Back Yard Beekeeping – Where are we going?

Cape Girardeau Career and Tech Ctr August 17th, 2015Grant Gillard gillard5@charter.net www.grantgillard.weebly.com

“Teaching” Beekeeping

• At best….– Introduce– Acquaint– Familiarize– Present– Shed light

• Like “teaching” how to play the piano

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Our Purpose for this class

• To provide a brief overview of honeybees, and• To introduce the hobby of beekeeping • Such that a class participant may have enough

information to make a decision to start keeping bees on a “back yard” scale

• **to assist anyone, if you want, after the class to acquire equipment and bees, and get set up

Game Plan• August 17th

– Introduction and Bee Biology• August 24th

– Equipment Beekeepers Use• August 31st

– Integrating Bees into a Season of Beekeeping– How to set up, acquiring equipment and bees

• Next Step (no obligation)– If you need help to get going

Who’s here today? Show of hands…

• Don’t have bees, never had them, thinking about it. Maybe next year? Maybe not.

• Going to get bees next year, definitely

• Got bees last year, or so, have 1 to 2 years experience?

• Have bees, had bees, more than 2 years experience?

• Don’t like showing their hands!

Why is this important?Why am I here?

1. “The bees are dying” – 30% average loss(They’ve been dying for 150 years)Every year brings a new threat

2. Beekeepers are dying, retiringWe need more younger beekeepers

3. It just gets tougher and harder to keep honey bees, and keep them alive(real threat is to our pollination)

4. We need the honey bee, 1 of 3 bites

Considerations…..80% of all beginners will have quit within two yearsTo start each hive: ~$400 +

$250 for boxes, tops/bottoms$125-175 for bees(Recommend starting with two hives)

$200 for personal protection, veil, gloves$500 for processing (second year)

A Caveat• There are a thousand ways to keep honey

bees (most of them work).• Every experienced beekeeper has an opinion

(not all of them correct)• Start with the conventional basics• Explore and experiment (natural, treatment-free)• See what works for you, in your area• Find a mentor / join a bee club*– *4th Tuesday, First Presbyterian Church, Jackson

• Then choose your own path.

RealityAll beekeepers, new and old,

rookie beginners and seasoned veterans, are experiencing dying hives,

for various and unexplained reasons.

“If you are in the business of livestock,

you have to get used to the idea of dead stock.”

Beekeeper Reasons Why Bees Die1. Poor queens, poorly mated queens2. Poor nutrition, protein synthesis3. Varroa mites, pathogens4. Pesticides (inside and outside hive)5. Weather, drought

Overwintering Deaths: Any combination of all of the above

“Never before have the challenges of keeping bees been greater than right now.”

Factors for Beekeepers to Consider1. Purpose in keeping bees2. Place to keep them (children and neighbors)3. Do I have the time? Timing?4. Sting tolerance5. Physical lifting6. Necessity for absolutism, acceptance of

variables7. Level of commitment, investment8. Desire to learn, relearn, keep learning

Reasons Beekeepers Quit1. Bees died, don’t have money to buy more bees to refill hives, waiting for “someday”

2. Spouse/partner always knew this hobby was a bad idea

3. Tired of getting stung, stings hurt a whole lot more than first imagined, kids got stung

4. It’s hot work, heavy work, and tedious

5. Frustration, lost interest, bees swarmed and didn’t harvest any honey, no time to mess with them, allergic reactions, etc.

Cecil B. DeMille to Charlton Heston“Stay in the race. I’ll see that you win”

Where we’re going in this class#1 Understand honey bee biology and the seasonality of the colony#2 Understand how beekeeping equipment

works, picking up the jargon, the language of beekeepers#3 Understand how #1 and #2 work together in

this hobby of beekeeping (management)#4 Understand how beekeepers work with the

bees and how we become sustainable (personal goals, i.e., “natural” beekeeping)

Resources - Magazines

American Bee Journal (more technical)www.americanbeejournal.com

Bee Culture (more basic)www.beeculture.com

Advertisers and classified ads

Resources - Books(Mark Twain) “The beekeeper who can read and

does not, is no better than the illiterate beekeepers who can’t read.”

• “Beekeeping for Dummies” by Howard Blackiston

• “Better Bee Keeping” by Kim Flottum• “The Beekeeper’s Handbook” by Diana

Sammataro (4th edition)• “Natural Beekeeping” by Ross Conrad

(2nd edition)

Resources – Supplier Catalogs

• Brushy Mountain Bee Farm www.brushymountainbeefarm.com 800-233-7929

• Blue Sky Bee Supply www.blueskybeesupply.com 877-529-9233

• Dadant www.dadant.com 888-922-1293• Kelley Beekeeping www.kelleybees.com

800-233-2899• Betterbee www.betterbee.com 800-632-3379• Mann Lake www.mannlakeltd.com 800-880-7694

Resources on the web

• www.youtube.com – videos• www.beesource.com a forum to “lurk”• www.facebook.com lots of opinions and ignorance

Beekeeping “Rule of 4/5”:“Ask any four beekeepers a question and you’ll get

five different answers because one of them won’t be able to make up his mind.”

Lots of free advice on the web

• Google: “beekeeping basics maarec & penn state”

• Free PDF download

• http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/FreePubs/pdfs/agrs93.pdf

• http://www.thebeeyard.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Beekeeping.Basics.pdf

Local Suppliers• Buchheits – sells “Little Giant” kits, pre-

assembled (convenient, but you pay for convenience). A little more expensive.

