ProtectaBEE won a silver medal from the World Beekeeping Awards last month

Kate Bueckert · CBC News ·

ProtectaBEE is a new beehive entrance that can help protect honeybees from pests and disease. It recently won silver from the World Beekeeping Awards at the 48th Apimondia International Apicultural Congress in Chile in September. It was created by Best For Bees and researchers at the University of Guelph. Best For Bees founder Erica Shelley talks about the invention and how it works.

A new device created by Ontario researchers is like adding a new, safe front porch to honeybee hives.

ProtectaBEE is a honeybee hive entrance that can help protect the pollinators from pests and diseases.

In recent years, beekeepers across the country have faced a number of challenges when it comes to maintaining their bee hives, including changing climate and parasites and in particular varroa mites. The mites feed on honeybees and can spread viruses in hives.

This past spring, beekeepers across the country reported large colony losses. Rod Scarlett, executive director of the Canadian Honey Council, told CBC News in April Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario honey producers lost an average of 40 to 45 per cent of their bees earlier this year while losses were as high as 60 per cent in Quebec.

It’s a problem Erica Shelley wanted to address, She’s the founder of Best For Bees, a research and development company for beekeepers based in Kitchener. She collaborated with University of Guelph researcher Peter Kevan on ProtectaBEE.

The ProtectaBEE device is red and has nozzles for the entrance and exit to the hive.

The hive entrance was first created for bee vectoring — a process developed by Kevan and other Guelph researchers where bees walk through a biocontrol powder, which they shake off onto crops while getting pollen. The biocontrol powder protects crops and deals with the parasitic varroa mite.

“That’s still in development, it’s a few years out,” Shelley said.

But in testing the product, Shelley said she found other benefits.

“The red colour actually is not easily seen by other insects,” she said.

“It actually is a protection against wasps and hornets and yellow jackets and even robbing bees from other hives,” Shelley said, adding it also protects against skunks and mice.

Silver medal at global conference

ProtectaBEE has now been recognized on a world stage. The device won a silver medal from the World Beekeeping Awards, which were handed out at the Apimondia International Apicultural Congress in Chile last month.

Shelley says there were about 20 entries from developers and inventors from around the world, large machines down to smaller innovative ideas.

“To have the world’s experts look at your thing that you’ve invented and they’ve seen so many inventions come through over the years and then to award a medal to it, it was just that kind of honour,” she said.

Erica Shelley is the founder of Best for Bees, based in Kitchener. She worked with University of Guelph researcher Peter Kevan to develop ProtectaBEE, a hive entrance for honeybees. She’s wearing the silver medal ProtectaBEE won at the World Beekeeping Awards in September. (Kate Bueckert/CBC)

“It also means we’re on the right track and what we’re working on is something that has meaning and is obviously worthwhile.”

Enid Brown, a director with the World Bee Awards, explained the judges for the awards are all practical beekeepers and they “study all the exhibits and look to see how practical they are and if the invention would be suitable to use.”

“They are aware of other products on the market and take into consideration whether this is a true invention or something that has been altered,” Brown told CBC News in an email.

Kevan says Shelley took his previous research and built upon it to create ProtectaBEE and he says it’s a smart invention because it’s simple and quick to use.

Now, the goal will be to get more people to use it, he said.

“It certainly would be useful, I think, to the commercial side of beekeeping, honey production and honey bee protection,” he told CBC News. “It’s got to be accepted by the industry and used by the industry of course and will catch on.”

Kevan said he’d also encourage government agencies and commercial agricultural producers not to overlook ProtectaBEE as a viable way to maintain healthy bees. He says it’s been his experience that these groups have not really recognized Canadian-led research into bee health, even though he believes they’re a leader in the area.

“It’s been very much sort of a ho hum response from government funding agencies and the ho hum response from the bigger established commercial entities,” he said.

Bee data project

While at the conference, Shelley and Best For Bees also launched a Big Bee data movement. She says she hopes it’s a way to collect data from beekeepers around the world to watch for trends.

“It might be pollution, it might be diversity, it might be pests, it might be forage that’s available and that, with using machine-learning, we can actually answer these big questions quickly,” Shelley said.

“So we’re trying to have this movement … so that beekeepers can help beekeepers to solve the world’s bee crisis.”

Shelley says it’s very personal for her to protect bees.

“Bees are very important for our environment and also our food security,” she said. “Our ability to eat good food goes hand-in-hand with their survival.”

We are here to share current happenings in the bee industry. Bee Culture gathers and shares articles published by outside sources. For more information about this specific article, please visit the original publish source: Bees can now get their hives renovated — and it could save their lives | CBC News

Ingredients:

French bread or sour dough loaf, cut to fit in a 9×13 pan (a regular loaf of bread works too)
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
2 tablespoons vanilla, divided
2 cups powdered sugar
Juice from 1 lemon
2 cups fresh blueberries
1 cup fresh raspberries or blackberries (frozen berries will work too)
6 eggs
2 cups milk
1/3 cup honey
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:

Prepare your 9×13 backing dish with cooking spray.

If you’re using French bread, cut into one inch slices.

Make the filling by mixing the cream cheese and one tablespoon of vanilla, until smooth. Fold in berries.

In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, milk, honey, one teaspoon of cinnamon and one tablespoon of vanilla.

Pour over the bread making sure to get the tops of the slices.

Cover and chill overnight (up to two days).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Remove French toast from refrigerator while oven heats.

Bake, uncovered for 30-40 minutes, or until puffed and golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cover with foil and bake another five to 10 minutes if needed for the eggs to set.

This Old Bee House: Study Deems Hive Boxes Drafty, Inefficient

The classic wooden hive box used by beekeepers worldwide, first designed in the 1800s, is prone to temperature swings, according to a study by researchers at Queensland University of Technology in Australia. That’s bad news for the honey bees inside, who must expend energy to maintain their favored internal hive temperature. (Photo by Rebekah D. Wallace, University of Georgia, Bugwood.org)

By Paige Embry

European honey bees (Apis mellifera) suffer from an astonishing array of problems—Varroa mites, hive beetles, foulbrood, chalkbrood, stonebrood, deformed wing virus, 20-plus other viruses, poor diet, predation, pesticide exposure—it’s death by a thousand cuts. A new paper in the Journal of Economic Entomology adds another knife: the typical house beekeepers provide for honey bees. It’s a wooden box based on a nineteenth century design that leaks and gains heat just like you’d expect it would. And occasionally someone comes along and takes away part of the insulation (honey). Honey bees just can’t win.

Daniel Cook is a Ph.D. candidate at Queensland University of Technology in Australia and lead author on the study,  published in March in the Journal of Economic Entomology, which examined the thermal dynamics of the traditional managed honey bee hive box. Cook says via email that the commonly used wooden hive boxes “are designed for the human first, with the bee a vague afterthought.”

While studying industrial design as an undergraduate, Cook looked at how to build a better hive box. “I had a small bee yard peppered with sensors to determine how the bee hive itself behaves thermally,” he says. “From there, the design of the hive screamed of thermal inefficiencies.” Cook and colleagues’ research on the thermal properties of typical hive boxes quantifies their leakiness and highlights the potential impacts on the bees and their keepers.

Honey bees are persnickety about the temperature of their home. It needs to be between 34.5 and 35.5 degrees Celsius (approximately 94-96 degreesFahrenheit) or it adversely impacts the brood (eggs, larvae, and pupae), so the bees work to maintain that ideal temperature in various ways, such as fanning with their wings to cool or shivering to warm.

In their study, the researchers calculated the heat loss of the boxes along with the thermal impact of certain beekeeping practices. All the experiments looked at the heat loss only from the boxes and their non-living components (honey, wax, etc.). “The reason I left bees out of this study was that there are far too many behaviours that occur in the hive for thermoregulation,” Cook says. “It is not an easily applicable constant!”

