Pemichangan Beekeeper

ON-LINE BEEKEEPING COURSE: BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND My first course sold out - thank you to those with interest in beekeeping and with confidence in my teaching abilities! I'm running a 2nd class starting on 17 November. Here are the details: ... - Live, interactive on-line class over zoom. - 5 x 1 hour classes, followed by a 20 minute question / answer / discussion period (for those who have the time). - 5 to 6PM (consider it the "happy hour" beekeeping club) - Maximum 15 participants - I want it to be interactive - with questions / answers, discussions. PRICE: $75 (participants get a $25 discount and free shipping - worth apx. $50 - on the purchase of a starter hive kit with a partner supplier). CURRICULUM: TUE 17 NOV: Honeybees, hive components & equipment THU 19 NOV: How to start your beekeeping operation TUE 24 NOV: I’ve installed my bees now what do I do? THU 26 NOV: Extraction and processing in the honey house TUE 1 DEC: Post-Extraction: Clean up and prepping bees for next year Your spot is confirmed upon reception of the tuition. If interested, please send me a private message.

HONEYBEES THAT DON'T STING? Wouldn't that be nice. No need to wear protective equipment, no concern that neighbours might get anxious over nearby hives... They DO exist! While the honeybee we're all used to is a species called Apis melifera, there are other species of honeybee, notably, the Melipona genus, found in the new world (e.g. the Americas) tropics. ... The most famous is Melipona beechii - most common in Mexico's Yucatan peninsula. Before the Europeans arrived (bringing our stinging honeybee along), the Mayans were very much involved in honey production from the Melipona honeybee. DOWNSIDE? The Melipona is much smaller than the Apis melifera honeybee. Its colonies are also smaller, and as a result, it produces a lot less honey. A Melipona hive could produce perhaps only a 2-3kg of honey a year (compared to apx. 40kg or more for the Apis melifera bees). DOES YOUR BEE BITE? While the Melipona bees doesn't sting, it can bite! I had the chance to check out Melipona hives in the Yucatan - and their defensive reaction was to bite the thin folds of skin on your eyelids. Not a big deal, no venom, not painful... but a bit of a distraction. Click on the pictures for a few more details if you like. (all pics thanks to "Yourbeatingheart.com").

LAST FLYING DAY OF THE YEAR? I checked the bees last Friday. It was over 20C, sunny with a light southern breeze. The bees were out in full force - I even saw a bit of pollen coming in from a few flowers holding out against all odds (mostly purple asters I think). I suspect this will have been the last good day for bees for the next six months. In these parts, 100km north of Ottawa, you can't expect many days above 12C or 14C until about then. The first action these... bees will see in terms of pollen / nectar will be at the very end of April, early May, when maples will be flowering. It's hard to believe that they will just hang out in their hives for 6 full months. THAT'S what I call a quarantine! And no Netflix to boot!

BEEKEEPING: ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW TO GET STARTED AND HAVE A SUCCESSFUL FIRST YEAR If you're thinking of keeping bees next year, now's the time to start getting organized. I'm offering a live, interactive on-line class starting in November by zoom. 5 x 1 hour classes, followed by a 20 minutes question / answer / discussion period (for those who have the time). 5-6PM. Maximum 15 participants - I want it to be interactive - with questions / answers, discussions. ... PRICE: $75 (but I'm working with a beekeeping supplier and hope to get a $75 discount on the purchase of a starter hive kit for all those who take my class). LESSON 1: Honeybees, hive components & equipment LESSON 2: How to start your beekeeping operation LESSSON 3: I’ve installed my bees now what do I do? LESSON 4: Extraction and processing in the honey house LESSON 5: Post-Extraction: Clean up and prepping bees for next year I'm putting together a shortlist of interested participants - if I have more than 15, I may organize a 2nd class. If interested, please send me a private message and I'll put you on the waiting list. Formal registration will take place later next week. First come, first served.

SWARM!! (feel free to ask any questions in the comment section and I hope to respond quickly) Earlier in September, while just putting the lid back on the last of my six hives (I had been feeding the bees as part of pre-winter preparations), I turned around, and, right in front of me, at chest height, there was a massive swarm of bees gathered in spruce branch. Click on the 4-5 pictures below to learn more about swarms, what they are, why they happen, and how to deal with t...hem (pics are not mine, but show exactly what went on). #swarm #honeybees #bees #beekeeping #pemichangan