• Jackson Coop – was going to carry same• The Bee Barn, Paducah,

www.beebarnshop.com • Isabees – St. Louis www.isabees.com

Run by Jane Sueme and Scott Klein, carry the Kelley line of equipment. Offer incredible advice. Drive up and save on shipping.

Personal Resources• Join your state organization or association• www.mostatebeekeepers.org• Find a local association or bee club– 4th Tuesday, 7:00 pm, First Presbyterian Church

• If no local exists, start one, find a partner• Find a mentor, one who will help you bridge the gap

between knowledge and application• If no mentor exists, visit a beekeeper. Trick them

with, “Can you come over and show me what I’m supposed to look for?”

Any questions?

Understanding Bee Biology• Bees are bugs, we use various “chemicals” to kill or

deter other, unwanted bugs in the hive. What’s the effect on the bees?

• Bees are social insects, not Lone Rangers, we need to view the colony as a whole unit, a single organism, not a “bunch of bees”

• Bees behave and respond to seasonal cues, specifically nectar and pollen, and pheromones, i.e., presence of the queen

• Bees do not need a beekeeper to micromanage or train them how to do things

Seasonal Rhythms• Bees overwinter in a cluster, eat honey• Early winter, queen starts to lay a few eggs• Late winter, more eggs laid as days lengthen• Pollen and nectar start in mid-March,

momentum builds, population grows• Early May – colony reproduces itself by

“swarming,” divides and sends out bees• Summer, nectar gathering for coming winter• Late summer, early fall, queen slows down egg

laying, drones are kicked out, consolidation.

Seasonality• Overwinter in a cluster – “wiggle” and “giggle”• Bees heat the cluster, not the whole hive• Need feed (honey) (sugar syrup)• Need “bee bodies” to stay warm

Bees have attitudesYou have neighbors

Castes – Division of Labor• Three kinds of bees in a hive– Queen (sexually mature worker)(more than one?)– Workers (immature queen)– Drones (parasites in a matriarchal society)

• (Who rules the colony, makes decisions?)• Age-appropriate responsibilities: physiology – First three weeks: nurse bee, house bee– Last three weeks: forager, field bee– Summer bees die at six weeks of age, working

themselves to death

Queen Dynamics• Starts out as a worker egg• Egg takes 3-1/2 days to hatch into a larvae• Larvae (open brood) for 6-1/2 days• Pupae capped on the 10th day• All new larvae fed royal jelly for two days• Queens fed a constant diet of royal jelly for six days• Queens hatch on the 16th day• Virgins emerge, fight, kill off other unhatched queens• Then fly out to mate with 18 – 24 drones• Come back and lay eggs for three years• As her pheromones dissipate with age, superseded

Races/Breeds of Bees

• German “Black” Bee• Italian “Yellow” Bee• Carniolan• Russian • Buckfast• VSH, SMR, “Hygienic” hybrids• “treatment-free” bees, supposed resistance• “wild” bees, feral bees, swarms

What kind of bee to get?• Start with Italians, maybe Carniolans• NOT Russians (personal opinion)• Queens are open-mated, diverse drones• Disposition is different between races of bees,

and determined by the genetics of the drones• No perfect bee, no pure breed• Find a locally-adapted bee– Works well in your area, survives– Responds well to your management– Raise new queens from this stock

Diseases and Parasites• Brood diseases– Situational to damp, wet, cold weather

• Nosema, Dysentery – dietary problems• Remedies– Maintain strong colonies with young queens– Wait it out for better weather– Feed artificial pollen, protein sources– Insure diversity of floral sources– Requeen with better genetics– Antibiotics?

Parasites and Viruses• Varroa mite is prime suspect

Management Options - varroa• Do nothing, Treatment-Free, live and let die• Acquire resistant, genetic stock, survivor, hygienic • Chemicals, synthetic miticides, residues and

resistance issues, timing, side effects (epigenetics)• Organic options, formic acid and thymol• Natural treatments, powdered sugar, essential oils• Equipment options, screen bottom boards• Manipulate the colony– Frames with drone-sized cells, freeze– Remove queen, create a broodless gap, in which the

new queen grows, mates, …or let them swarm.

Other Pests - Opportunisitic

• Small Hive Beetle

Small Hive Beetle Larvae

Small Hive Beetle

• Best defense is a good offense• Keep hives queen-right, unstressed• Keep hives strong with robust populations• Don’t allow unguarded comb, consolidate• Various oil-based traps in catalogs

Wax Moths

Wax Moths

Wax Moths

• Best defense is a good offense• Keep hives queen-right, unstressed• Keep hives strong with robust populations• Don’t allow unguarded comb, consolidate• Protect comb in storage with PDB or freezer

Mice

• More of a fall/winter problem• Mice chew through comb, make a smelly nest• Install mouse guards, ½” wire mesh or

entrance reducers

Summary: Bee Biology

• Recognize seasonality• Understand your purpose for keeping bees• Work with the colony, timing of management• Keep parasite populations at manageable

levels, use multiple approaches• The bees have and agenda; you have an agenda• Prioritize the bees agenda, then harmonize your

agenda with the seasonality