The authors compared the heat loss of a standard wooden box to a polystyrene model where the internal temperature was a honey bee-idyllic 35 C and the outside temp was 25 C. The polystyrene version’s heat loss was 23 percent of the amount lost by the wooden box. Cook notes that about half the heat loss is through the lid; therefore, “a well insulated lid could reduce stress in the hive and increase forager availability.”

To read the complete article go to;

This Old Bee House: Study Deems Hive Boxes Drafty, Inefficient (entomologytoday.org)

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MARTINSVILLE, Ind. (September 3, 2020) – Today, Seed Your Future announced the launch of its expanded Horticulture Career Exploration Tool. Much more than a basic alphabetical list of the more than 140 careers working with plants, the resource first asks site visitors to consider what they are interested in, and then profiles careers in horticulture that might match their interests. This tool is the latest resource from Seed Your Future, a coalition of more than 200 partners — including horticulture companies, gardening organizations, schools, colleges, universities, public gardens, youth organizations, nonprofit organizations, and individual advocates — united in their mission to promote horticulture and careers working with plants.

Every career page includes a profile of the job, the level of training and education required, links to where to study in the U.S. and Canada, data about salaries, links to professional organizations supporting that career, and engaging videos of real people in each career. Designed to provide introductory information to each career across the art, science, technology, education, and business of horticulture, this expanded resource will continue to grow as more careers are featured, and more videos selected to help users understand the diverse and rewarding options of a career working with plants.

“Seed Your Future is committed to providing quality, reputable information about green-collar careers working with plants,” said Susan E. Yoder, executive director of Seed Your Future. “A ‘green-lining’ of the recent global pandemic has been the renewed interest in plants, with families growing their own food and flowers, purchasing houseplants, seeds, garden supplies, and spending their time improving the world around them. Showing students, parents, mid-career changers and educators that there are meaningful and rewarding careers working with plants is the next step to building the pipeline of talent in green-collar professions,” said Yoder. “Whether this resource introduces site visitors to a fulfilling career, or a lifelong passion, one thing is clear — the more we know about plants, the more we can make a difference in the world today.”

Research identified the lack of detailed, centrally accessible information about the careers available in horticulture. Parents, teachers, guidance counselors, and youth all expressed the need for online resources to help them find out more about the careers available working with plants. “The site SeedYourFuture.org/careers serves as a digital hub for all horticulture-career information in a concise, easy to read format,” said Yoder. Future resources in development by Seed Your Future include a recruitment toolkit for horticulture and green-collar industry training and education programs, and industry promotional materials to open people’s eyes to the remarkable power of plants and the rewards of careers in the green-collar industry.

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About Seed Your Future

Seed Your Future is a national movement to promote horticulture and inspire people to pursue careers working with plants. Supported by more than 200 partner organizations, we envision a U.S. where everyone understands and values the importance of plants and the people who work in the art, science, technology, education and business of horticulture. For information, visit us at SeedYourFuture.org.

Contact:
Susan E. Yoder
syoder@SeedYourFuture.org
(484) 798-5934

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Photo: Santypan (Shutterstock)

Like butterflies and fireflies, bee populations have been hard-hit by habitat loss. Honeybees are important pollinators for a wide range of plants, and while bee colonies fared a little better over the last year than expected, data show declines of up to 90% in some areas over a 15-year period.

That’s why the American Bee Project is looking for property owners who are willing to lend out their land to commercial beekeepers—and helping them get compensated for it.

Here are a few things you can do to boost bee conservation efforts.

Apply for a beekeeping tax credit

There isn’t technically a credit simply for keeping bees, but if you work with the American Bee Project to place a commercial apiary on your property, you may be eligible for agricultural tax classification and associated credits. The project has a state-by-state guide to beekeeping regulations and tax qualifications, so find your state to see if you qualify, and reach out to the project for more info on how to get set up.

Check your local backyard beekeeping laws

Even if your property doesn’t qualify for the tax credit, you may still be able to maintain your own apiary. You’ll need to check your city’s rules and regulations for beekeeping first, as it’s unlikely you can just buy a hive and plop it in your yard. In Salt Lake City, for example, you have to apply for a permit and meet specific space and construction requirements.

Since there is no single government department that handles citizen beekeeping, the easiest way to track down your local laws is to google some variation of “beekeeping in [your city]”—this search may also bring up local beekeeping organizations you can reach out to for more resources.

If you don’t want to keep bees yourself, there are a lot of other things you can do to support bee conservation. The Honeybee Conservancy has a list of actions for various levels of commitment. These range from planting bee-friendly trees and gardens to setting up bee baths (similar to birdbaths) to sponsoring a hive at a school or community garden.

And, of course, there are easy actions, like signing petitions against pesticides, that you can take right now from the comfort of your couch. The Xerces Society is an excellent resource for all thing’s conservation.

https://lifehacker.com/get-paid-to-be-a-beekeeper-1844545324

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Brothers Matt and Evan Nissen of 5 Star Honey Farms check on bee colonies at one of the 25 sites where they store bees. Healthy bees are a critical element to Kern’s $1.2 billion almond harvest.

Levi and Matt Nissen of 5 Star Honey Farms distribute bees to fill boxes with eight frames or more on pallets before delivery to almond orchards. Healthy bees are critical element to Kern’s $1.2 billion almond harvest.

A sharp drop in the price of honey threatens new harm to an already battered industry that every year provides an integral service to Kern County’s $1.2 billion almond industry.

U.S. beekeepers say a recent glut of honey imported from Asia and elsewhere has caused prices to plummet during the last 12 months, past the point at which U.S. producers can hope to make a profit. Honey’s flagging popularity as a sweetener has also lowered honey prices.

The situation is not likely to impact the pollination expected to take place next month as almond orchards bloom across the Central Valley.

But there is expected to be some effect on the almond industry eventually if low honey prices persist.

Just what that impact would be, and whether it’s good or bad for almond growers, is unclear.

Because beekeepers on average get about a third of their annual income from honey production, according to Rabo AgriFinance, there is some concern the price drop will force some operations out of business.

That could lower the supply of pollinators available to service local almond orchards. It’s also possible, however, that beekeepers leaving the business would sell to others who would simply absorb the extra bee colonies.

On the other hand, some are speculating that beekeepers less focused on honey production would respond by turning their attention more squarely toward the Central Valley’s annual almond pollination, which Rabo AgriFinance said makes up close to half of beekeepers’ income.

“If there’s less reliance on honey as a revenue stream, then that makes the pollination part of the game that much more critical” to beekeepers, said Roland Fumasi, senior analyst at Rabo AgriFinance.

But Montana beekeeper Bill Dahle, who expects to have about 10,000 colonies for rental to local almond growers next month after losing 40 percent of his inventory last year, said lower honey prices will “absolutely” lead to fewer bees available for pollination in the future.

“There’s no way that pollination by itself will pay the bills,” he said. “You just cannot do it on pollination (income) alone.”
Shafter beekeeper and bee broker Mike Mulligan agreed, saying the lower honey prices will remove about a quarter of some beekeepers’ annual income and “that’s going to be enough to knock some guys out.”

“It’s just going to really depress this industry further,” he said.

According to U.S. Department of Agriculture data, honey prices paid to producers averaged $2.17 per pound in 2018. Although USDA’s official 2019 price report is not yet available, Fumasi said recent price reports show U.S. domestic prices have fallen to between $1.80 to $1.25 per pound, depending on the type and source.

Beekeepers say they do sometimes have to decide between focusing on honey production and preparing for the almond pollination. They say their actions can have implications for the availability and price of rental bee colonies, which for almond growers have increased from $50 or lower as recently as the early 2000s to about $200 this year.

The way this selection generally happens is that beekeepers trying to maximize honey production tend to keep their bee colonies large and intact through summer. But if the desire is to prepare for the almond pollination, where the emphasis is on offering high volumes of colonies for rent, beekeepers often divide their colonies in half and introduce a second queen.

