One of the things that often gets overlooked by new beekeepers, and even some experienced ones, is the importance of understanding the life cycle of honey bees. I’m talking about how long it takes for a queen, worker, or drone to go from egg to emergence, and what happens in each phase along the way. … Read more
One of the most frustrating things in beekeeping is watching half of your strongest colony leave. You’ve nurtured them all year, made it through winter, and now just as the hive is hitting its stride, they decide to take off. Swarming is a natural part of colony reproduction, but as a beekeeper, it’s something I … Read more
Swarming can rob you of half a colony right at the peak of spring buildup. If you’ve ever opened a hive and found queen cells while the original queen is still inside, you know you’re on borrowed time. One strategy that many beekeepers use to interrupt swarm behavior without actually splitting the colony is the … Read more