Month: March 2019

Spring always brings fresh, new things: baby animals, budding flowers and leaves on trees. So my hopes for a boisterous start to the honeybee season were dashed when I finally got into my hives last Wednesday afternoon.

Three of our four hives are dead. Two had just a few dead bees around the edges. On the third we cleaned out quite a population of dead bees. A few presumed hardy bees occupied the fourth hive, for which I still hold out hope for a good season.

I’ll never forget the sadness I felt the first time I lost a colony of bees. It was my third year and I was devastated. I felt that I had let these gals down, not providing proper care for them. It turns out the deadouts that year were from too much moisture inside the hive. I had missed a couple bee classes the year before and did not know about adding an insulation board under the top cover to help control moisture on warm-then-cold days. Bees do a good job of keeping themselves warm during cold temperatures, but cold and wet are a perilous combination for them.

We saw activity in front of all four hives this winter, even into February. But then the Polar Vortex hit and I suspect the extreme cold temperatures and wind probably took its toll.

Iowa’s apiarist Andy Joseph said he’s been seeing a lot of hive loss this season. He advises beekeepers try to figure out the cause to keep history from repeating itself.

Hives most often are lost due to poor health of the bees going into winter. That’s why most beekeepers feed their bees sugar water in the fall so they have plenty of food stores going into winter and the bees themselves can put on a few micro-ounces.

We also treat for Varroa mites. These tiny but deadly pests can infect all hives, getting into brood cells and killing new larvae. Most beekeepers treat for mites in spring and fall, but Joseph said mites last fall were exceptionally hard to kill. Several chemical formulations are available. I use a treatment in the form of plastic strips placed between frames for several weeks. The chemical kills mites but not the bees. Mites also carry viruses and disease, which are passed along to bees inside the hive.

Another cause could be lack of food, but the honey stores in all my hives were almost all in tact. I had also placed a protein patty supplement on top of the frames late last fall, and in two hives it was hardly touched. If temperatures are too cold, and the winter bees cannot break their cluster to get honey, they can starve even with food only a frame or two away.

Long periods of cold weather also keep bees inside the hive, unable to take “cleansing” flights. The bees will not poop in the hive and can develop dysentery, which can be a sign of other diseases.

That’s a lot for a beekeeper to think about! I need to do a little detective work in these empty hives, clean up the frames and get them ready for another batch of bees.

People ask me what’s next. I will probably order three packages of bees and three fertilized queens. Many commercial beekeepers are just now getting their bees back from warmer climates where the bees have been providing pollination services for orchards and large-scale growers. Their hives are bursting with bees, and some will make it to my house in either a two-pound box or a three-pound box.

We all know that winter hive losses are part of beekeeping, but that doesn’t make it any easier. We all keep our fingers crossed!

Spring always has been favorite season. Birds sing new tunes, dormant bulbs pop, grass turns green and now – the biggest reason to rejoice – bees take to flight!

This past week the weather has warmed enough to melt most of the snow. Temperatures are high enough to allow bees to fly. I know mine have been busy (those few that managed to live through the Polar Vortex). I am ready to get busy in the garden and tend to my hives.

That’s why this week is perfect timing for Ames Bee Week. Mindy Bergstrom, new owner of Cook’s Emporium, has organized this celebration in her downtown Ames store. Yours truly, the Bee Lady, will be there on Tuesday morning and Thursday evening to offer educational programs.  Also on the schedule is Iowa Honey Queen Carly Raye and Nevada beekeeper and Master Gardener Ann Wilbur.

Other downtown businesses are celebrating bees, too. Little Woods Herb & Tea is making Elderberry Honey Lattes and London Underground is serving up Bee’s Knees and Bee Sting cocktails. Both stores will earmark a portion of the proceeds for bee conservation. Bravo!

Joining the party are the Quilting Connection with a great collection of bee fabrics, and Della Viti with Bee Trivia and mead samples from the local Buzzed Bee Meadery.

Check out the windows at Cook’s Emporium, too. It’s all about bees. If you’re a bee geek like I am, you’ll never find a better assortment of bee-related merchandise than inside the store. From honeycomb-and-bee cookie stamps and cookie cutters to bee-themed dishes, utensils and linen, you’re sure to find something to enjoy – I did!

Cook’s will be serving honey tea all week and host special activities every day. Drop by and visit Mindy and her staff — they love bees as much as I do!

My talk will be at 6 pm on Thursday, March 28.

More information about Bee Week

The photos and clip art below are from Cook’s Emporium – many thanks for your great support of bees (and beekeepers!).

 

 

It’s been a tough winter. I know it’s been tough for me, but I suspect it has been worse for the bees.