The drop in honey prices has come as beekeepers continue to struggle with massive die-offs believed to be caused by a variety of factors including an insidious parasite called the varroa mite. Pesticides and fungicides are also seen as a threat to bee health.
Adding to beekeepers’ troubles are high trucking costs and a tight market for experienced labor.

At the same time, almond acreage in California — far and away the leader in global production — has risen significantly in recent years, even as international tariffs have limited prices.

The added acreage has put pressure on beekeepers to deliver more and more pollinators. But that has become difficult in light of annual colony losses.

Josette Lewis, director of agricultural affairs at the Almond Board of California, said she was unaware of growers having trouble finding sufficient numbers of bee colonies this year.

The Wonderful Co., one of the world’s largest almond producers, said it expects to have enough bees to pollinate its orchards next month.

“While it’s still a bit early for us to know how well all of our bees have fared,” spokesman Mark Carmel said by email, “initial indications are that this will be an average or better than average year.”

City of Orange beekeeper Steve Wernett envisioned a situation in which Midwestern beekeepers’ lack of income from honey sales keeps them from being able to pay to transport their bees to California for the almond bloom, leading to higher bee rental prices in Kern.

Then, the following year, he said, there could be an overcompensation in which beekeepers try to capitalize on the higher pollination prices, leading to a glut of bees and lower pollination fees.

He blamed the lower prices on major U.S. retailers insisting on lower prices. He said that, in turn, leads to blending of domestic and imported honey, resulting in lower quality.

“I don’t know how it’s going to be rectified,” he said.

Back in 2015, a father-son duo changed the beekeeping game simply by redesigning the traditional beehive – and now, honeybees are benefitting from their profits.

Stuart and Cedar Anderson are the co-creators of the Flow Hive: a brilliantly designed beehive that saves beekeepers hours of work simply by channeling all of its honey into a tap that can be turned on and off at will.

The Flow Hive allows honey to flow out of the hive straight into a jar without crushing or disrupting the bees inside. It can also fit in a small backyard or on a rooftop or balcony.

Cedar, who is a third-generation beekeeper from the rural community of Nimbin, Australia, says that he was inspired to try and design a simpler beehive after his brother was stung during one of their honey extraction missions.

The young inventor knew that there must be an easier way to collect honey without having to wear protective suits, crack open the hive, and disturb the tiny pollinators.

“Ten years ago, Cedar had this idea: ‘come on, we must be able to get honey from a beehive without opening it, extracting and stressing the bees’,” his father Stuart recalled to ABC News.

After several years of tinkering, the Andersons finally perfected their Flow Hive prototype. Upon raising money for the hive’s manufacturing on Indiegogo, their campaign became the most successful crowdfunding page in the platform’s history by raising over $12 million in 8 weeks.

Four years after their initial success, the Flow Hive has had a dramatic impact on honeybee populations around the world.

The Andersons say that they have successfully shipped over 51,000 hives to 150 different countries. Since they launched the hive in 2015, the number of beekeepers in the U.S. alone has increased by over 10%.

Their success is particularly notable since honeybee populations have been steadily dwindling as a result of habitat loss and pesticides.

That’s why now – in celebration of National Pollinator Week – the Andersons are donating their hive proceeds to international honeybee advocacy groups.

“We’re proud to have donated 100% of profits from the sale of our Flow Pollinator House to nine local grassroots pollinator projects in Australia and the United States that are at work protecting wild habitats all around the world,” said Cedar in a statement.

“Pollinators need large areas of habitat to flourish—the more we can do to protect and conserve native habitats, the more opportunities these tiny environmental champions will have to do their important work.”

If you want to learn more about how the hive works or order one for yourself, you can visit the Flow Hive website. Also, watch for our www.beekeepingtodaypodcast.com for an interview with the Andersons about their inventions and other projects they have going. Visit with them at EAS this summer, too!

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Figure 1. 10kg of honey as 8kg sugar and 2kg water.

By : Derek Mitchell

Honey bees collect flower nectar to make honey, but that is only the beginning. It can be shown that they can need more than 50% of the energy in the nectar they have collected to evaporate the nectar into honey1.

Although the research paper goes into some detailed maths, it was previously a visual presentation to beekeepers, and before that a simple thought experiment in my front room, made real with some props. This was to make sure to myself and the skeptical beekeepers that the very surprising result was genuine.

Let’s do that thought experiment again. Imagine a shallow super of honey: to make the numbers simple yet realistic, let the honey weigh 10 kilograms (kg). If it has a atypical 20% water content that means 8kg of sugar and 2kg of water (figure 1).

Figure 2. At 20% nectar concentration each kg of sugar in nectar has 4kg of water, 5kg. total.

Figure 3. 10kg of honey has the same sugar content as 40kg of nectar at 20% concentration.

The honey bees typically collect nectar at 20% to 40%2 concentration of sugars, so let’s take 20% concentration as our example, again to make calculation simple yet realistic. Then each kg of sugar they collect in nectar, comes with 4kg of water, a total of 5kg (figure 2).

Then we can see, that to get the 8kg of sugar in the 10kg of honey, they need to collect 8×5=40kg of nectar as shown in figure 3.

After the honey bees collect the nectar they convert it into honey. To do this they remove 30kg of water to convert the 40kg of nectar into 10kg of honey.

They use a similar process, evaporation, and it takes a similar amount of energy (slightly larger in fact), as if you tried to do it on your kitchen stove. Anyone who has tried a recipe where it says “add a bottle of wine and reduce by half,” or made jam or marmalade can attest to the amount of gas or electricity and time that takes i.e. a lot of energy. It takes 0.61 kilowatt hours (kWh) to change one kg of liquid water at 100°C into water vapour at 100°C. So it would need 18.3 kWh on the stove to change 30kg of liquid water at 100°C in to vapour. They do not use a stove but lap at it with their tongues for a few minutes, then heat the air gently with their bodies and move that air by fanning their wings for hours to drive off the water content. It takes 0.67kWh per kg to evaporate water at 40°C. That means 20kWh of energy to make 30kg water at 40°C change into vapour. They don’t use electricity or gas as fuel and can’t just pay a big bill to a utility company. They have to go and fetch the fuel themselves in the form of sugar in the nectar they collect. Sugar contains energy at about 4.4kWh per kg so 20kwh is the energy in about 4.5kg of sugar or 22kg of nectar. Including the original 40kg of nectar that constitutes the honey means a total nectar weight of 62kg (figure 4).

Figure 4. 10kg honey needs 62kg of 20% nectar at 100% thermal efficiency of evaporation.

But 62kg is assuming 100% thermal efficiency in the process and therefore no losses of heat. The losses depend on the outside temperature and the design and material of the hive or nest the bees reside in as well as the detailed behavior of the honey bees. So a reasonable value for a wooden hive without many shallows or supers, at an outside temperature of 25°C might be 50%1. This then doubles the 22kg of nectar fuel needed. With 50% thermal efficiency, the 44kg of nectar evaporation fuel plus the original 40kg of nectar means a total of 84kg needs to be collected for the 10kg of honey.

Figure 5 is what 84kg of nectar looks like. You can see why I had to go to these lengths and not just work it out as maths exercise. If a colony produces 100kg of honey per year that’s an energy bill of 400kWh per year or nearly a metric ton of nectar.

Figure 5. 10kg honey needs 84kg of 20% nectar at 50% thermal efficiency of evaporation.

Our thought experiment illustrates just one nectar concentration and one level of thermal efficiency. We can use maths to give values for all reasonable values of nectar concentration and thermal efficiency and draw a graph of the amount of nectar for each unit of honey, figure 6.

The red M line shows the nectar to honey ratio if the conversion from nectar to honey needed no energy. From this graph you can see that improving the thermal efficiency reduces the amount of nectar the honey bees have to fetch for the same nectar concentration, and for the same effort they can collect a weaker nectar if the thermal efficiency is higher.

