Strawberry Honey and Ricotta Toast by Danilicious

Tags

breakfast recipe, fruit recipe, honey, honey recipe, recipe, strawberries

It’s still berry season here in South Carolina. Time to enjoy lots of sweet delicious strawberries!

It’s finally berry season again and I couldn’t be more excited. I LOVE berries. I eat a yogurt parfait almost every day and I need fresh berries in it to make it feel complete.

I buy berries all year long, even when they are out of season and way too expensive.  I know I shouldn’t or at least buy the frozen berries. But there is something about a juicy, ripe fresh berry I cannot resist. The frozen just aren’t the same.

Now that berries are back in season AND on sale. Well, naturally, I did a little happy dance at the store.

….and I created this delicious new breakfast treat.

Read full article and recipe here:  Strawberry Honey and Ricotta Toast — Danilicious

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Propolis (bee glue) by Lytchett Bay Apiaries

Propolis (bee glue)

Propolis or bee glue is a resinous mixture that honey bees produce by mixing saliva and beeswax with exudate gathered from tree buds, sap flows, or other botanical sources. It is used as a sealant for unwanted open spaces in the hive. Propolis is used for small gaps, while larger spaces are usually filled with beeswax. Its color varies depending on its botanical source, the most common being dark brown. Propolis is sticky at, and above, room temperature. At lower temperatures, it becomes hard and very brittle.

Composition

The composition of propolis varies from hive to hive, from district to district, and from season to season. Normally, it is dark brown in color, but it can be found in green, red, black, and white hues, depending on the sources of resin found in the particular hive area. Honey bees are opportunists, gathering what they need from available sources, and detailed analyses show that the chemical composition of propolis varies considerably from region to region, along with the vegetation. In northern temperate climates, for example, bees collect resins from trees, such as poplars and conifers (the biological role of resin in trees is to seal wounds and defend against bacteria, fungi and insects). “Typical” northern temperate propolis has approximately 50 constituents, primarily resins and vegetable balsams (50%), waxes (30%), essential oils (10%), and pollen (5%). Propolis also contains persistent lipophilic acaricides, a natural pesticide that deters mite infestations

Read for article here: Propolis (bee glue) — Lytchett Bay Apiaries

Beekeeping Calendar and Seasons – Springtime

Tags

beekeeping, seasons

What to do through the spring season in beekeeping – check out our list of simple, spring beekeeper activities.

via Beekeeping Calendar and Seasons – Springtime — Prime Bees – College Station Bee & Honey Farm

Honeybee Nutrition and Behavior

Tags

beekeeping

Source: Honeybee Nutrition and Behavior

A) Pollen quantity and quality: plant responses to stress  

Recent honeybee declines may be influenced by pollen/nectar quality that compromise a bees’ ability to cope with environmental challenges, including disease and stress. Plants facing drought compromise floral trait expression which in turn can affect bee health. We are studying how drought stress in canola (Brassica napus) affects the floral reward quantity and quality. We are also monitoring the quality of bee hive pollen when foraging on crops under abiotic stress.

B) Floral chemicals

Plant-pollinator mutualism go beyond floral traits and pollinator behavior. Pollinators have evolved to take advantage of diverse floral chemicals. Increasing our knowledge of the chemical relationships between bees and plants is an important step towards understanding the intricacies of hive function and honeybee colony management. Ongoing studies aim to understand the role of key phytochemicals in promoting honeybee health.

Click here for more.

Source: Honeybee Nutrition and Behavior

The Status of the Honey Bee in the Law

Tags

bee law, beekeeping, education

Photo: The ABC of Bee Culture: a cyclopaedia of every thing pertaining to the care of the honey-bee; bees, honey, hives, implements, honey-plants, etc., facts gleaned from the experience of thousands of bee keepers all over our land, and afterward verified by practical work in our own apiary.

 

The Status of the Honey Bee in the Law:

The law divides the entire animal kingdom into two classes: (Blackstone Commentaries, Book II, p. 390)

First, those which are domesticated (ferae domitia) and, second, those which are wild (ferae naturae). The rights and liabilities of persons with reference to the animal kingdom then are likewise divisible. Bees belong with the latter class and, in considering the law with reference to these cases, rules pertaining or applicable to the former class would not have any significance. Wild animals are also divisible into two classes:

Those which are free to roam at will, and those which have been subjected to man’s dominion. Rights and liabilities depend upon the class into which the animal falls at the particular time. If it be in a State of Nature, free to roam at will, it is the property of no one, not even of the one on whose land it may be at the particular time, and may become the property of the first taker, even though he be a trespasser and liable for the trespass.

