Introduction to Beekeeping in Vancouver Class

      Every year in May and June we have presented our "Introduction to Beekeeping in Vancouver" classes.  Beekeeping has become popular and a recent survey in the U.S. revealed that over 70% of beekeepers quit beekeeping within the first 5 years.  I believe this is because people enter into beekeeping too quickly and are not properly prepared for the dedication of time and continuous learning that is required to be a competent beekeeper.  Also, new beekeepers do not have the support needed to deal with problems that arise.  The goal of this class is not to discourage you or take the place of a full beekeeping course but to assist you and better prepare you in your decision to become a beekeeper.

Beeing with Bees by Kurt Liebich 1896

      We will provide you with a very basic theoretical overview of  honey bees and beekeeping and answer all of your questions.  The class is about 2 hours in length (1 hour theory and 1 hour in the hives) and as it is held outside is weather dependent.  We keep the class small so that everyone can have if they wish an intimate experience with the bees so reservation is necessary.  There is no cost and we provide the veil and gloves.  Our classes are held at Cottonwood Community Garden in Strathcona Park in Vancouver.  To reserve a spot in our first "Introduction to Beekeeping Class" on May 26 contact us at "strathconabee at gmaildotcom".  For more information on beekeeping courses check out our Vancouver Beekeeping Courses page.
     All of theory needed to be a beekeeper is available for free online.  A good start is "Beekeeping 101" which is an assortment of books, videos and online university beekeeping courses.  Our Beekeepers' Library is also a good source of information.  While theory is important the practical application and guidance of experienced beekeepers is more so.  We look forward to seeing you at our beekeeping class.
     Update 2019: We no longer run our introduction to beekeeping courses.

One of our girls enjoying a Kale blossom

Mason Beekeeping

Blue Orchard Mason Bee (Osmia Lignaria)

     An unfortunate part of the recent popularity of honey beekeeping is a high drop out rate of new beekeepers within the first few years because of the significant commitment of time and money.  For those of us who whether the storm of diseases, pests and colony losses it can become a life long obsession and love. For others an easier, cheap alternative (minus the honey) is to provide homes for native pollinators.

     While I am a keeper of honey bees, I also house mason and leafcutter bees in my garden. The mason bees also known as Osmia Lignaria are an important, native spring pollinator in our area of the world.  I've found them actively foraging at temperatures a few degrees cooler than honey bees which is important for early spring fruit pollination.  For many crops our native bees are better pollinators than honey bees and require far fewer bees.

     They make nests in reeds or natural holes and utilize mud to space their cocoons. While there is an endless variety of homes that you can make or purchase for your mason bees the important thing is that the inner nesting tube be accessible to clean and harvest the cocoons. Without the ability to access and clean the nesting area it would soon become filled with debris, mold, diseases (i.e. chalkbrood) and predators (i.e solitary wasps).

Native pollinator homes should have some shelter from weather and face east or south to catch the early morning sun

     I make my mason bee houses by simply drilling half inch holes in 6 inch deep wood.

     I use plain, unbleached brown paper from grocery bags rolled around a tent pole as liners which brings the finished diameter of the hole to the optimal 3/8 inch.  The rolled liners extend 1 inch out the back and are folded over with a back wood plate screwed on.  When harvest time comes I just unscrew the back plate and pull out the paper liners (Paper Liners That Work).  You can winter your cocoons in the fridge and release them in the spring. 

Mason Bee Cocoons

     For more information on how to manage Mason Bees for your home or farm go to the Native Pollinators section of our Library and scroll down to Mason Bees.

Good Book

How to Manage the Blue Orchard Bee

     If you are just starting out you can buy cocoons off Craigslist for about 50 cents a cocoon and from some garden stores for $1 per cocoon.  Good sources of supplies and information for mason and leafcutter bees are Crown Bees  and Beediverse.  Good luck.

Hapbee New Year

     To everyone I wish a very happy and healthy new year to you and your loved ones (including your bees).  May your bees survive the cold of winter, develop a resistance to Varroa and other pests, be free of all diseases and produce buckets of honey.
     Please don't drink and fly!

The Effects of a Solar Eclipse on Honey Bees

      I wrote this post for our 2017 eclipse and thought with our approaching April 8th eclipse a repost would be appropriate.  

     With a solar eclipse scheduled for tomorrow morning (beginning at 9:10 am, reaching it's maximum at 10:21 and ending at 11:37am in Vancouver - 2017) and the obvious concern for eye safety I wondered how bees and other critters coped with this phenomena.  It appears that unlike stupid humans animals generally don't stare at the sun so don't suffer from the damaging effects of the sun on eyesight.