If we take away the nectar burned up by the bees flying there and back to a nectar patch six kilometers (just under four miles) away, we get the graph in figure 7. This has moved all of the black lines in the graph up and to the right compared to figure 6.

Figure 6. J nectar to honey ratio versus nectar concentration at various thermal efficiency percentages, distance hive to nectar patch zero kilometers.

Figure 7. Nectar to honey ratio versus nectar concentration at various thermal efficiency percentages, distance hive to nectar patch 6 kilometers

Together these graphs show that to fly further, the honey bees have to collect a more concentrated nectar, or have a higher thermal efficiency nest, or collect even more nectar. The vertical distance from the x-axis to the red “M” line compared to the vertical distance from the x-axis to the black efficiency line gives the relative amounts of nectar constituting the honey and the total used making the honey.

What is thermal efficiency

Thermal efficiency is the ratio of the energy that succeeds in evaporating water to the amount of energy the honey bees actually put into the process. This depends on a combination of the outside temperature, the concentration of the nectar and the level of insulation of the nest or hive occupied by the honey bees. Lets look at those factors in more detail: the first factor, temperature, is dependent on the weather; the second factor, nectar concentration; the honey bees try to optimise³; and the third factor, nest selection. Honey bees put a lot of effort into nest selection4 (and arguably less by bee keepers), because in the wild, honey bees have thick walled (average 150mm) tree nests, man made hives on the other hand have thin walls (19mm) (figure 8) and heat losses up to seven times greater⁵.

Figure 8. Tree nest and hive compared

Why is it important?

We have seen how thermal efficiency can change how far honey bees can fly to forage and what flowers they can collect from to make the same amount of honey from the same amount of nectar. In basic survival terms, a high thermal efficiency means in times when the forage is poor they can fly further, find and utilize less rich food. Thermal efficiency impacts the good times as well. Let’s consider that honey bees wings wear out, (we can see that by looking at the bees crawling from the hives with ragged wings, no longer able to fly). So every wingbeat a honey bee takes is a colony resource being used up to collect supplies for the colony⁶. This resource can only be replenished when new honey bees emerge. If we increase thermal efficiency of the nest it takes less nectar to make the same amount of honey, this means less wing beats flying to fetch the nectar. However, an enormous number of wing beats are being expended in the hive to remove the water content. Anyone who has listened to a hive during a nectar flow, knows that level of noise, which can be heard several metres away, involves a lot of wing beats. Those wing beats in the nest may actually wear the wings out faster than flying as it is being done so close to the hive surfaces and other honey bees⁷. Consequently, thermal efficiency changes how many honey bees lives are needed to make jar of honey.

Conclusion

By improving the thermal efficiency of the hives and the bee keeping practices we use, we can make the honey bees job of converting nectar into honey easier. This can mean significant improvements in survival of colonies and greater honey yields as confirmed by one of the largest bee farmers in the UK, who has thousands of expanded polystyrene and wooden hives to compare.

Honey bees exploit thermal physics on a prodigious scale to make honey, by following their lead we can use thermal physics to improve their thermal efficiency and so we help them, to help us.

References

1. Mitchell D. 2019 Thermal efficiency extends distance and variety for honey bee foragers: Analysis of the energetics of nectar collection and dessication by Apis mellifera. J. R. Soc. Interface 16. (doi:10.1098/rsif.2018.0879)
2. Wykes GR. 1953 The Sugar Content of Nectars. Biochem. J. 53, 294–296.
3. Vischer PK, Seeley TD. 1982 Foraging Strategy of Honeybee Colonies in a Temperate Deciduous Forest. Ecology 63, 1790–1801.
4. Seeley TD, Morse RA. 1978 Nest site selection by the honey bee, Apis mellifera. Insectes Soc. 25, 323–337. (doi:10.1007/BF02224297)
5. Mitchell D. 2016 Ratios of colony mass to thermal conductance of tree and man-made nest enclosures of Apis mellifera: implications for survival, clustering, humidity regulation and Varroa destructor. Int. J. Biometeorol. 60, 629–638. (doi:10.1007/s00484- 015-1057-z)
6. Higginson AD, Gilbert F. 2004 Paying for nectar with wingbeats: a new model of honeybee foraging. Proc. R. Soc. B Biol. Sci. 271, 2595–2603. (doi:10.1098/rspb.2004.2866)
7. Peters JM, Gravish N, Combes SA. 2017 Wings as impellers: honey bees co-opt flight system to induce nest ventilation and disperse pheromones. J. Exp. Biol. 220, 2203–2209. (doi:10.1242/ jeb.149476)

From the Editor: Before I moved to Ohio for this position, I lived for a time in Connecticut. My background was in horticulture, and there was a job opening just down the road at White Flower Farm, certainly a Mecca for anyone in the field of producing ornamentals. It was a seasonal position, and lasted only several months, but I applied for the job, and was hired by Eliot Wadsworth, who was then the guy in charge. He also had, If I recall, a hand in producing the magazine HORTICULTURE, which was required reading for anyone trying to get ahead in this field. I got to build green houses, raise all manner of perennials, spring bedding plants, and potted ornamentals, plant bulbs….it was the job of a lifetime and I still brag to those who know about such things that I used to work there.

Eliot is still there, but his son is mostly in charge now, so he has some time, and since he used to keep bees, he looked at that again. He hooked up with Dan Conlon, President of The Russian Bee Breeders Association and they got started with that part of the program. Now, Eliot is looking for someone to make this work as the Beekeeper. The job description is below. The location is incredible, and, in my opinion, the opportunity is a dream. If I was 40 years younger, I’d be standing in the line.

Mission
We’d like to establish a first-class commercial apiary whose primary product would be northern produced bees, preferably tied in to the Russian strains, and present these bees in combination with pollinator plants plus excellent information and service in a form similar to what we do with ornamental plants. This offering would exist as a department within the existing business of White Flower Farm and would be located in Morris, CT.

We anticipate developing product lines in honey and beekeeper supplies (we have marketing and distribution capability for both already in place) AFTER we have established our ability to produce first class bees and service.

Our launch platform includes land, office and lab space, temperature-controlled winter storage space, plus all the administration and logistics (finance, marketing, customer service, shipping) we’ve built for the farm.

The Job
We are seeking a skilled and seasoned beekeeper, preferably with experience in the northeast, to manage the production and breeding portions of the operation and blend the production with existing capacity in the areas noted above. Because this is a start-up operation, the ideal candidate would play an active role in developing our facilities to support the mission.

Our position offers a salary plus health insurance, an attractive private residence on property, and a vehicle for business use. Interested parties please contact Eliot Wadsworth via email at Ewadsworth@whiteflowerfarm.com.

After working hard all Summer, it’s time for something just for fun.

It’s time for some frivolity. You have worked hard, become frustrated and then recovered. Now let’s build something just for the fun of it. Whirligigs are the lawn ornaments that move or react to the wind.

A whirligig can also be an attention getter for the fairs or flea markets where you are selling your honey and can also be sold to gardeners as lawn ornaments.

This bee shaped whirligig is easy to build and will delight oldsters and youngsters alike. It is not meant to be an exact replica of a bee, but a stylized version. However, no one would have difficulty recognizing it as a bee.

Parts

1. ¾” x 6” x 12” Lumber – Bee body (1)

2. 5/8” x 4” Dowel – Wing support (1)

3. ⅛” x ??x?? – Wing (4)

4. ¾” x ¾” x 3” – Wing hub (2)

5. ¼” Copper tubing – Wing hub bearing (2)

6. ¼” Copper tubing – Rotational pivot bearing (1)

7. ¾” x 6’ x 6’ – Stand base (1)

8. ¾” Dowel – Whirligig support (1)

9. #8 – 1¾” Screw (2)

10. Washers

11. ¾” x 6” x 6” Lumber – Stand base (1)

12. 1” x ??” Dowel – Standoff (1)

13. Long finishing nail (1)

Construction

The bee body will be made followed by the wings and then an indoor stand to display the whirligig.

