Unfortunately, no… Not controlling Varroa will allow them to spread—not only to your other hives but often to all the hives within a few miles of your own bees. Not controlling Varroa in some manner is irresponsible as a beekeeper...
Requeening a hive is only half of the battle when it comes to getting a hive to accept a new queen! Ensuring she is accepted is critical. Remember to wait at least 5-7 days before checking back after installing a...
“Dearth” and “Drought” can be synonymous… By: Chari Elam August – For some beekeepers, death can be as intimidating as Darth Vader from Star Wars! Dearth Definition: A scarcity or lack of something – In a honey bee’s life, it...
By: Blake Shook If you keep bees in the southern half of the US, especially within 500 miles of the coast, you’ve most likely had to deal with small hive beetles. They are especially problematic when trying to feed pollen...
By: Ed Erwin - Master Beekeeper Mentor Director Montgomery County Beekeepers Association Founder: BeeHarmony.org Inside of a bee hive, honey bees live in virtual darkness, making smell and touch critical to the communication with other honey bees within the colony....
By: Dodie Stillman Dodie Stillman and Ann Harmon 2019 TBA Convention - San Antonio After 2020 preventing an in-person convention, TBA is very excited to host the 2021 Texas Beekeepers Association “in person” Convention at Moody Gardens – Galveston, TX....
By: Ed Erwin Beekeepers know that pheromones are the key to controlling all activities of the bees in the beehive. The word pheromone comes from the ancient Greek word phero, which means "to bear" and hormone. Pheromones of the honey...
1. As the honey flow begins in most of the state, your hive should be reaching its peak population. Check your hive weekly to ensure they have enough room. In some areas, bees can bring in up to 10lbs of...
It makes sense, right? Bees do best eating honey rather than syrups (though not substantially), so why not feed bees old or leftover honey? There are some major cons to feeding bees honey rather than sugar or corn syrup. They...
1. Make sure each hive has at least 30 pounds of surplus honey stored in the second box. Your bees will need at least 30 pounds of stores to survive the winter. As temperatures drop, bees dramatically slow down the rate at...
If you’ve ever walked out to find a dead hive and thought, what happened?—you’re not alone. Hive forensics helps you read the clues your bees left behind, understand what went wrong, and protect your colonies moving forward.
Drone laying hives are one of the more frustrating issues in beekeeping, and they’re not always worth trying to save. They usually come from a failed queen or laying workers, so the key is quickly identifying the cause and deciding if the hive is strong enough—and the timing is right to even attempt a fix.
You’ve done a fantastic job of keeping your bees healthy and growing this year and for that you have hive boxes bursting with bees! Not a bad problem to have, right? We know bees are incredible creatures that adapt to...
As with many topics in beekeeping, there is much room for debate on comb rotation as well. There is no hard and fast rule as to when combs should be rotated. The problem is not that comb darkens or gets...
