Why Keep Bees?
The Beekeeper
Tonight’s Agenda
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Introductory Remarks
A (very short) Overview of the Bee
Terminology
Where Bees Live
Inside/Outside the Hive
All About that Honey
The Disappearing Bee Population
“The Vanishing Bee”
My First Day As A Beekeeper
Beekeeper Fail
• Untucked
long-sleeved
shirt
• Untucked
pant legs
• Hives on a
stand that is
too tall
• Mosquito
netting on a
baseball hat
A Brief But Fascinating History of Honey
and the Honey Bee
o The European honey bee has been kept for many hundreds of years.
o Only sweetener available
o 5,000 yr. old honey from Egypt was still viable
o Used as a medicine
o Taxes paid in honey
o Not native to North America, although many other species of bees are native
o Kept in Skeps – Dome style straw houses or logs called
o Killed bees to get honey
o Captured swarms to increase stock
o “King” controlled the hive, only later did they realize it was a Queen
o Women kept bees to provide extra income on the farm
o Rev. Lorenzo Langstroth – invented the removable frame hive 1852: “Langstroth
Hive”
A Brief But Fascinating History of
Honey and the Honey Bee (continued)
Today
1 – 5 hive Hobbyist beekeeper
Kept in cities and on roofs of buildings
5-30 hive “Sideliner”—may attempt to recoup some of the
costs of keeping bees by selling honey (farmer markets,
“Mom & Pop” stores, specialty shops etc.)
100 to 5,000 hives—commercial beekeeper
Many thousand pounds of honey produced annually
Pollination services (almonds, apples, pears, cherries, cranberries,
pumpkins)
Terminology
• Hive: “Home” for the bees. Typically rectangle
wooden boxes of various depths.
• Brood Boxes: Where the queen lays eggs and
worker bees pack honey and pollen.
• Supers: Shallower boxes generally used for honey
collection for the beekeeper.
• Colony: The bees that live in a hive. Sometimes
called a swarm.
• Damn: When you get stung by a bee.
• Run!: When you get swarmed by bees.
Beekeeping Starter Kit
• Starter Kits
• $200 to $600
Hive Example
•Does Not Include Bees
•3 lb. Package = $121
•2 lb. Package = $110
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Bee Suits
(Who’s The Dorky Looking Guy on the Left?)
Worker Bee
(Female)
Maintains hive, forages
for nectar and pollen,
constructs comb,
guards the hive, nurses
larvae, assists queen,
caps honey and much,
much more
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BeeDrone
Castes
Queen Bee
(Male)
Mates.
Dies.
Lays eggs
(>1500/day),
manages colony
through secretion
of pheromones.
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Brood Cycle of the Honey Bee Castes (In Days)
Stage
Drone
Queen
Worker
Egg Hatches
3
3
3
Cell Capped
10
8
8
Pupa
14
10
11
Adult
22.5
15
20
Emergence
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16
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Where Bees Live
• Skeps – olden days
Long Leaf Pine
Needle Skep
Grape Vine Skep
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Where Bees Live
• Log Gums – Natures way
Hollow Trees
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Where Bees Live
• House or patio
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Where Bees Live
Hives
Top Bar Hive
Warre Hive
Langstroth Hives
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Hive Parts
Outer Cover
Inner Cover (not visible)
Honey Supers
Queen Excluder
Ventilation Hole
Brood Boxes
Entrance
Bottom Board
How They Get Here –
The Hard Way
Swarms
“Hiving” a Swarm
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How They Get Here – The Hard Way
Swarms
2/6/2015
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The Easy Way
Bee Packages
• Usually come in
2 or 3 pound
packages
• Includes queen
The Bee
Guardians
• Contains a tin
can with syrup
to feed the bees
while in
transient
Inside the Hive
Honey in the
making
(uncapped)
Busy bees on frame
Queen & “Court”
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Inside the Hive
Drone Cells
Worker Cells
Queen Cells
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Outside the Hive
Air Conditioning
Finding Water
Orientation Flight
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Outside the Hive
Crazy Beekeeper:
“Bearding”
Hot Day: “Bearding”
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Minnesota Winters
• Cluster
• Eat Honey Stores
• 90-95 Degrees Inside of Hive – Use flight
muscles without moving wings to generate
heat
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Minnesota Winters
Bad sign—dead bees at
bottom of hive
Winter Cluster
Bee Butts
Honey
Dead Bees on Frame
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Predators
Skunks
Black Bear
Mice
Pooh Bear
Mites
(more on these guys later)
Products From the Hive
• Honey
– Approximately 1 Million Uses
• Bee’s wax
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Candles
Furniture polish
Furniture sealing
Hand Cream
Lip Balm
Soap
Stop shoe laces from untying
• Pollen
– Medicinal
• Propolis (brown sticky stuff found inside hives…bee caulking)
– Medicinal
Honey Options
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Raw
Chunk Honey
Comb Honey
Creamed Honey
Liquid
Honey sticks
(straws)
Always Ask: “Is It Local?”
