The Importance of Hive Inspections One of the considerations before deciding to keep backyard bees in Arizona is the commitment to inspect your hives weekly. Other parts of the country can get away with doing monthly checks, but because of the constant threat of Africanization, we need to visit…
Getting Bees out of Trees
A Tale of Two Trees I love it when I can help remove bees from places where they aren’t wanted. Ceilings, walls, and floors are the usual places, and they require cutting things open and hours of hard, sweaty, sticky work. But when I was called to remove bees…
Can I Keep Bees in Arizona?
A Hive in Every Backyard I know it’s a pipe dream, and not everyone would even want a hive in their backyard, but putting the idea out there increases possibility in people’s minds. We all know that bees are struggling and the majority of honeybees in the United…
Releasing a Queen from a Push-in Cage
Observation is your best friend If you are following the re-queening of the rescue hive (HERE), then here we are at day 5 to release the queen. It is good to give the queen 4-7 days before trying to release her. If the bees show any aggressive behavior toward…
Arizona Backyard Beekeepers
Arizona Backyard Beekeepers is a group of Arizona Beekeepers whose motto is “beekeeping alone isn’t fun.” Beekeeping in Arizona is different than any where else and it is vital for beekeepers here to connect and help one another. Our goal is to make meetings and our Facebook group accessible and…
Requeening a Rescue Hive
Requeening Using a Push-in Cage If you are a backyard beekeeper in Arizona, one of the skills you are going to have to learn is to requeen your hive. Queens don’t last forever, and in our temperate climate the queens are active all year round. Not only that, but…
Don’t make this feeding mistake
Open feeding can be devastating to your hive. Last week I got a message from a new beekeeper who had gotten a package of bees a month ago and wanted to help them build comb by feeding them. The nectar flow in the desert in June is pretty slim,…
The 2nd Annual Arizona Honeybee Festival
It’s All About Bees and Beekeepers! The Arizona Honeybee Festival’s mission is to connect local beekeepers with community members in order to educate, inspire, and build useful relationships through this fun family event. Last year was so much fun, and this year is going to be even better! We are…