Hardly a day goes by when someone doesn’t mention colony collapse disorder to me, either in person, in an e-mail or comment, or on the phone. “I hear they found the cause of CCD!” is a statement I’ve...
View ArticleHoney bee forage: pussy willow
A male pussy willow is one of the best trees for the bee yard because it will bloom especially early in the year. Beekeepers often plant them close to the apiary to help the bees through the...
View ArticleMonday morning myth: alder pollen is bad for bees
I don’t know if this rumor is everywhere, but you certainly hear it here in the Pacific Northwest and in southwestern Canada. We have a lot of red alder (Alnus rubra) in this area, so that’s probably...
View ArticleHoney bee forage: hardy kiwi
The hardy kiwi or “northern kiwi” (Actinidia arguta) is a vine that produces thousands of small, smooth-skinned kiwis about the size of large grapes. The plants are dioecious, meaning male and female...
View ArticleWhat vitamins should I give to my bees?
I am in no way an expert on honey bee nutrition. But in the past few years—especially since the advent of colony collapse disorder—many knowledgeable people have been studying bee nutrition under the...
View ArticlePollen variety and bee health
Yesterday I wrote that bees need a continuous supply of flowering plants such that something is always in bloom. I also mentioned that different types of bees prefer different types of flowers. What I...
View ArticleLove that dirty water
The song “Dirty Water” was released by the Standells in 1966, but it could have been written by your local bee colony. It seems honey bees prefer water that most of us would consider unpalatable. I...
View ArticleProtein and the hypopharyngeal gland
Honey bee nutrition is a hot topic these days. Due to their work in monoculture crops, honey bee colonies may not be receiving a well-balanced and complete diet. The surrounding landscape is changing...
View ArticleTea in the honey bee diet
I have always shrugged off the idea of “bee tea” as ridiculous, a feel-good indulgence for beekeepers with too much time and money on their hands. The idea that bee health could be augmented by an...
View ArticleAn act of defiance
Honey bee nutrition is getting a lot of press these days, and rightfully so. Many bee experts—including Marla Spivak, Zachary Huang, and Randy Oliver—believe that a lack of good nutrition may be a...
View ArticleThe CCD connection: what I believe about colony collapse disorder
Hardly a day goes by when someone doesn’t mention colony collapse disorder to me, either in person, in an e-mail or comment, or on the phone. “I hear they found the cause of CCD!” is a statement I’ve...
View ArticleHoney bee forage: pussy willow
A male pussy willow is one of the best trees for the bee yard because it will bloom especially early in the year. Beekeepers often plant them close to the apiary to help the bees through the...
View ArticleMonday morning myth: alder pollen is bad for bees
I don’t know if this rumor is everywhere, but you certainly hear it here in the Pacific Northwest and in southwestern Canada. We have a lot of red alder (Alnus rubra) in this area, so that’s probably...
View ArticleHoney bee forage: hardy kiwi
The hardy kiwi or “northern kiwi” (Actinidia arguta) is a vine that produces thousands of small, smooth-skinned kiwis about the size of large grapes. The plants are dioecious, meaning male and female...
View ArticleWhat vitamins should I give to my bees?
I am in no way an expert on honey bee nutrition. But in the past few years—especially since the advent of colony collapse disorder—many knowledgeable people have been studying bee nutrition under the...
View ArticlePollen variety and bee health
Yesterday I wrote that bees need a continuous supply of flowering plants such that something is always in bloom. I also mentioned that different types of bees prefer different types of flowers. What I...
View ArticleLove that dirty water
The song “Dirty Water” was released by the Standells in 1966, but it could have been written by your local bee colony. It seems honey bees prefer water that most of us would consider unpalatable. I...
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