One who enters another’s premises without the invitation or permission of the owner is a trespasser, but this gives the owner of the premises no title to the wild things thereon, it merely gives him the right to protect others from coming thereon and taking them. If, however, some person against his will enters the premises and takes a wild animal or a swarm of wild bees, such a person becomes the owner of what he takes, but he has to answer to the owner of the premises for the trespass. If, however, the animals have been brought within the dominion of the owner of the premises as deer in a park, rabbits in a warren, or bees in a hive, such an entry and taking would be a crime as the law recognizes the property of him who has dominion over them and the taker would gain no title by the taking, for the owner might regain them by legal proceedings. (Blackstone Commentaries, Book II, p. 392)

So we may understand that the animal kingdom to which the bees belong is subject to a certain qualified proprietary interest. That is, they belong to no one, not even the owner of the soil on which their nest may be unless they have been subjected to his dominion, and when so reduced to possession, they are his property. This principle, however, is subject to an important modification: they remain the property of the possessor only so long as his dominion continues, and if such animals regain their freedom, as bees by swarming out and occupying some natural hive, as a hollow in a tree, the property right is lost and they again revert to their natural state and become the property of the first taker.

These same notions also control the matter of liability for injuries done by the bees, and such liability depends on proprietorship. So it would seem that if the bees have escaped from their owner, or have swarmed out of his hive, unless he can be shown negligent in having permitted this, there can be no liability for injuries done by them.

— excerpt from ‘Bees and the Law’, pages 11-12, written by Murray Loring, published by Dadant, 1981

BEES IN TREES — Bee Culture

By: Dewey Caron

Beekeeping is one of the oldest forms of food production dating as far back as 13,000 BC.

Human cultures were initially hunters/gathers, which included hunting of wild nests for honey and beeswax. Some human cultures continue such traditions today, such as the harvesting of Apis dorsata nests in the mountains of  Nepal and the native honey hunters of the Sundarban mangroves of India/Bangeldesh (both highly dangerous – sheer cliffs of Nepal and man-eating Tigers that rule the Sundarbans). Mike Burgett, in an interview by M.E.A. McNeil, Dec. 2014 Bee Culture describes the dangers to the Sundarban honey hunters. http://www.beeculture.com/mike-burgett-interview/

Two interesting YouTube videos show

• Irulas honey hunters of south central India “Honey of the Untouchables” with supurb Bee photographer, Eric Tourneret,  http://youtu.be/6gYbLek5jz8 and
• Kulung culture (Nepal) Honey Hunters from National Geographic  https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2017/07/honey-hunters-bees-climbing-nepal/

The history of humans bringing bees closer to their residences is not well documented. Most farmers kept other livestock and grew crops and keeping bees was only part of their husbandry/agriculture. Generally the beginning of “domestication” of honey bees by middle eastern cultures is cited as around from 10,000 to 4400 years ago.

With Reverend Langstroth’s development of the movable comb hive (1851), German Johannes Mehring’s refinement of comb foundation (1857), plus the honey extractor (von Hruschka 1864/1865 – see article by Wyatt Mangum in Sept 2016 ABJ), it became easier to keep honey bees at the convenience of the beekeeper. Prior to this, bees were often “kept” where they were found, in their selected cavities and individuals obtained their honey and beeswax via destruct harvest.

Read full article here: BEES IN TREES — Bee Culture

 

Plant Profile: White Clover {Trifolium repens} by Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

Tags

beekeeping, clover, ecology, honey bee forage, White Clover

Here’s some good information regarding white clover – a honey bee favorite! – sassafrasbeefarm

Article by: Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

White clover (botanical name Trifolium repens) is a clover species that is indigenous to Europe, West Asia and Northern regions of Africa. Extensively introduced across the globe, this species is cultivated in the form of a pasture crop and is currently even common in the grassland regions of North America as well as New Zealand. White clover is also known as Dutch clover, as this species was cultivated in Holland for the first time.

White clover is a herbaceous (herb-like) perennially growing small plant. It grows close to the ground and produces small whitish flower heads, which usually have a pink or creamy tinge, which may occur as the plant matures. Usually, the flower heads measure anything between 1.5 cm and 2.0 cm (0.6 inches and 0.8 inches) wide and appear at the end of the flower stalks or peduncles measuring about 7 cm or 2.8 inches.