Many people think that honey bees, like other common insects, either die at first frost or simply hibernate during winter months and emerge after spring thaw.

Nope.

Honey bees keep the hive a cozy 90- to 95-degrees throughout winter, even when the mercury dips below zero. The bees cluster in a large ball, about the size of a basketball, and flex their wing muscles to generate heat. Worker bees take turns being on the outside of the cluster, possibly moving at a slower pace but constantly moving. At the center of that tight cluster is the honored queen, who is on vacation from laying eggs until spring.

It takes a large group of bees to maintain a warm hive. Although worker bees are not raising little ones, they need every bit of energy to survive. All other bee activity stops – cleaning and building comb, guarding the hive, making honey, foraging.

In warm weather, there are many jobs for all workers and bees live only about six weeks. But in winter, workers live for up to five months. No new bees are born at that time, so when bees die from disease or hunger, the population in a hive can drop to dangerously low levels. If the cluster is too small, all bees perish.

That’s why it’s important to have healthy bees in the fall. These are the bees that will live throughout the winter. They must be able to keep the hive warm, get at food stores and survive under trying conditions.

Beekeepers can help by locating hives in areas sheltered from cold north winds. We use a bee quilt, a black plastic covering that goes around the hive body (the color absorbs radiant heat). And we put a foam core board under the top cover to reduce moisture that can collect during variable winter temperatures.

Today my husband cleaned snow from around the front of the hive. We expect temperatures to get into the 40s and 50s this week, warm enough for the bees to fly. Bees need to get out of the hive every month or so just to relieve themselves (they will not poop in the hive, bless them!).

On that first warm day I will peek under the lid to see how the bees are faring. I hope they’ve found the winter patty I left on top of the bee frames last fall, and that they’ve been getting into their honey stores.

If I’m lucky – and the bees have done their thing — I’ll find evidence that our bees are still with us!

Do you love fresh, local honey? I have great news: it’s good on more than toast and English muffins!

Honey can be substituted for sugar in almost any recipe. It not only tastes good but is good for you and – yet another bonus! — honey helps foods retain moisture and freshness.

I want to thank the Iowa Honey Producers Association for compiling the following information about honey and cooking.

Honey is about 25 percent sweeter than sugar so you do not need as much honey in a recipe as sugar. White granulated sugar made from sugar cane or sugar beets is 100 percent fructose. Honey, which is made from plant nectar collected by honey bees, contains a mixture primarily of glucose and fructose. These sugars are easily used by the body.

Honey also contains B vitamins, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, thiamin, nicotinic acid and pyridoxine. Small amounts of Vitamin C also may be found in honey as well as some minerals and various enzymes.

Liquid honey purchased from beekeepers has no preservatives or additives to enhance its flavor. Because of its high density, honey inhibits the growth of mold, bacteria and fungus. In its original form, honey can remain shelf-stable for many years.

Honey naturally forms crystals at temperatures lower than 60 degrees, so do not keep it in the refrigerator. If honey has crystalized, put the jar in a pan of hot water and it will return to its liquid form.

To substitute honey for sugar in baked goods, follow these guidelines:

• Reduce liquid in recipe by ¼ cup for each cup of honey used.
• Add about ½ teaspoon baking soda for each cup of honey used.
• Reduce oven temperature by 25 degrees to prevent over-browning.

A 12-ounce jar of honey equals a standard measuring cup.

And here’s another bonus for you – a tested recipe for homemade granola bars. Made by IHPA member Ann Wilbur, the bars were a hit at the Iowa Honey Bee Day legislative breakfast in Des Moines.

Base Granola Bar Recipe
  (adapted from Blessthismessplease.com, Melissa Griffiths)

2 ½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats
½ cup nuts roughly chopped (Ann used slivered almonds)
¼ cup honey
¼ cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¾ cup total mix-ins (about ¼ cup of 3 different ingredients such as dried fruits, coconut, chips; Ann used mini-marshmallows and mini-chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, Line 9-inch square baking dish with parchment or foil and lightly spray with cooking spray,

Place oats and nuts on rimmed baking sheet and toast for 8-10 minutes until lightly brown. Place in a large bowl.

While oats are toasting, add honey, butter and brown sugar to small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until butter melts and sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and salt. Pour this mixture over oat and nut mixture and stir to combine. Add extra ingredients (except for chocolate) and stir to combine. Make sure none of the oats are dry.

If using chocolate, wait about 15 minutes for mixture to cool ad bit and then stir to combine. Place all in prepared square pan. Use a rubber spatula or bottom of greased measuring cup to press into pan. Chill at least 2 hours. Lift bars from pan using edges of foil and place on cutting board to cut to serving pieces.

These store well in refrigerator.

Enjoy!