Step 1: Cut out the bee body (part 1)

Using the attached drawing, sketch the drawing on a sheet of paper. The lines on the drawing are at 1” increments. You can make a larger or smaller bee just by changing the spacing of the gridlines.

Hint: If you have a computer handy you can scan the attached drawing into the computer and then use an image editor to expand it to the size you need. Print it and use this printed output as the pattern.

Step 2: Cut out the bee body

When you are happy with your drawing, cut it out and trace the bee body on to a board. Cut sand and shape the body to your satisfaction.

Step 3: Drill a ⅝” hole for the wing support.

Hint: Only drill through the bee body until the centering point of the drill bit shows. Then turn the bee body over and complete the hole from the opposite side using the centering point hole as a guide.

Note: Be careful to drill the hole perpendicular to the hive body

Step 4: Make the wing support (part 2)

Cut part 2 from the ⅝” dowel. Then drill a pilot hole in the center of each end of the part 2. These pilot holes will be used for screw alignment and  mounting the wings onto the wing support.

Step 5: Install the wing support (part 2)

Glue the wing support in the hole drilled in step #3. Be sure the support is centered in the bee body and the amount of support on each side of the body is equal.

Step 6: Make the wings (parts 3)

Using the same technique, you used for step 1 to draw the bee body, draw the four wings on to ⅛” thick wood. You can design your own wings. A couple design restrictions need to be adhered to. First the wing width must not be wide enough as to hit the bee body. At the same time, it must be large enough to catch the wind. Cut the four identical wings out and sand them.

Hint: An easily obtainable source of free thin wood is a paint stirrer. Most home improvement stores will give them to you.

Hint: Align and clamp all the wings together and then sand them to shape as a single unit.

Recovery: If your design of the wing does not work, you can try again. The wings are separate and removable pieces until you finally glue them in place.

Step 7: Make the wing hubs (parts 4)

This is the most challenging part of making the whirligig. Cut a ¾” x ¾” x 3” piece of lumber. Make sure the grain runs the long way in the block of wood. Using the opposite corners as guides, cut a 1” deep slot in the end of the hub. The cut must be wide enough to allow a wing (part 3) to slide in and at the same time be tight enough to hold it in place. Continually test fit the wings to ensure a snug fit.

This is important: Now at the opposite end of the hub, perform the same cut. But, But, But, connect the corners that were not connected in the first cut. This will position the wings 90 degrees in relation to each other.

Repeat this step for the second set of wings.

Step 8: Add the wing hub bearings (part 5) to the wing hubs

Drill a 15/64” hole in the center of the wing hub.

Using ⅞” pieces of ¼” copper tubing (part 5), force it through the hole you just drilled. The extra 1/8” section of the tube will be positioned toward the bee body and keep the wing hub from rubbing against the wing support.

Step 9: Assemble the wing unit

Fit the wings into the slots in the wing hub. Do not glue the wings  on to the hub at this time. You may find that you have to redesign your wings so they will spin freely on the assembled bee.

Hint: You may have to use paper shims to hold the wings in place so they can be tested.

Step 10: Test assemble the bee

Using the screws as axels and washers as bearings, add the assembled wings to the wing support. The wings should be able to rotate easily and not touch the bee’s body. The copper tubing that extends from the wing hub and a washer minimize friction and wear.

Hint: You can use a hair drier as a wind source to see if the wing design provides enough surface area to spin the unit.

Step 11: Finish the wings

Once you are satisfied the wings will spin freely, remove the wing assemblies from the bee and glue the wings (parts 3) into the wing hubs (parts 4). Align them carefully so they are straight. To ensure they are solidly attached you should put some small brads through the wing hubs into the wings.

Step 12: Reassemble the bee

Put the wings back on the bee. This is so the rotational pivot alignment in the following step will have the correct weight distribution.

Step 13: Locate the rotational pivot (part 6)

The bee’s attitude is influenced by the positioning of the rotational pivot hole. The bee can either be flying up, down or level depending on the position of the pivot.

1) Tack a small brad into the top of the bee’s body.

2) Hang the bee from this brad. The bee will tilt using the brad as a pivot point. Move the brad along the top of the bee until the bee assumes the attitude you want.

3) Draw a vertical line from the brad to the bottom of the bee

This is the alignment needed to keep the bee facing into the wind with the correct attitude.

4) Drill a 15/64” hole in the bottom of the bee aligning it with the mark you made showing the center of gravity. Make the depth of this hole a deep as you reasonably can.

Note: The bee will rotate around this hole. The larger cross section of the bee is used to keep the whirligig pointed into the wind.

Step 14: Add the rotational bearing (part 6)

Cut a section of ¼” copper tubing and force it into the hole. The length of this tube needs to be longer than the depth of the hole and it must extend far enough below the bee, so the bee can rotate without hitting anything. It does not have to go all the way into the hole. This Tubing acts as a bearing and reduces the wear, tear and friction on the assembly when the whirligig rotates.

Note: The tubing can be shortened after the bee’s final assembly and the bee is tested on the stand.

Whirligig Stand

The stand is a separate item that is not needed for the bee to work correctly.  It also eases the painting and testing of the bee. The stand can be used to display the bee indoors. It can even be attached to a railing outdoors.

Note: I attached the stand base to a patio railing with electrical cable ties which worked great.

Note: The dimensions listed are only suggestions. The base must be large enough to hold the bee in position without tipping over and the length of the standoff must allow the wings to spin freely.

Step 15: Make the stand base (part 11)

Cut the stand base from a piece of lumber that will be large enough to keep the bee from toppling over.

Mark the center and drill a 1” hole at the mark.

Step 16: Make the whirligig support (part 12)

Cut the support to length.  The support must be enough to allow the wings of the bee to spin freely. On one end of the support drill a pilot hole and insert a long headless nail (part 13). This nail is the rotational pivot point for the bee.

Note: Don’t forget to add the thickness of the base when calculating the length of the support.

Note: After inserting the nail into the support, I ground the head off the nail.

Step 17: Finish the whirligig support (part 12).

Insert and glue the support (part 12) into the hole in the base (part 11) and allow it to dry. Add a washer over the nail. This will contact the bottom of the rotational bearing and prevent the support from wearing away.

Step 18: Test the bee for rotation

Slip the rotational bearing of the bee over the nail on the stand. The nail top should not hit the wood of the bee. If it does, then shorten the nail. The wings should also spin freely.

Step 19: Paint the bee and the stand

Disassemble the bee and paint it with outdoor enamel.

First paint the bee with an enamel wood primer. After it dries, spray the bee body where yellow is needed. Trace or faintly draw the stripes outline on the bee and fill in the stripes with black enamel.

Reassemble the bee after you have completed the painting.

Hint: Use the stand to hold the bee while the paint is drying.

Hint: John Deere Yellow or a Canary Yellow spray paint works exceeding well for the yellow stripes. Use gloss enamel paint for a shiny finish.

Usage

A whirligig needs a stand to position it, so it can catch the wind to twirl its wings and rotate its body. When placed in a garden it can be directly attached to a post or tied to the top of a fence.

Conclusion

At a sales event this is an eye-catching display that will catch customers attention. Use this type of display to help you get the reward you deserve for your beekeeping skills. If you make two or more of these bees you have the start of a swarm and extras can be given to friends or used as door prizes at your bee meeting. A smaller version can be made to sit in your office or den.

Get a copy of Ed Simon’s book Bee Equipment Essentials with detailed drawings, construction hints and how-to-use instructions for dozens of beekeeping tools and equipment from www.wicwas.com. Ed can be contacted through SimonEdwin41@gmail.com.

Skeptical at first, I’ve seen the light.

When I was new to beekeeping, the first beekeeping course I took was titled, “Natural Beekeeping.”  The course was being held at a biodynamic farm, just a short 20-minute drive from my house.  Because I didn’t know about the great courses offered by the New Jersey Beekeepers Association, at the time, this seemed like the best option.

