What hive components should you have ready for your first bees? Well, as in everything that has to do with keeping bees, there is no ‘right’ answer. All beekeeping is local, and the configuration described here is suited to backyard beekeepers in southern Oregon, where we have hot dry summers […]
The slatted rack is used for better overwintering and for swarm control. It is considered an essential hive component by some beekeepers. The slatted rack is placed between the screened bottom board and the bottom hive body.
After the daytime temperatures fall below about 60 degrees it’s time to stop using a liquid syrup to feed the bees, and to remove any remaining pollen patties from the hive. In our area that generally means early October. Bees don’t take up syrup when it is below 50 degrees, and […]
Contributed by Dewey M. Caron In 2015, I surveyed 250 Oregon backyard beekeepers during April asking about overwintering losses, colony feeding, sanitation and varroa control efforts (The 2015 survey questions are posted on the website pnwhoneybeesurvey.com/annual-surveys/). Loss levels statewide were 27% for both 8-and 10-frame Langstroth hive beekeepers, double that number for […]
Type Latin Name Common Name Drought Tolerant Deer Resistant Perennial Aster amellus Michaelmas Daisy/Purple Aster Teucrium chamaedrys Wall Germander X Echinacea purpurea Coneflower Gaillardia aristata e.g. Arizona Sun Eutrochium purpureum Joe-Pye Weed Rudbeckia hirta Black-eyed Susan Achillea millefolium Yarrow X Eschscholzia californica CA Poppy […]
Why do my honey bees ignore the fresh water I provide, and instead fly over to my neighbor’s pool? The Classroom article in the September 2015 issue of the American Bee Journal had a great answer! Just as with nectar, when bees locate a good source of water they bring it […]
Dr. Dewey Caron is the Principal Drafter on a publication entitled “Tools for Varroa Management, A Guide to Effective Varroa Sampling & Control 2017” “Every honey bee colony in the continental United States and Canada either has Varroa mites today or will have them within several months. Varroa mite infestation represents […]
If you are a current member of SOBA and would like to advertise honey, beeswax, or other hive products here, please contact us with your information. Honey Noah’s Bees We are located in Grants Pass, OR. We have Blackberry, Wildflower and Clover honey. You can order ONLINE or shop locally […]
Contributed by Dr. Dewey M. Caron Feeding bees in the fall was brought up by all the SOBA Fall bee course instructors and we got several questions about feeding. Feeding is unquestionably a way to make the difference in whether a colony survives overwinter or not. Feeding does have some […]
If you see bees hanging out on the front of your hive, they may be bearding – especially if the temperature outside is over 100 degrees. But check closely. Are they rocking back and forth? Maybe they are washboarding—a very mysterious bee activity! From Katie Bohrer and Jeffery S. Pettis. USDA-ARS […]
At her recent Spring Management class, Sarah (BeeGirl) told us that when bees get too hot, they shut down production – the queen stops laying and it’s all hands on deck to bring water into the hive. The bees will spit the water inside the hive and fan it to […]
In the PNW Winter Loss Survey this past April, 250 Oregon and Washington backyard beekeepers provided information on monitoring bee colonies for mites, including 12 SOBA members. Thirty-seven percent (37%) said they did not monitor for mites . Twenty seven (27%) sampled pre-treatment and 30% sampled both before and following treatment. Thirty-seven percent […]