       As for honey bees, studies like the one above from HOBOS honey bee research in 2015 show that foraging bee activity is decreased during an eclipse as it would be at the normal setting of the sun.  "The reduction in flight activity commenced as soon as the brightness was lower than 400 watts/m2. Only as the re-emerging sun reached a brightness of 400 watts/m2 did the bees’ flight activities begin to increase once more. The bees also reduced their flying ventures in the evening when the brightness level falls below the 400 watts/m2 mark."  

     As most who use links to studies can attest, they are short lived so I've included a few recent links to  studies on the effects of a solar eclipse on honey bees.  "Foraging and homing behavior of honey bees (Apis mellifera) during a total solar eclipse" , "Disruption in honey bee (Apis mellifera) foraging flight

activity during a partial solar eclipse shown by individual flight path tracking" and "Something Eerie Happens to The Bees During a Total Solar Eclipse".

    I'm relieved I don't have to purchase protective eyeware for my bees.

Fire at our Community Garden

Photos by Mary-Ann Charney

     On Tuesday night we had a fire at our community garden (Cottonwood) in Vancouver.  Unfortunately the fire consumed our greenhouse and beekeeping/tool shed.  Arson is suspected. We lost everything including ladders, pruners, construction tools, weed eater, irrigation supplies and all of our beekeeping equipment which we had accumulated over many years (including my favourite 40 year old smoker). This also includes our community honey extractor and honey harvesting equipment which we lent out to the public and the protective clothing we used for our beekeeping classes.

No AFB there

Our honey extractor

     It is difficult to remain optimistic in the face of continuous vandalism and theft at the garden but it is a reality of gardening and beekeeping in a public space.  It is important to remember that 99% of the folks that come to our garden love and appreciate it and we can't let the acts of a few dictate the future of our beautiful garden.

     Cottonwood Community Garden 25 years ago.

 

Cottonwood Garden today

     Cottonwood Community Garden today.  Built on a former dump site 25 years ago by a group of guerrilla gardeners this 4 acre oasis is a home to birds, bees, skunks, raccoons, squirrels, coyotes, frogs and over a hundred humans.  The city has proposed construction of a freeway through the middle of the garden.  Friends of the garden have proposed alternative sites for the freeway.  The future of the garden is in jeopardy but we are hopeful.  This video was taken on the 20th anniversary. 

We will rebuild and we will persevere.

     Remembering the good times.

Extracting honey in the bee shed

*  We have started a fundraiser to rebuild and restock our greenhouse and bee/tool shed. Any donation no matter how small is appreciated.  To donate by credit card go to "Cottonwood Fire" or you can donate by credit card or paypal on the top of the page on the sidebar.  You can receive a tax receipt with a donation of $25 or more.  Thank you.

Bad Nuc Rant

     The last few years I have observed an abundance of bad bee nucs for sale in the Vancouver area. Last year a number of beekeepers in our beekeeping coop bought nucs from a local retailer, all of which contained swarm cells.  As a result all of the nucs swarmed within the first week creating smaller nucs and very small swarms.  The owner of the company explained that the nucs were made by inexperienced workers who improperly made the nucs with swarm cells and newly introduced queens.
      This week a few nucs were bought by beekeepers in our organization from another beekeeping supply retailer.  The nuc boxes had scotch tape on the entrance (half attached), the lids were not attached, the brood comb was black (old) and the nuc boxes were older.  The nucs contained 2 frames of old, spotty brood, 2 wet frames, a queen cage and no laying queen.  Both of these retailers are good, knowledgeable beekeeping suppliers and the criticism is directed more towards the lack of long term bee breeders not the bee retailers (though the argument could be made that you are responsible for what you are selling).
       The bottom line is that we have a very poor, unsustainable honey bee population in greater Vancouver with most of the bees produced done so for a quick dollar rather than creating a legacy of strong, survivor stock.  Mark Winston, an SFU professor, biologist and beekeeper produced a study 30 years ago that suggested it was economically feasible to produce honey bee nucs and packages in the Fraser Valley (Package and Nucleus production in the Fraser Valley).  This potential has not been realized and instead we have become dependent on imported packages and poorly created nucs.  Good breeders in our area produce relatively few nucs and queens that don't begin to match the demand. Part of the reason is the extreme property values that make beekeeping not economically feasible in the Greater Vancouver area.
       Beekeepers ask me constantly if I can recommend a good bee nuc or queen source and I can't because the good sources are sold out before the bees are ready. If anyone knows of a good source of bees let us know. Bad nuc rant over.