The course was team-taught by several people, some with more bee knowledge than others. They all had varying interpretations of what “natural” meant and some of these views were, shall we say, bordering on the extreme. Before I continue with my story let me make one thing clear, I believe that everything should be as natural as possible, and that the more natural the environment, the better it is for everyone and everything. However, I also believe that you need science to back-up and support what you do, otherwise it’s just superstitious mumbo-jumbo. Some of the “instructors” at this course seemed to toss science, logic, and common sense out the window. For example, one instructor was explaining that her bees “know” where she needs to be stung, and when the bees sting her, they are sacrificing themselves to help her.  If her back is hurting, BAM! She gets stung in her back. When her knee is sore, BAM! A few stings to her knee. But she said one thing in particular that will stick with me forever: “Every time I have needed to see something, really see something in my life, the bees have stung me in my eyes!” As I processed her words, I realized that “Every time” meant that this had happened to her more than once! MORE THAN ONCE!!! And, “in my eyes” meant, IN-MY-EYES!!!!  I thought, and still think, that if I get stung in my eye, I may give up beekeeping and instead start collecting soft and fuzzy teddy bears. Certainly if it does ever happen, I’m going to take every precaution to make sure that it never, EVER, happens again!

At this point during the course, alarm bells were going off in my head. “Warning, Warning, Warning Will Robinson!” I am skeptical by nature, but now I was on high alert. When the topic of honey bee pests came up, there was a discussion of biodynamic farming principles, which included – and I am not making this up – the following instructions: Collect as many of the dead pests as you can, and during specific full moons throughout the year, you burn them to an ash, then sprinkle the burnt pest ash around your farm or hive so as to frighten, and keep away any remaining pests. The belief is that “no animal wants to cross over its own dead, so when they encounter an ash line made from their own kind, they will not want to cross it.” Now, the last time I checked, not too many pests, insect or mammal, have sat down to watch The Killing Fields, so this seemed to make as much sense as wearing aluminum foil on your head to get a better Wi-Fi signal.  One of the course instructors went on to say that you should collect dead Varroa mites, wait until the biodynamic farming calendar tells you that it is the correct full moon, burn them to an ash and sprinkle their remains around the perimeter of your hives. This is not exactly the type of mite treatment you read about in any of the scientific journals or hear that commercial beekeepers are using.

It was also at this same natural beekeeping course that I first heard about oxalic acid but because it was discussed alongside torching pests by moonlight, I didn’t exactly embrace what was being said. To make matters worse, at that time, oxalic acid was not approved as a treatment for varroa in the U.S., and technically it was illegal to use in your hive. So hearing the words, “illegal” and “don’t worry, it works” didn’t give me the confidence that this was a scientifically proven way to deal with Varroa. Further, when it was explained that you vaporize the oxalic acid with a metal wand powered by a car battery, and you have to wear a respirator because the fumes could melt your lungs, I was thinking the only way this could sound more like Hogwarts was if you also sprinkled in some pixie dust and porcupine quills.

When the course was over, I had learned a few useful things. I knew that I needed to refer to reputable sources if I ever wanted to be a successful beekeeper, and the importance of differentiating fact from fiction when assembling my mite treatment regime.  Throughout my tenure with Apis mellifera, I have read a shelf-full of books, and subscribed to both Bee Culture, and American Bee Journal.  I also have attended as many bee meetings as I can, especially to gain wisdom from a prominent researcher or experienced beekeeper. Throughout the years, I would read or hear about oxalic acid, but every time, I also started thinking about burning Varroa in the moonlight. Eventually, oxalic acid was approved to be used in the U.S., but I was still skeptical, as I could not separate it from those who had first spoken about it and everything else they had said, such as, “works really well, you just have to believe!”

Now fast-forward to about a year and a half ago. There was talk of something called “mite bombs,” untreated hives that collapsed after being infested with Varroa. The mite bombs would infect other hives in one of two ways: 1) either the foragers would abscond from their hive and drift into healthy hives, bringing their mite infestation with them, or 2) bees from the healthy hives would find and rob out the mite-infested hives, bringing a lot more than honey back with them to their own hives. The biggest issue with the mite bombs was that the infestations would happen AFTER Fall treatments, so many times the beekeepers who thought their hives were mite-free and ready for Winter, actually ended-up with an after-treatment surge of mites. 

Also in the past 18-20 months, there has been some question if Varroa could possibly start to build up a resistance to Apivar, the Varroa-killing silver bullet that most of us use as a treatment. So, the need to use another treatment with which we can rotate into an effective yearly mite treatment plan has become even more important.  It was also reported by Cornell University that when varroa mites were first introduced to the U.S. in the 1980s, colonies could tolerate much higher infestations than they can today. The treatment threshold back then was a lot higher, between 10% and 20%, and mites could be effectively controlled with only one treatment a year.  However, since that time colonies have become less able to tolerate such high infestations, and colonies often require multiple treatments throughout year.  Randy Oliver, the renowned commercial beekeeper and researcher, states that treatment thresholds should now be 1% or less.  It seems that our bees are less able to handle the stresses that varroa puts on them, and responsible beekeepers must do everything they can to actively control the Varroa levels in their colonies.

What I’ve learned is that oxalic acid works because it hurts the mites, but not the bees. While the research is not conclusive on all the ways it impacts the mites, it seems like the acid is absorbed by the mites’ soft footpads, burning the footpads during the process, which also causes the mites to lose their grip on the bees and fall off.  Note that oxalic acid only reaches the Phoretic mites attached to adult bees, it does not reach mites in capped brood cells.

While using oxalic acid as a treatment for varroa is relatively new to the U.S., it has been used for quite awhile in Europe and also in Canada. This past Spring, I was corresponding with a beekeeper in Sweden and I learned two important things: 1) Apivar is NOT approved for use in Sweden; and 2) oxalic acid is Sweden’s #1 choice for treatment. This had a huge impact on me, as I could not imagine successfully treating for mites without Apivar.  Second, if an entire country was relying on oxalic acid to keep their bees alive, then I needed to realize that oxalic acid was a lot less of a magical potion cooked up in the moonlight and actually had some solid science behind it. The more I came across it in my studies, the more I realized that oxalic acid is used throughout the world and scientists have been studying it for years. I also read about the results of the Varrox® vaporizer field trials across seven European countries that compared the various methods of using oxalic acid for their effectiveness and impact on the bees. The study showed that the vaporizing method could be up to 99% effective for killing mites at times when the colony is broodless and vaporizing was the method that was the most gentle on the bees. 

Which brings us up to today.

As I thought about mite bombs, colonies less able to tolerate Varroa, the need to alternate Apivar with other treatments, and that colonies are most at risk post-Fall treatment, plus everything I had been reading, it seemed like all of these things were pointing me in the same direction, and “showing me” what I needed to do. It was time for me to start using oxalic acid. And, I would like to add that I “saw” this without having to get stung in the eye!

It is well over a decade since I first heard about oxalic acid, but I have to admit that I now own, and sitting in my garage is a Varrox® Vaporizer, which is made in Switzerland and has been used throughout Europe for years, an extra car battery, as well as a container of registered and approved oxalic acid for mite treatments.

However, before ever donning my newly acquired respirator and heading to my apiary, I need to do one thing first. I need to apologize to everyone who has long known that oxalic acid is an effective treatment for Varroa. I’m sorry that I doubted you, and I’m sorry that I mocked you and your treatment of choice. You were right and I was wrong. I will join your ranks and as I do, I will chant, “The only good mite is a vaporized mite!” I will become one of you. But, as of this writing, one thing is still for certain and must be said, no matter how big of an oxalic acid apostle I become, I’m not backing down on what I think of moon-soaked Varroa burns at midnight.

Honey Bee Charli, by Melissa Haskins Wilbanks. Published by Mascot Books. ISBN 978-1-63177-990-0. 10” x 8”, 32 pgs., hardcover, full color. $14.95.

