Breck Demers

Selecting high-quality queens with strong genetics is a fundamental aspect of maintaining healthy, productive honey bee colonies. This guide emphasizes the importance of sourcing local stock to ensure bees are adapted to their specific environment and free from disease. Beekeepers should consider re-queening when a colony exhibits poor growth, excessive defensiveness, or susceptibility to illness. The process requires significant patience…

The calendar is a huge price factor for nucs. A spring nuc has an overwintered queen, proven to survive local winters. A summer nuc, with a newly mated queen, grows slower and needs costly feeding to reach winter size. Buying a summer nuc shifts overwintering risk to you, often eliminating first-year honey harvests. #beekeeping #springnuc #summer nuc #beecoins #apiary #honeybees…

This text serves as a practical guide for beekeepers looking to diversify their income by harvesting propolis, a resinous bee product known for its medicinal qualities. The author highlights how this sticky substance, often considered a nuisance, contains hundreds of health-boosting compounds with anti-inflammatory and anti-viral benefits. To maximize its value, the source provides a detailed step-by-step method for creating…

#honeybees #valleybeekeeping http://www.valleybeekeeping.com

In 2019, Ontario officially lifted the quarantine on the small hive beetle in Southwestern regions, marking a shift from containment to long-term integrated management. While the initial restrictions successfully delayed the spread of this insect, the government now focuses on educating beekeepers to treat it as a manageable, minor pest. The provided text outlines biosecurity protocols, such as maintaining strong…