La Nina Beekeeping

   
     The La Nina weather pattern is cooler than average sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean (3-5 degrees C.) resulting in colder temperatures and above average precipitation for us in Vancouver.  We have experienced these conditions through the winter with record snowfall in the local mountains and this weather pattern has continued through the early part of spring.

   
     As beekeepers we are always acutely aware of the temperature and rainfall and it's effects on our bees foraging particularly in the early spring.  This is a time of great potential brood development with the fruit trees in blossom (pollen) but because of the wet, cool spring both brood development and fruit production will suffer this year.  Although our bees will collect pollen and nectar at colder temperatures we don't get major colony foraging until it's 12 C. (53 F.) and sunny.  In Vancouver we have positive and negative honey bee food accumulation months.  This will vary on your specific location but for our urban apiary the positive months are April 1 through to October 1 with March and October dependent on weather conditions.  This year both March and April were negative.

        How does this effect spring beekeeping management?  For those who supplement their bees' diet feeding of both carbohydrates (sugar) and protein or protein supplement (to stimulate brood development) will be more important.  Keep in mind that below about 12 C. (54 fahrenheit) the bees won't take a liquid syrup as they are unable to process it (Feeding Bees in Winter).
       In order to carry out spring management we must assess the health of our hives.  Many sources (mostly southern) will insist you cannot inspect your frames until 15 C. (60 fahrenheit) for fear of chilling the brood.  Some northern beekeepers would have to wait til well into May for this.  Bees are hardier than most people think.  Peeking briefly into a hive during winter on a non snowy day to assess the food supply is fine as is inspecting the brood at 10 C. (50 fahrenheit).  Use common sense and minimize exposure.  This from the Huron City Bee Company in Michigan,
"How cold is too cold to inspect my hive?"
I hear this question quite often at this time of year. Let me just say, I was late one year and needed inspection papers to transport my hives. So, one January morning, at 28 degrees, the state inspector and I opened the hives and inspected brood frames VERY quickly. The result was no detectable loss of brood. We didn't stand around, and we didn't chat while the hives were open. We worked smoothly, so as to disturb the cluster as little as possible. And we closed them up as quickly as we could.
On the other hand, I've helped with inspections on a 70 degree day, where the beekeeper took out a frame of brood, stood it up and chatted for 20 minutes about what they found. Then later complained about chilled brood.  See where I'm going with this?  Go in, do what you need to do, and then get out quickly.  However, I want to temper this advice with another question. If you DO find something wrong, what's your plan?  Here in Michigan, it's 42 degrees right now. I wouldn't hesitate to pop open the hives. But, to what end? It's too late to replace a queen if I find one failing. The only thing I can do at this point is combine, and even then, they may remain clustered instead of merging.  The take away message is not to be afraid of opening the hives. But, if you have no courses of action if you find something wrong, why bother?"  I think this is a good year-round philosophy.  I go into my hives with a specific purpose and only when required for responsible colony management.
       For us in Vancouver that means we should be able to do a full inspection by March to assess the queen performance (brood pattern), presence of disease (continued excessive bee poop on hive) or mites (small hive beetle has arrived - Honey Bee Diseases and Parasites) and food supply (B.C. Government Spring Management).  Some of the spring beekeeping chores are: The cluster should be in the upper super so reverse the brood boxes; maintain a reduced entrance to prevent robbing or mice visits; optionally equalize the colonies by adding frames of bees of a strong colony to a weaker colony (Equalization of bee colony strength); cull your old foundation if you do so (Replacing brood comb); swarm prevention (checkerboarding, splits ... ) ;  maintain good ventilation and empty your bottom board of dead bees and debris.  In this article Randy Oliver and Dr. Medhat Nasr (Alberta Provincial Apiculturist) discuss the benefits of early season mite control through the formation of nucs with queen cells and the treatment of those nucs (Early Season Mite Management).
       I have been warned of the presence of nosema in some of this year's New Zealand packages.  Whether that is true or an attempt to boost the sales of fumagillin it's always a good idea to watch for signs of nosema (difficulty digesting food).  Nosema is difficult to diagnose without laboratory equipment (Nosema Assessment).  Some suggest a nosema infected midgut will become swollen, whitish and lose it's visible constrictions (a healthy midgut is tan with visible constrictions) but that is also true of other causes of dysentery.  Symptoms that may suggest the presence of nosema are the lack of population buildup as nosema infected bees tend to skip the nurse bee phase and become young foragers, dying at a young age.  Desperate they will forage at cooler temperatures and will not take syrup if fed.  This from Randy Oliver, "Perhaps the most noticeable effect of N. ceranae infection is the lack of population buildup of infected colonies, due to the premature death of infected foragers. Of interest is that nosema-infected bees tend to forage at cooler temperatures. Woyciechowski (1998) suggests that infected bees may engage in more risky foraging behavior, perhaps sensing that they do not have long to live. Additionally, infected bees may simply fly off to die, exhibiting an “altruistic suicide” to help prevent the infection of nestmates (Kralj 2006).  Another symptom, reported by several, and described by Bob Harrison on Bee-L, is that of bees not taking syrup, and then massively drowning in division board feeders. Bob feels that the symptom of going “off feed” is a good indicator for N. ceranae infection, which can be reversed with a drench of fumagillin syrup.  The drowning behavior may have an explanation in a recent paper by Chris Mayak (2009), in which he found that “N. ceranae imposes an energetic stress on infected bees, revealed in their elevated appetite and hunger level…. infected bees attempt to compensate for the imposed energetic stress by feeding more…” Mayak suggests that such hungry, nutritionally stressed bees, exhibiting risky foraging behavior, might play a role in the depopulation of infected colonies."

