Any Beekeepers?

[Orda Khan]

Anyone here keep bees? I've been spending some time helping my mate with his, so I am planning to site a hive down the garden next spring.

[Rhyfelwyr]

I've got a grandparent who keeps some. Don't really know anything about bees though.

[Hosakawa Tito]

That's an interesting line of work. Does your friend do it as a hobby or a business?

My brother-in-laws grandfather used to keep bees. When I met him, 25 years ago, he was a spry and active 90 year old. We were having a few beers on his front porch and he was telling us what life was like in rural Espersen NY, about 4 hours horse carriage ride west of Albany NY. A bee landed on my arm and I was about to swat it. He told me not to, and then picked it up in his fingers, walked it to the end of the porch and let it go. I guess it was one of his.

[spmetla]

Aye matey! Me crusty ol' father and me 'ave a number of 'ives fur its golden 'oney and 'elping the trees on our coffee plantation. Arrr! Golden 'oney dripping off thar comb makes want to send all the sugar down ta davey jone's locker.

[Marius Dynamite]

the noise creeps me out. That said, I do respect bees as much as a human can respect an insect.

[Mouzafphaerre]

.
My great-grandfather from mom's side used to. Our distant cousins (mom's maternal grandmother's family) still do.
.

[Orda Khan]

Not too many but it's good to know that some people here (or relatives) do. My mate is a hobbyist rather than commercial, though he is down to just two hives now from the seven he had last year. It does concern me, hearing of the decline of one of natures wonders, so I've decided to do my bit.

I took my daughter along to inspect the hives, as a zoologist graduate she was very impressed and can't wait until next spring. My mate gave us both head to toe protective suits, yet a bee still managed to get inside hers and down inside her T shirt. She released it later.
I can understand the noise being a bit worrying, as my mate said, you know when they have had enough of you when the sound becomes deeper. A bit like a snarling Rottweiler. The whole experience was very relaxing and therapeutic and the honey will knock spots off the stuff sold in shops.
I'm lucky in as much as I have a nice large garden with a wonderful array of wildlife, the addition of a colony of honeybees will be a welcome addition.

Spmetla, I agree totally ... sugar should be condemned.

[Reverend Joe]

Aren't a lot of commercial bee hives failing? Any of you know anything about this? The concept of suddenly having no corn kinda scares me.

[Hosakawa Tito]

There has been a big drop off in the honeybee population both wild bees and the commercial hives. I believe it's something to do with the bees becoming confused and not making it back to the hive. I don't know if the cause is known for sure, there was speculation that pesticides or a fungal disease could be the culprit. I'll have to google that.

As a child I remember spending time with my friends seeing how many honeybees we could catch in an old peanutbutter jar. There were just scads of them collecting nectar from the clover in our yards. We'd stalk them and place the jar over them. When they flew up into the bottom of the jar you could quickly slip the lid under the opening and screw it on. After we tired of the game we'd unscrew the lid, place the jar on the ground and nudge it over spilling the bees out while we ran like the dickens. Cheap entertainment back then.

Fresh honeycomb is definitely the Nectar of the Gods. It must be even better and more satisfying when you produce your own. They'll enhance your own garden plants and nut/fruit trees too. A worthy hobby Orda Khan, joy to you.

[pevergreen]

The speculation is that Mobile Phone radiation is doing it, there was an article here a while ago.

It was based on figures and such that show rapidly declining bee populations. Let me try to find the link.

edit 1: The post must have been moved, I cant find it. Heres an outside link anyway: http://www.independent.co.uk/environ...es-444768.html

The theory is that radiation from mobile phones interferes with bees' navigation systems, preventing the famously homeloving species from finding their way back to their hives.

Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) occurs when a hive's inhabitants suddenly disappear, leaving only queens, eggs and a few immature workers, like so many apian Mary Celestes. The vanished bees are never found, but thought to die singly far from home. The parasites, wildlife and other bees that normally raid the honey and pollen left behind when a colony dies, refuse to go anywhere near the abandoned hives.

[Reverend Joe]

The parasites, wildlife and other bees that normally raid the honey and pollen left behind when a colony dies, refuse to go anywhere near the abandoned hives.

That sounds like something more sinister than cellphone radiation, like a fungus or something.

The rest of the article is fairly alarming (as per cell phones), but parasites ignoring the colony is very weird.

[Hosakawa Tito]

Thanks for the link pevergreen, I've been so busy I haven't had time to look it up.

[Orda Khan]

Parasites and disease can affect the colony, this is something to be expected in a highly social environment. How many of you students go down with some virus or similar when you return to Uni? Unfortunately, mankind tends to help things along, which is the case with Varroa mite.

CCD and the sinister conditions is very alarming. Hives can and do fail from time to time, but the stores are usually raided by other bees. The fact that the affected hive is avoided makes it all the more worrying.

On a lighter note, I have a couple of pictures of my daughter and I in our 'full armour', I'll dig them out and post them.

[Tristuskhan]

My girlfriend's grandfather, aged eighty-five, who was all along his lifetime a dedicated beekeeper, lost his five colonies three years ago to parasites and general weakness from pesticides. When I met him first six months ago, I gave him a bottle of traditionnal home-made Chouchenn http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chouchen , produced by my neighbours in Brittany from honney coming from my garden's flowers.

And he resumed beekeeping!

There are also some domestic colonies in the forests I manage, all prone to catastrophic losses for ten years now.

[Jolt]

"OMG DIE BEES DIE DIE!"

I suppose that can relate fairly well how much I like bees or wasps or anything remotely related. :)