When the snow begins to fall from the sky the child in us shrieks in delight, yet as the days wane onward we become fatigued from the joy. The honey bee’s emergence into the outdoors in early spring brings renewal of life. As the Worker Bee, female, flitters from plant to plant, tree to tree, […]
Breaking News
OSU’s own Dr. Andony Melathopoulos has just garnered a most prestigious award. Andony will be in the U.S. Botantical Gardens, Washington, DC next week to receive the 2018 NAPPC Pollinator Advocate award 2018 NAPPC Pollinator Advocate award (NAPPC = North American Pollination Protection Campaign). The award recognizes Andony as an entomologist with a passion for […]
Fascination of our World
By Charlie Vanden Heuvel How much of our world do we miss? The butterflies, spiders, hummingbirds, and yes even the honey bee. Six legs, four wings and a never-ending drive season after season. As the Queen returns to egg laying in mid-January, the rest of the colony must also engage in their duties in support […]
Fascination of Nature
By Charlie Vanden Heuvel Hopefully you have spent some time outdoors admiring the wonders of nature. Being a Honey Bee enthusiast, the sighting of the Apis Mellifera, Honey Bee, often becomes mesmerizing. Yet, of late the number of Native Bees flirting about flowers has increased the excitement and enjoyment of some of nature’s wonders. Bumble […]
Honey Bee Foraging
By Charlie Vanden Heuvel The life of the Worker Honey Bee is rather short in relation to other insects. The Honey Bee Worker emerges from the brood cell to immediately begin her chores in the hive. The first chore is cleaning brood cells of the cocoon and other debris. The first three weeks of life […]
Number One Challenge to the Honey Bee
By Charlie Vanden Heuvel The Honey Bee has been around for over one hundred million years. During this time, like all insects, pests and humans differing bacteria, fungus’s, viruses and other onslaughts have transpired. Some have been obliterated or moved on. USDA Ban On Importation of Honey Bees The Secretary of Agriculture, in 1922 instituted […]
Wintering Productive Hives
Langstroth wrote: “If the colonies are strong in numbers and stores, have upward ventilation, easy communication from comb to comb, water when needed, and all the hive entrances are sheltered from piercing winds, they have all the conditions essential to wintering successfully in the open air” (Langstroth, 1859). Honey Bee Hive Optimal Winter Conditions Winter […]
Swarms
Honey bee hives swarm to duplicate their hive. A means of survival. One would think the Queen’s egg laying was the colonies means of replication, but it only builds and maintains colony strength for the nectar flow season. To ensure the survivability of the bee race it must create a swarm for duplicity. Many in […]
Honey Bee Foraging
By Charlie Vanden Heuvel The life of the Worker Honey Bee is rather short in relation to other insects. The Honey Bee Worker emerges from the brood cell to immediately begin her chores in the hive. The first chore is cleaning brood cells of the cocoon and other debris. The first three weeks of life […]
February in the PNW Colony
by Dewey M. Caron In his Valentine’s Day Message, Charlie Vanden Heuvel indicated “There may be emergencies demanding entrance, but they are rare! Be Patient!!! He suggested unless temperatures are above 60° for 3 days we might do more harm than good opening colonies. So what “should be going on inside our colonies right now? […]