       Here are a few good spring beekeeping publications: Ohio State Beekeepers' Association Spring Management;  The National Bee Unit's Spring Checks; Spring Management by Dana Stahlman;  and from the Ontario Beekeepers Association Spring Checklist: Potential Reasons for Honey Bee Colony Loss.

        Due to the cool, wet La Nina weather plant development (blossoming) and our swarm season will be delayed by a few weeks.  Other aspects of beekeeping like split creation and queen and local nuc availability will also be delayed.  Also, it appears the price of nucs has risen this year to $225-$250.  The delayed blossoming of plants may create a stronger late season September-October food supply for our bees.  The Weather Network predicts a cool, wet spring and a warmer summer than last year.  "Some years there are strong signals in the global pattern that allow for higher confidence in a seasonal forecast, but unfortunately this is not one of those years. During the next few months, one of the keys to our final summer forecast will be the strength of the developing El Niño and whether the warmest water remains just west of South America or whether the warmest water shifts west into the central Pacific."  The La Nina weather pattern can last for a few years but hopefully it will be replaced soon by the warmer El Nino phase.  We'll keep our wings crossed.

  

Telling the Bees

     Bees and beekeeping have held a great importance to many cultures through history particularly prior to the arrival of sugar cane to colder areas of the world.  A European tradition that was held by some beekeepers was referred to as "Telling the Bees".  This involved informing the bees of any important family events like birth, marriage or death.  Beekeepers would often leave small offerings like wedding cake or small sweets for a birth and drape the hives with black cloth or turn the hives away from the house upon death.  It was said that the bees would either die or leave the hives if not told of the death of their keeper.  This tradition was brought to the Americas by immigrants in the 19th century. 

     In Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn he wrote:

“And he said if a man owned a beehive and that man died, the bees must be told about it before sun-up next morning, or else the bees would all weaken down and quit work and die. Jim said bees wouldn't sting idiots; but I didn't believe that, because I had tried them lots of times myself, and they wouldn't sting me.”

     Another example of "Telling the Bees" is in England in 1840, a woman upon the death of their keeper leaving an offering of sweets and reciting the poem: 

Your master J.A. has passed away.

But his wife now begs you will freely stay,

and still gather honey for many a day.

Bonny bees, Bonny bees, hear what I say. 

     The process is described in 1901 work of Samuel Adams Drake A book of New England legends and folk lore in prose and poetry:

...goodwife of the house to go and hang the stand of hives with black, the usual symbol of mourning, she at the same time softly humming some doleful tune to herself. (Wikipedia)

This video is of a Dutch beekeeper in l926 telling the bees of a death. A black cloth is draped over one of the hives and he taps on each of the hives to get there attention to deliver the news. In Holland it was customary to use a pipe as a smoker to calm the bees. (Historical Honeybee Articles)

     Here is a poem written by John Greenleaf Whittier about "Telling the Bees" of their keepers passing.

Telling the Bees

(The traditional telling the bees of a recent beekeeper passing)

Here is the place; right over the hill

Runs the path I took;

You can see the gap in the old wall still,

And the stepping-stones in the shallow brook.