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Some Honey Facts
• A honey bee will produce all of
1/12 teaspoon of honey in her
lifetime
• A bee will visit up to 100 plants in
one trip
• To produce 16 oz. of honey, bees
need to fly a collective 55,000
miles
• Bee’s carry nectar in a second
“honey stomach” and then
regurgitates it back in the hive.
(Don’t over think that little fact)
Sr. Alice showing off Assisi Hts. Honey
(with help from a special friend…if you
know what I mean)
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Honey Questions
Q. How do I keep my honey from crystallizing?
A. Eventually all honey crystallizes--some will do it in a few weeks, other in a few years. If your honey crystallizes before you use it
all up, simply sit the container in hot water, or sit it out in the sun. Microwaving also works, but it tends to overheat the honey
which kills off the enzymes and other good things that it provides us.
Q. But the honey I buy at a store seems to never crystallize--why is that?
A. First off, make sure what you have is pure honey without any additives--many products labeled "honey" do. If the honey is from
one of the big "packers", it probably means they put it through a pasteurization-type process which not only prevents crystallization,
but also kills off most of the good stuff honey should have in it. How do you know if it has gone through this process? You don't, that
is why you should consider buying from a local beekeeper.
Q. How long will honey keep?
A. Honey is one of the very few foods that will not spoil--assuming it was extracted and bottled correctly. There are stories of honey
being found in Egyptian tombs that was still edible, but probably not very tasty.
Q. I saw something called "raw honey", how is that different from other honey?
A. Some people prefer to buy their honey completely unadulterated, so they look for raw honey. This style basically goes
straight from the honey extractor to bottles with very little if any filtering in between. What you end up with in addition to the honey
can be wax and bee parts. It is safe to eat, although I wouldn't ask too many questions if something gets stuck in your teeth!
Q. I heard honey has some medicinal value to it--true or false?
A. We know that honey can assist with wound and burn care, although to what extent is still debatable. This link takes you the Mayo
Clinic page that summarizes some other potential uses of honey as medicine: Mayo Clinic on Honey
Q. Is it a good idea to feed infants or people with immune deficiencies honey?
A. There is still some debate about this, but the general response is no, honey should not be fed to infants under the age of 1, or
to people with severe immune system deficiencies. This is due to the possibility of botulism spores being present within the
honey. Even if the spores were present it should not have any ill effect on a healthy person.
Collecting the Honey
Taking off the Honey
Supers (boxes).
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Extracting the Honey
1. De-capping the
honey on the frame
Honey Inspector
2. Placing the frames
in the extractor
3. Extracting
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Bottling Honey
4. Straining for wax
and bee parts
5. Bottling Bucket
6. Final Product!
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BREAK?
Honey Bee as Pollinator
• Non-grain crops
– Stoned fruit
– Berries
– Pumpkins
– Pickles and Cucumbers
• Almonds - would not be a commercial product
without the honey bee
University of Minnesota
2/6/2015
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So What’s This I Hear About All of the
Bees Dying?
This guy can say it better (and faster) than me:
SciShow
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What Are Folks Saying About the Die-Off of Bees?
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NY Times March, 2013 (You Tube)
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Preliminary results for the 2013/14 survey indicate that 20.0% of all colonies managed between
April 1 2013 and Oct 1 2013 died. Responding beekeepers who managed bees over the entire
April 2013 – April 2014 survey period reported losing 34.2% of the 670,568 colonies managed
over this period. Bee Informed Partnership, May 15, 2014
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The results from this study not only replicate findings from the previous study, but also reinforce
the conclusion that the sublethal exposure to neonicotinoids is likely the main culprit for the
occurrence of CCD.” CE, May 15, 2014
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A federal study attributes the massive die-off in American honey bee colonies to a combination of
factors, including pesticides, poor diet, parasites and a lack of genetic diversity. Nearly a third of
honey bee colonies in the United States have been wiped out since 2006. The estimated value of
crops lost if bees were no longer able to pollinate fruits and vegetables is around $15 billion.
Moyer and Friends, May 2, 2013
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Pesticides appear to play a key role in killing off the honey bee population, according to a new
study from Harvard University. The authors wrote that pesticides might lead to '"impairment of
honey bee neurological functions, specifically memory, cognition, or behavior.“ CBS News, May
14, 2014
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"Some critics contend that neonicotinoids may be involved in honeybee losses,” Bayer's website
proclaims. "However, there has been no demonstrated effect on colony health associated with
neonicotinoid-based insecticides.“…Bayer ponied up more than $2 million for all of its lobbying
efforts in the first quarter of the year (2014), according to lobbying disclosure records. National
Journal, July 1, 2014
Where Do I Land?
(In case anyone cares)
Thank You!
Questions?
Bee’s Knees Honey Farm
A Chemical Free Apiary
Oronoco, MN
www.bkhoneyfarm.com
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Netflix:
Varroa Destructor