Yes, that Wilbanks. Melissa Haskins Wilbanks is married to Reg Wilbanks, commercial beekeeper and queen producer, so it is no wonder this children’s book has bees as the characters of this story. The author has been a teacher for over 25 years, and has a strong relationship with the children she teaches. And this book is about children, and parents. The child is a honey bee of course, and Mom is the Queen. But this isn’t honey bee biology. It’s about Parenting, teaching, growing and learning. The illustrations are easy to look at and certainly make the story easy to read with a child. And everybody will enjoy the friendly bees, the flowers and the story in particular. – Kim Flottum

Visit www.mascotbooks.com

Bees Life Necklace –

This uniquely crafted necklace is a visual representation of the amount of honey a bee makes in its short life. A honey bee lives for four to six weeks and can produce 1/12th of a teaspoon of honey. This necklace bulb holds exactly that 1/12th amount. Use as a visual display in a classroom or proudly wear it to support a special creature we adore. Send to a special friend.

To purchase for $10/each go to www.ecobeebox.com or www.ecobox.net. Comes in a men’s cord or a lady chain.

Visit www.ecobeebox.com or www.ecobox.net

A Welsh Beekeeper from the UK has developed a “Virtually” sting proof suit called the

“Sentinel Pro 3D”

aimed at Beekeepers who suffer from Anaphylaxis and wish to continue with their hobby.

A beekeeper and farmer, Ian designed the suit when a colleague became seriously anaphylactic and was forced to give up beekeeping. Having found a suitable material in Europe the design went through several months of trialling and testing before launching in March 2018 at a prominent Beekeeping Convention in Wales.

The suit is made from a 3D breathable material and weighs under three lbs, its unique clear mesh is used in the Fencing Veil (a little deeper than most to prevent bees stinging your face) and Retro Hat which are interchangeable with each other on the suit, it also has lots of interesting features, two lined hive tool pockets one on each leg, zipped mobile phone breast pockets, strategically placed hip pockets, built in knee pads and even a little pocket on the sleeve for a queen marking pen, a torch or an EpiPen. The sentinel Pro has YKK Zips with ease of use ring pulls for the veils, hats and main body, and there are zips at the ankles to help put on and pull off the suit.

The suit is extremely light and comfy to wear, its very flexible and in the heat of the summer the 3D breathable material keeps you surprisingly cool. The material of the suit is is very strong and will not tear easily on brambles, thorns etc, its 3.5 mm thick and a bees sting is between 1.5 mm and 3 mm long, knowing this, your confidence is automatically boosted  particularly if you suffer from an allergy, bearing in mind a traditional bee suit is after all just a set of cotton overalls. The suit also eliminates wearing lots of additional clothing for protection underneath.

To accompany the suit Old Castle Farm Hives have produced Sentinel Pro 3D Ventilated gloves and gauntlets to match and the suit comes in two colours a modern grey or traditional white. The suit is available in  a variety of different sizes, and make “Custom” sizes also, it is machine-washable and dries quickly.

Visit www.oldcastlefarmhives.com

As with many creatures, Honey Bees have a communication system of their own. The question is, can we understand their language? Likely not, until now. Most beekeepers know colonies can hiss, queens can pipe & workers do their waggle dance. But did you know there are many other sounds that the colony can make in order to communicate? Colonies warble, wave, moan, crackle, plead, quibble and rip a quilt. The Bees are always communicating with each other. We just don’t know how to interpret their detailed communication system, until recently. What if we could “listen in on” their conversations? If we could “eves drop” in on the colony, I wonder what we’d learn?  Does such a tool even exist?

Yes! It’s called the “Apivox Smart Monitor”. This is a multi-function “listening app”, able to interpret the colonies communication and then translate this information back to us, in the form of dials and graphs. Not found in traditional app stores. Custom written to your Android device; cell phone or tablet. Apple IOs is too restrictive for recording sounds, sorry. A 4gb download. Comes with a detailed Operators Manual. Using a Bluetooth ear piece, slipped into the porch opening, synced with your device and the Apivox app. Apivox is a standalone app, no need for internet connections.

Benefits are many; we get a three weeks heads up on swarming condition, before a queen cell ever appears. We can determine queen rightness, or absence. We’re able to determine if the bees are working on building honey reserves. In Winter we’re able to determine if CO₂ levels are too high and the colony is stressed. We’re able to determine queen acceptance, or rejection. Able to determine a honey harvest is ready. Determines intense brood rearing or not. And much more!

If you’d like to learn more about the Apivox Smart Monitor, Cost is: $40 and can be ordered through ApivoxAuditor.com, Developers website: ApivoxAuditor.com.

Developers name: Serjio Glebskij.

Our website: www.littlecreekbeeranch.com/Apivox-Auditor.html 

If you have further questions, you can reach me at: kadyscout@aol.com

or my cell phone 918-798-2251, if you text, please include your name.

Visit www.ApivoxAuditor.com

Beehive Awning – A NEW Beekeeper product by Old Greenwich Honey.

There are two key reasons to use the Beehive Awning:

1. Hive Circulation: If the front of the hive is blocked by any debris, snow or sleet, circulation would stop, moisture could build up on the inside cover and drop cold water, killing the bees.

2. Temperature Control, providing a lower temperature on the landing board helps lower and regulate the temperature within the hive. This relieves the bees from extensive temperature control fanning.

The Beehive Awning can simply be attached to a Langstroth Hive, eight or 10 frame, screwed to the hive deep, between the handle and the landing board entrance. The Beehive Awning will be secured by (2) two half-inch screws.

The Beehive Awning design consists of: 18-Gage cold rolled steel panel, 16.25in. x 4 in. (bent 10º at 1 in. from the top), Powder-Coated, sky white, (extra strength powder coating for outdoor use) and Stainless Steel (no. 8) – 1/2 inch screws (3)

Retail at $19; Wholesale at $9.50. 

Shipped in Multiple fees of 25 units Shipping costs tbc.

Orders available December 1st, 2018.

For Orders Contact Joel Dawson, 203.554.7466 or 203.637.4980, Joel@oldgreenwichhoney.com

CORRECTION

In the New Products section in our printed November issue we left did not include the website for the Easy On Hive Covers. It is www.easyonhivecovers.com.

Directions for one 8 frame ventilation box.

Buy List / Cut List

• 1-1×4 Pine KD x 8 feet, cut 2-20 inches long and 2-11 1/2 inches long
• 1 Bullnose Stop x 8 feet, cut 2-20” long, cut 1-11 1/2” long, cut 2-5”long
• # 8 Hardware Screen, cut 1-13 3/4”x19 5/8” piece, cut 2– 2”x8” pieces
• Plastic Window Screen, cut 1-24”x30” piece
• 1 1/2 inch self taping star drive screws, need 8
• 3/4 inch #6 Philips drive screws, need 24

Prep the longer box sides by using a scrap piece of 1×4 to mark each end of the two long sides. Pre drill two holes on each end with a #8 countersink bit. Set holes centered and 3/4” from each side.

Prep the two shorter box sides by measuring in from the end edges 4” and from the top 1”. These mark the ventilation holes to be.

Drill out the ventilation holes using a 1” forstner bit.

Clamp the box sides using pipe clamps and adjust each corner with a square until correct. Box must be on a very flat and true surface.

Pre drill with a straight bit, use the existing countersink holes as a guide, to extend the screw holes into the short sides of the box. Keep the bit really straight.

Drive the 1 1/2 inch screws in to tighten the box snug.

Turn the box so the ventilation holes are closest to the countertop. Place the #8 mesh piece on the now top edges and attach with a staple gun. Trim as needed.

Paint bottom sides of bullnose stop.

Clamp the long side bullnose stop to the box. Round side to outside. Using a #6 countersink bit pre drill four holes. Place 3/4” #6 screws in holes and drive to attach bullnose stop. Repeat for other side and the piece for the short side.