There is the house, with the gate red-barred,

And the poplars tall;

And the barn's brown length, and the cattle-yard,

And the white horns tossing above the wall.

There are the beehives ranged in the sun;

And down by the brink

Of the brook are her poor flowers, weed-o'errun,

Pansy and daffodil, rose and pink.

A year has gone, as the tortoise goes,

Heavy and slow;

And the same rose blows, and the same sun glows,

And the same brook sings of a year ago.

There's the same sweet clover-smell in the breeze;

And the June sun warm

Tangles his wings of fire in the trees,

Setting, as then, over Fernside farm.

I mind me how with a lover's care

From my Sunday coat

I brushed off the burrs, and smoothed my hair,

And cooled at the brookside my brow and throat.

Since we parted, a month had passed,--

To love, a year;

Down through the beeches I looked at last

On the little red gate and the well-sweep near.

I can see it all now,--the slantwise rain

Of light through the leaves,

The sundown's blaze on her window-pane,

The bloom of her roses under the eaves.

Just the same as a month before,--

The house and the trees,

The barn's brown gable, the vine by the door,--

Nothing changed but the hives of bees.

Before them, under the garden wall,

Forward and back,

Went drearily singing the chore-girl small,

Draping each hive with a shred of black.

Trembling, I listened: The summer sun

Had the chill of snow;

For I knew she was telling the bees of one

Gone on the journey we all must go!

Then I said to myself, 'My Mary weeps

For the dead to-day;

Haply her blind old grandsire sleeps

The fret and the pain of his age away.'

But her dog whined low; on the doorway sill,

With his cane to his chin,

The old man sat; and the chore-girl still

Sung to the bees stealing out and in.

And the song she was singing ever since

In my ear sounds on:

'Stay at home, pretty bees, fly not hence!

Mistress Mary is dead and gone!'

Quaker writer John Greenleaf Whittier’s 1858 poem “Telling the Bees.” (Daily Jstor)

     A poem by by Katherine Tynan (l918)

Tell it to the bees, lest they

Umbrage take and fly away, 

That the dearest boy is dead, 

Who went singing, blithe, and dear, 

By the golden hives last year. 

Curly-head, ah, curly head!

Tell them that the summer’s over, 

Over mignonette and clover;

Oh, speak low and very low!

Say that he was blithe and bonny, 

Good as gold and sweet as honey, 

All too late the roses blow!

Say he will not come again, 

Not in any sun or rain, 

Heart’s delight, ah, heart’s delight!

Tell them that the boy they knew

Sleeps out under rain and dew

In the night, ah, in the night!

by Katherine Tynan (l918)

     Here is a musical rendition (live) of the poem "The Bee-Boy's Song" by Rudyard Kipling which depicts the practice of "Telling the Bees" sung by Rosie Hodgson.

Bees! Bees! Hark to your bees!

"Hide from your neigbours as much as you please,

But all that has happened, to us you must tell,

Or else we will give you no honey to sell!"

A maiden in her glory,

Upon her wedding - day,

Must tell her Bees the story,

Or else they'll fly away.

Fly away -- die away --

Dwindle down and leave you!

But if you don't deceive your Bees,

Your Bees will not deceive you.

Marriage, birth or buryin',

News across the seas,

All you're sad or merry in,

You must tell the Bees.

Tell 'em coming in an' out,

Where the Fanners fan,

'Cause the Bees are just about

As curious as a man!

Don't you wait where the trees are,

When the lightnings play,

Nor don't you hate where Bees are,

Or else they'll pine away.

Pine away -- dwine away --

Anything to leave you!

But if you never grieve your Bees,

Your Bees'll never grieve you.

by Rudyard Kipling

     There is also a tradition called "Asking the Bees" where a new beekeeper "Asks the Bees" to accept them as their keeper and to impart their wisdom to them.  

     Emily sent me a wonderful story of the prayers read at the funeral of Clive Watson, a much loved leader and supporter of the beekeeping community.  These are the prayers that were read to his hives (Telling the Bees).   

     With the recent passing of Queen Elizabeth II, John Chapple, the Palace beekeeper had the sad task of informing the royal bees of their master's passing (Telling the Bees from Bee Culture). He placed black ribbons around the hives and explained that King Charles III is their new master. “You knock on each hive and say, ‘The mistress is dead, but don’t you go. Your master will be a good master to you.’”   

    I hope that upon my passing someone informs my bees.  This is a film about a son informing the bees of his father's passing and deciding their future.