“Help! How do I get rid of bees in my house (or tree or shed?)” That’s a question we get a lot as beekeepers. In this post I’m going to talk about bee removal for both the one wanting the bees removed and for the beekeeper doing the removal. Points…
The Truth About Africanized Honeybees
Africanized bees are something that, if you are not a beekeeper and don’t live in Arizona, seem like mythological creatures from a horror film. At least that’s how I thought of them when I lived in Seattle. Honestly I thought they were on par with Sharknado. But when I discovered…
Honeybee History
Humans have a tendency to like sweet things, right? Candy, deserts and sweets of every kind are at the top of most people’s list of favorite things to eat. So it comes as no surprise to know that honeybees have long been a part of our history. The Bible is…
Pest Control vs. Bee Relocation
I am often tagged in Facebook posts where someone is asking for advice on bee removals. Sometimes the comments in these can be very volatile. The most recent post I was a part of had comments advising them to call various exterminators and beekeepers (hence the tag). Other comments made…
What’s the Best Fuel for Your Smoker?
This is a question that beekeepers each have an opinion on. New beekeepers often buy the pellets because that’s what is in the catalogs next to the smokers. But I have yet to meet a seasoned beekeeper who uses them, though I’m sure there are some. I’m more of a…
Creating a Bee-Friendly Low-Desert Garden
One of the great things that happens when you become a beekeeper is that you become acutely aware of what is blooming in your area. This also means you probably also become a gardener or at least a garden consultant to all your neighbors. In the low desert areas of…
Frame Feeder Hack
Beekeeping is a learn-as-you-go experience. Some do a lot of reading and research up front and do a little better than others who jump right in (that’s me by the way.) Either way, you don’t know what you are doing until you do it, month by…
Trap-outs using a Bee Escape
I love learning new ways to remove bees from structures in order to rescue them from extermination. I’ve removed bees from trees with a forced abscond as well as with a cone mesh trap-out. Both of these were very successful, but haven’t been so lucky with block walls because cones…
How to Render Beeswax the Easy Way
In the last post I wrote about my new honey press, which is actually a fruit press made for crushing apples and grapes. It works great for pressing honey. So after all of the honey is pressed out of the comb, what do you do with the smashed, crushed…
My Ted X Talk
Ok, I am a little shy to post this, but I put so much work and stress into it that it would be a shame for me to not share. To be honest, I never considered doing a Ted X talk. My friend, Dave Stone said he was going to…