Read the excellent and lengthy full blog post here:  Plant Profile: White Clover {Trifolium repens} by Crooked Bear Creek Organic Herbs

Cinnamon Honey Butter by In Dianes Kitchen

Tags

Cinnamon Honey Butter, honey, honey recipe, recipe

My husband and I went out to eat at Texas Roadhouse and thoroughly enjoyed their warm rolls with the Cinnamon Honey Butter so I thought I would make my own. I love cinnamon and this butter is excellent on things like French toast, pancakes, toast, sweet rolls, dinner rolls…. well you get the idea. This can be made up in a matter of minutes and then placed in the refrigerator for a few hours and it’s ready to go!

Read full yummy recipe here: Cinnamon Honey Butter — In Dianes Kitchen

12 Must See Ted Talks for Beekeepers by kiwimana

Tags

beekeepers, Kiwimana, Ted Talks, videos

Ted is an organization that posts talks online, their YouTube channel is full of great short talks about many unique topics.

TED is a media organization which posts talks online for free distribution, under the slogan “ideas worth spreading”. TED was founded in February 1984 as a conference, which has been held annually since 1990.

We sat down on rainy afternoon in the Waitakere ranges, and watched loads of Ted Talks about bees here are our top twelve.

Do you love learning about Bees? Here is our top twelve favorite Ted Talks about bees. Grab a coffee, Sit down and watch these quick talks. The post 12 Must See Ted Talks for Beekeepers appeared first on kiwimana.

Read full blog post with introductions to these videos here:  12 Must See Ted Talks for Beekeepers — kiwimana

Robo bees are back, but will they last? by Ecology is not a dirty word

Tags

beekeeping, pollinator drones, robo bees, robot bee

No doubt I am getting older. But regardless of my being stuck in the past and the way things are/were, I can fathom this concept. Like the author it seems to be too many hurdles are in the way to accomplish. Heck, I can’t even fathom why. – sassafrasbeefarm

The robot bee story is back in the news. I covered some of the new research and associated media hype last year. The latest: a patent has been filed for building ‘pollinator drones’ and the media (both newsy and social) are in despair, as the end is clearly nigh.

But don’t worry. Here are a few challenges the pollinator drones will need to overcome before they can take over agriculture:

Read the full blog post here: Robo bees are back, but will they last? by Ecology is not a dirty word

Easy Queen Rearing by Sustainable Bees

Tags

honey bee queen, queen rearing, queens

Queen rearing doesn’t have to be difficult. Here is an excellent article by Sustainable Bees on raising “easy” queens. – sassafrasbeefarm

Article by: Sustainable Bees

Many beekeepers believe queen rearing is a very technical and difficult process. Actually it is easier than you think.  There are a lot of good ways to do it.  Harvesting swarm cells in the springtime is one way, but to be in control of the process and get queens when you want them, the beek has to intervene & get the bees to do it on command. Moving the queen out of a strong colony by forming a nuc and keeping her in it is one way to get the bees to go into emergency queen rearing mode. (cont.)

Read full blog article here: Easy Queen Rearing by Sustainable Bees

Pollen: Tales Beyond the Sneeze by thebeeswaggle

Tags

beekeeping, honey bees, pollen

Many of us can relate to that moment when you accept spring’s invitation to step out and saunter in the warm sun to hear all the vibrant sounds as nature awakes from the slumber of winter, to smell all the fragrances floating on the breeze, and then it hits you, a series of powerful, uncontrollable sneezing fits! Upon recovery, your eyes are filled with tears, and your nose is running in an effort to clear that tiny nuisance, pollen.  Profits are made in efforts to assist our terrible reactions to pollen, and many of us would rather it not exist, so what is it; why does it exist; and who really needs it?

Read fully blog article here: Pollen: Tales Beyond the Sneeze by thebeeswaggle

Brazil’s Beekeeping Donkey – Great Big Story by msamba

Tags

beekeeping equipment, beekeeping humor, the beekeeping donkey

Manuel Juraci Vieira needed a way to transport the honey he would collect from his beehives on his farm back to his home. His solution? His donkey, Boneco. Outfitted in his very own homemade beekeeping suit, Boneco tags alongside Vieira, helping him carry the honey they gather during their hauls. Working together, the unlikely colleagues and friends are able to harvest more of the sweet stuff than possible with Vieira working alone.

via Brazil’s Beekeeping Donkey – Great Big Story — msamba

Bee Stings May Be Miracle Cure

Tags

apitherapy, bee stings, beekeeping

Intro.:

Last year I received a telephone call from a man wanting bees. I assumed he meant a package or nucleus hive. His broken English made communication a challenge but eventually I understood he wanted the bees for apitherapy use.

