One of the questions that most novice beekeepers is, “how much honey will l get?” It seems that honey is one of the driving forces of beekeeping and a milestone every beekeeper is elated to reach. Honey yields from a colony depend entirely on the bee’s health, forage availability, weather,

Honeybees have been in existence for hundreds of years. They are adept at collecting nectar to make one of the superfoods in the world: honey. Contrary to what many may believe, they make honey and other products for their colonies. Honey is stocked in the hive to be used in

A nuc is a small, portable colony (3 to 5 frames) housed in a nuc box. It consists of all stages of honey bee development, food, enough workers to cover the combs, and a laying queen. When a nuc is placed in a full-sized hive body and provided with supplemental

Beekeepers use smoke to calm the bees while carrying out hive inspections or harvesting honey. Smoke helps to mask the bee pheromones from the guard bees preventing the defensive reactions of bees. When the bees see smoke, they think that a fire has erupted. The immediate reaction is turning to

Moisture in the hive is usually a great colony killer in winter months. It is brought by condensation of water vapor as it rises from the bee cluster and cools at the phase between the warmer and colder air. The interphase in most hives is usually situated at the inner

Honey harvesting by beekeepers is one of those hot topics among bee lovers and vegans. In fact, vegans don’t consume honey. For beekeepers, this is a priceless reward. Not only is honey sweet, but it contains many nutrients and antioxidants that benefit our health. A perfect remedy for colds, flu,

Honey bees do not hibernate like other insects in winter, nor do they die out. But huddle at the hive until th cold season passes. This is not usually an easy journey for them, but a terrifying battle to make it through to spring. That is why many bee colonies

Honey bees are endowed with special and unique skills in making honey. They collect nectar from flowers, mix it with special enzymes to change the chemical makeup, and dehydrate it to lower the moisture content. Once ready, they store it in honeycombs and seal it with wax.  The wax capping

Smoke has been used for centuries to calm bees during routine inspections and harvesting. For some reason, some beekeepers, especially naturalists, they choose not to smoke the hive to avoid comprising the taste of the honey. They believe it alters the taste of honey and combs. This is usually a

Winter is a challenging time for honey bees. Not only are there no foraging flowers, but the extreme cold makes them clump together to keep warm. They shiver their wings continuously to generate heat which consumes a significant amount of their energy. This activity requires sufficient stores of food for