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Struggles for the survival of honey bees

Struggles for the survival of honey bees

SB is a relatively new and dedicated beekeeper in southern Germany. She is interested in different kinds of bees and their place in the ecological system. I asked her to tell her story and her struggles helping her bees to

Erik June 6, 2016 Breeding, Cellsize, Featured, Nature and man, Treatment free, Varroa resistance Read more

Learning and teaching

  Hans-Otto Johnsen was very skilled already in his youth keeping old American cars and trucks going. That skill can be very handy for a commercial beekeeper. For many years he worked as an expert on explosives, but he got

Erik April 4, 2016December 10, 2017 Breeding, Cellsize, Disease resistance, Elgon, Treatment free, Varroa resistance, Wax Read more

Cell size affects water content

Cell size affects water content

I started taking down my bees to small cell size 15 years ago. 10 years ago I had combs with 4.9 mm, 5.1 mm and 5.4 mm cell size in the supers. At one time I did some measurements of

Erik October 26, 2015October 26, 2015 Cellsize, Featured, Honey Read more

Free bees

This year is a year of swarms in Sweden. The weather is chilly and damp. Bees are sitting a lot inside having little to do but making queen cells. Maybe like many others in such a situation, thinking of reproduction.:)

Erik June 19, 2015July 14, 2015 Cellsize, Swarm, Wax Read more

Treatment free feral bees

Treatment free feral bees

Up till now anyway, this colony of bees (and their ancestors forming this colony’s ancestor colonies) that has lived in a wall since several colony generations, has never been treated with any kind of chemicals ever, against Varroa mites or

Erik March 23, 2015March 23, 2015 Disease resistance, Featured, Feral bees, Overwintering, Varroa Read more

Meeting the sun

Meeting the sun

The second Sunday in March the temperature, wind and sun, together with filled intestines of the bees that had produced the heat for the winter cluster took these bees out to meet the sun. The main cleansing flight took place.

Erik March 17, 2015 Breeding, Featured, Overwintering Read more

Understanding history

The first commercially wax foundation, in USA 1876, produced by A.I. Root, had imprints for 5 cells per inch for worker cells, a little less than 5.1 mm cell size. That was said to be an average of cell sizes

Erik February 8, 2015November 3, 2015 Cellsize Read more

Small cells and VSH

Small cells and VSH

There have been numerous tests of varroa reproduction with bees on different cellsizes throughout the years, with the assumption that you then test varroa resistance. As far as I understand that can be true, but you don’t know to what

Erik November 13, 2014 Cellsize, Featured, VSH Read more

Neonics and success

Bees visit corn for pollen, period. Bees visit canola for pollen. Bees visit potatoes for pollen (Danish tests). Bees visit a lot of flowers for pollen. Bees get what the pollen is enriched with. Neonics are not good for bees.

Erik September 11, 2014 Breeding, Cellsize, Corn, Feral bees, Management, Neonicotinoides, Pollination, Varroa, Virus Read more

MT-colony conclusion

I have shared the performance of this colony which had almost a box of plastic small cell frames and natural positioning of these frames (as the uppermost broodbox). Which also had a tough experience with mice living in the bottom

Erik July 14, 2014 Cellsize, Disease resistance, Elgon, Management, Varroa, Virus Read more
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