I told him I had never provided bees for apitherapy. I had read about it and understood the reasons why people utilize stinging but had no personal experience. We decided to meet and discuss the matter as he wanted some honey as well. Seeing this man and talking to him convinced me to help him. He appeared to have a rheumatoid arthritis such that even walking was difficult. In conversation he told me he was currently unable to work. He also related that he had used the bees in his home country successfully and that the improvement was very real.

I decided to give him the bees needed. There was some prep time in constructing an appropriate bee box for his use. After a single “round” of treatments he was driving to meet me, instead of his wife, and soon had his work equipment loaded in his small truck.

I haven’t heard from him yet this year, but am eagerly looking forward to setting him up with a small hive of his own this year as we planned.

Update: I have heard from my apitherapy friend via phone call. He tells me he is in some sort of remission and doing well. He thanked me for helping him during his hour of need and promises to stay in touch.

Sassafras Bee Farm

For more information on Apitherapy:

By Ibrahim Alkhayal Alternative medicine often comes up with new and creative healing processes. A method being tried in Palestine uses the bee sting, called apitherapy. Rateb Samour, known as Abo Ibrahim, is a Palestinian beekeeper and agriculture engineer in the Gaza Strip town of Rafah. For about 13 years, he has devoted all his […]

via Bee Stings May Be Miracle Cure — Sutradhar’s Market

Book Review: The Incomparable Honeybee by Dr. Reese Halter

Tags

beekeeping, beekeeping books, book review, Honey bee

Article by: GeoKs

This title interested me for a few reasons. I remember being shocked when I saw documentary a few years ago about a region in China where pesticides and other toxins have wiped out the local honeybees and labourers have to pollinate pear blossoms by hand! Over the past year or two, it’s been almost impossible to miss the relatively regular media reports about Colony Collapse Disorder and the fact that researchers really haven’t figured out why more than 30% of our bee population is dying out every year. So when we had to re-plant our yard after last year’s whole home renovation project, I kept thinking I wanted to plant flowers and other plants that were friendly to bees, butterflies and birds. After reading The Incomparable Honeybee this morning, I realize I need to tweak a few things.

But I’m getting ahead of myself… First, here are a few especially fascinating facts from the book:

Continued here: Book Review: The Incomparable Honeybee by Dr. Reese Halter

Honey-Sweetened Cheesecake Recipe by Ink, Yarn & Beer

Tags

cheesecake, honey, honey cheesecake, honey recipe, Honey Sweetened Cheesecake, recipe

Once more, dietary changes are forcing cooking and baking changes.  Some results are rather dreadful.  Others have proven to be quite good!  So it was with this cheesecake.  No sugar, no gluten.  The biggest problem was finding the dry curd cottage cheese. also known as hoop cheese or farmer’s cheese.  I found the cheese at the local Whole Foods, and neither my husband nor I had ever tasted it – but we did, and liked it.  It is a rather dry cheese, not sweet or salty, with a bit of a curd, but very fine, like ricotta.  The original recipe is from this blog, but I changed it so that I made one 8″ cheesecake, instead of 4 individual ones.  The only thing beside pan size that I changed was the baking time.

Read full yummy recipe here: Honey-Sweetened Cheesecake Recipe — Ink, Yarn & Beer

Swarm Trap Time by BruceLovesBees

Tags

bait hives, beekeeping, swarm traps, swarms

We conclude Swarm Week here at Beekeeping365 with an encouragement to set some bait hives in your area. Follow the well published guidelines regarding cavity volume, height, entrance size, and add the odors of drawn comb and another attractant such as lemongrass oil. It’s fun – like fishing – except for honey bees!

Bruce isn’t playing around this year. He’s upped his game and is going to catch some big swarms! This is what it takes to capture swarms – a dedication to constructing bait hives along the lines of what is known the bees will accept and occupy. Questions? Click on over to Bruce’s blog and post some questions or comments. sassafrasbeefarm

By Bruce Loves Bees:

I’m not playing around this year. Last year, I was so busy chasing swarm calls, and working, that I got way behind on putting my swarm traps up. I managed to get about 20 traps up, but I got them up late, and only caught 6 swarms in my traps. I also used alot of single 5-frame nuc boxes as traps. All of my swarm calls were for swarms over 5 lbs, so none of these would have went into a nuc. A few of them were over 10 lbs and didn’t even fit into a single 10-frame deep. This year, my swarm traps are a minimum of one nuc and one medium.

cont.