Attach the 5” bullnose stop pieces as above to create the winter escape opening.

Screw pattern for the bullnose stop. If you are painting your boxes now is the time to do that. Two coats of an exterior latex paint is fine.

Staple the screen material, 2”x8”, to cover up the ventilation holes on each end. This is done after painting .

A finished summer ventilation box ready to be placed on the hive.

Accessorizing for Winter

Accessorizing for winter for the colder temperate regions means cutting a hole in the screen for a winter feeder and making a bee quilt to go on top.

Cutting a hole in the screen to accommodate a Barnyard Bee top feeder.

Add the sugar and cover.

Take the 24” by 30” piece of the plastic screen material, fold it length wise and sew two of the open sides shut. Fill the bag with shavings 1/3 full. Sew the last opening shut. Shake to get rid of dust.

A finished Winter Hive Ventilation Box.

“Take a deep, calming breath and in your mind’s eye, image if you will, being led into a small clearing.

A gentle breeze is blowing in the trees, and the sun warms your skin. Ahead lies a quaint, cozy, tiny house. As you approach, you see a roped off yard with pollen laden honey bees seeming to fly in and out of the lower wall. You are drawn to a gathering of miniature stepping stumps that lead to a door. Pulling it open, the warm scent of fresh wood mixed with the sweet aroma of honey and beeswax greets your nose. The interior is bathed in sunlight from a large south facing window. Below the window is a chest-high cozy bench cushioned by a blanket and pillows at either end. The antique wicker chair invites you to sit and remove your shoes. A nap is sounding more and more inviting. You step onto a handmade wooden stool and climb up onto the bench and lie down. Now that you’ve settled in, your ears are greeted by a soothing sound not unlike a gentle tide. You suddenly realize it is bees under the bench. The deep thrumming sound resonates through your body. And could that actually be micro vibrations you almost sense rather than feel. Whatever it is, you find the scents, sounds, and feelings so relaxing your eyes drift closed. Slipping off to sleep you wonder, “What exactly is this enchanting place? Why do I feel so deeply relaxed? Who built this here?” 

Most parents know that allowing a child to have a pet of their own often means that the furry friend may end up theirs for a while when the child leaves the nest for the first time. Whether it is off to college, an apartment and full time job, or a gap year of traveling, pets are often not part of that plan. However, not too many parents get left looking after thousands of animals. That is unless their child happened to be a beekeeper.  Luckily for me, I started the hobby with my father, and he had made it his own as well. Of course the liquid gold honey he became accustomed to helped to sweeten (pun intended) the deal of doing the work on his own!

For years after I left the nest, my father continued to tend his bees, learn the art of beekeeping, and enjoy a very solid flow of honey. Although I did none of the work, a jar of honey always seemed to make it into my home – even when I lived across the country! And then my father retired from his paying job as an educator of 30 + years. He is a man with a drive to learn, work, and share his knowledge with others. No taking it easy for him. So, when retirement meant relocating over 350 miles north to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, his bees went with him. What he found were some interesting new challenges to spark his imagination and kick his interest in bees up a notch. 

What followed is quite a list of experiences that I only highlight in order to get to the newest. I’ll give you a little spoiler: it’s an expansion to our current concept of apitherapy here in the United States. Let’s start at the beginning.  After one rather devastating episode, my father learned that electric fencing is a must if you want to keep bees in bear country. He also learned that the short season and long harsh winters of Skandia, Michigan, meant new overwintering techniques if he wanted to avoid 100% winter hive losses. Once he figured these things out, he shared them via videos with other beekeepers on his new website U.P. Michigan Bees. He learned that in his new location, with fewer acres of open farmland full of clover and buckwheat, his bees depended on the “bee pasture” along the roadsides and in yards that was getting mowed too often and too early in the season. He now shares a bee pasture preservation message with people far and wide when he presents at schools, bee conferences, and other events in the hopes that awareness will bring change in behavior. It was the spring of 2014, at the Michigan Beekeepers Association Conference, that he learned of a centuries old apitherapy structure.

At this conference, Anne Marie Fauvel presented a talk on her trip with Therese McCarthy to Apimodia in Kiev, Ukraine. From her talk, my father learned about the idea of creating an enclosed space over hives in which a person derived therapeutic effects from their nearness to the bees. When my dad shared this information with me, I was entirely intrigued. There was only one problem…information about these apitherapy houses was in short supply. So, the idea went to my father’s subconscious where it could be recalled at a later date.

After months of pondering, in the Winter of 2014, my father decided he would simply have to make his own version of the Ukranian apitherapy house. Having successfully built a number of structures over the years from woods harvested on his own property, he knew he would do the same with this project. Planning commenced. His determination brought out my own, and in the Spring of 2015 I was successful in my online search for information. Granted it wasn’t a lot, but I found some loosely translated information from the Ukraine and a video out of Canada where someone else had created one of these apitherapy houses. From there it was just a matter of time until the weather permitted a start on the physical structure. 

Ground breaking was April 20, 2015, although four handsome handmade Nucs (decided upon to make tending them easier) were constructed earlier in the month for later use in the “Hive House.” Yes, Hive House was the name we finally settled on as any time we used apitherapy in the description those we were talking to immediately thought we were talking about them getting stung. Not the pleasant and relaxing connotation we wanted to go along with this new venture! The Hive House quickly began to take shape with the help of my mother and his young grandchildren. The logs were cut and milled on the property, carried to the carefully chosen building site (close to the bee yard, backed by woods, and facing a small open field), and assembled from the plan in my father’s head. This worked out well most of the time and “mistakes” just meant innovative solutions. 

At first he planned to put a small window on the wall opposite the door. As the building progressed, he envisioned lying on the bench on a warm summer’s day and realized that he not only wanted to hear and smell the bees below, he wanted to watch them go about their fascinating work. The solution was a home-made observation hive with an entrance to the outside. Since he was milling his own lumber, he decided to highlight the various types of trees growing on the property.  Cherry, spalted white birch, popple, spruce, balsam, maple and hemlock make up the ceiling above the sleeping bench. As with the rest of the buildings on the property, his desire was to have things serve more than one purpose.  So, in went a comfy chair to create a spot for someone to relax with a cup of coffee or a glass of wine.  Top off the décor with pillows and a handmade afghan to cushion the sleeping bench, and on May 17th, less than a month after the initial groundbreaking, the Hive House was complete. Two days later it received its first snow with a late season storm! Now it was time for the bees. 

The Hive House was finally up and buzzing by mid June of 2015. It’s official reveal was Saturday, June 20th at the annual Meeting and Bee Social of the Superior Beekeeping Club. Along with the 40 + members who came to participate in hive inspections, enjoy a mead tasting, and socialize during the potluck, the group hosted a special guest, Terry Toland, President of the Michigan Bee Association. The buzz generated here only continued with the publishing of a short video explaining the Hive House on the UP Michigan Bees website, and finally the announcement of it’s existence at the July, Heartland Apiculture Society Conference held at Albion College in Michigan. The excitement generated there has already led to a special trip by one gentleman to take pictures of the Hive House and request by many for the plans. 

Now all that is left to do is for the creator, his family, and his visitors to enjoy the many benefits of this “new” old form of apitherapy. Remember that imaginary trip you took at the beginning of this story? Well, all those scents, sounds, and vibrations are said to have a healing effect on emotional, physical, and psychological ills that many of us carry around. While no promise can be made about the claims to benefit pulmonary and respiratory function, blood composition and the body’s immunity (among many others) we do feel confident that, at the very least, peaceful sleep in the Hive House allows for the deep rest and rejuvenation that helps counter the stresses of our modern, fast-paced life. It sure is a great place to enjoy a glass of local mead!

My father and I would very much like to know of any other such apitherapy houses in the United States that are based on the Ukranian model. So far, our search for others has been unsuccessful.  Let us know at www.upbees.weebly.com if you are aware of others in existence.

Photos by David A. Vore