July 2020 - Bees in Cold Storage
A fantastic article was recently posted in Bee Culture that provides some fascinating details on commercial beekeeping practices.
June 2020 - A Colony Mid-Swarm
Have you ever wondered what the inside of a swarming colony looks like? Here’s a fantastic video!
Video
June 2020 - BIP Webinars
The Bee Informed Partnership is hosting a series of free webinars. Feel free to sign up and learn more!
Link
May 2020 - Joe's Two Cents
For those of us who keep bees in out-yards, or places where the grass is tall, it is important to check ourselves from head to toe for ticks before we end our day. This involves standing naked in front of a mirror and carefully inspecting ourselves, and if we don't have somebody to check those parts of us which we cannot see, using a hand-held mirror along with the other mirror will help us view the entire body.
Should a tick be found and it be embedded, it should be removed with either a fine-tip tweezers, or a Tick Removal Tool. Don't wait until you have found a tick embedded in yourself to decide to purchase a tweezers or Tick Removal Tool. I have used both, and while the Tick Removal Tool is adequate for larger ticks, it doesn't work well for small ticks. When using the tweezers, grasp the tick at the point where the mouth-parts enter the skin, and pull up steadily. If you are feeling creative and don't have a tweezers handy, you can take a piece of thread, make a slip-knot with it, manipulate the loop so it encircles the tick's mouth-parts, tighten the loop, and pull. Cleanse the spot with hydrogen peroxide or soap and water. Apply an antiseptic ointment if you like. Slaughter of the tick is left to your imagination.
-Joe Treimel