Read full blog post here: Swarm Trap Time by Bruce Loves Bees

Hive report: Swarm! by a-single-serving.com

Tags

swarm issuing, swarms

Every year many people send me pictures or videos of their bees with the question, “Are my bees swarming.” Most of the time they are simply bearding due to heat and/or congestion. This post by a-single-serving.com has an excellent video of a swarm issuing from a hive. Warning: It’s quite exciting! 🙂

Yesterday (28 March) it was finally warm enough for me to do a hive inspection at the same time that I could take off work. So I inspected Hive A (affectionately knows as Dave’s Bees). The population was very heavy, there was brood in the deep, and in two medium supers.  I didn’t see much nectar in the hive, but there was pollen.  Unfortunately, the girls got really PO’d part way through and I had to let them calm down. I think that was partly nectar dearth and the fact that it was cloudy and fairly windy. So that inspection was not one where I pulled every single frame. But I didn’t see swarm or superscedure cells, but I did add another medium super to give them some more room.

continued…

Read entire blog post here:  Hive report: Swarm! — a-single-serving.com

How to Catch and Install a Swarm

Tags

beekeeping, education, honey bee behavior, honey bee swarms, management, swarms

 

Source: How to Catch and Install a Swarm — Bee Thinking – Backyard Beekeeping Blog

by Grace Manger

Watch “How to Catch and Install a Swarm” and other beekeeping videos on our YouTube Channel!

via How to Catch and Install a Swarm — Bee Thinking – Backyard Beekeeping Blog

Swarms versus Bee Removals

Tags

beekeeping, cutouts, honey bee removals, honey bee swarms, honey bees, opinion, swarms

This week will most likely herald in the beginning of the spring nectar flow here in the Midlands of South Carolina. A few beekeepers will be caught off guard during the coming weeks, needing equipment, adding hive bodies, and tending to other management issues. Along with these urgent matters there will also be the unexpected swarm issue from hives. So far this year we have focused on preventing swarms and preparations which can be made prior to the swarm season to give the beekeeper the upper hand. We’ll now dedicate a week on how best to deal with swarms once they issue.

Occasionally, bees or wasps will make their home in the  walls  or a tree on your property. While getting them out may be tricky, it is worth finding out if it is possible.  Read more about why you should have them removed instead of exterminating them below.

Typically beekeepers do not do removals  from structures  or trees, but some do. Removals from homes are most often a fee for service situation.  Removals necessitate a specific skill set not taught in beekeeping.

Last year, while responding to honey bee swarm calls, on more than one occasion I arrived only to find that the owner had already sprayed insecticide on the bees. This is almost always a bad idea for several reasons.

First, if it’s a swarm, local beekeepers will typically gladly lend a hand to help you remove the bees and often at little or no charge. You get the bees removed, save yourself and your family exposure to insecticide, and get to feel good about saving one of our environment’s most valued pollinators. If the bees have established a colony within your home things get more complex. Always consult the advice of a bee removal service before spraying insecticides.

Last year, I responded to a swarm call that turned out to be an established colony in a home. The lady of the house was standing outside the home spraying the colony entrance with insecticide. She had already depleted one can and was working on her second. While it may have been as easy as removing a small piece of soffet to extract the bees, I no longer was going to risk bringing back chemically laden bees to my home bee yard. But there is more to it that that. Aside from all her children standing around getting a good dose of the overspray from the can, she was killing the flying bees which feed and support the hive. This meant that thousands of larvae would die shortly thereafter and leave her with a rotting odor inside her home in the days that followed.

Another call I received in late summer had me arrive to find an inpatient landlord spraying inside an attic. He told me that he determined that the bees clustered on the outside were actually entering the house and had established a hive in the attic. He thanked me for coming, but said he didn’t have time to wait as he hoped to have the house rented later that day. Before leaving I told him that unless he wanted a damaged ceiling, drywall and furnishings, he should consider having the hive removed because without the bees fanning the wax comb, the comb would melt releasing perhaps gallons of honey, and he’d be receiving complains from his new tenants. (not to mention the smell of decaying bees and larva and attracting ants, roaches, and other pests for months to come).

In closing, consider that spraying the bees is a poor effort to quickly eliminate a complex problem, and will often lead to more expensive problems in the days that follow. The time spent consulting a local beekeeper or bee removal service first is time well invested.

We hope this external  link assists you in your search to find someone locally in the USA:
http://www.bees-on-the-net.com

For more information on bees in structures visit Clemson Extension’s webpage: Honey Bee Colony Removal From Structures.