Gene Rene'

Did you know bees get just as thirsty and exhausted by heat as you?

If you keep bees or even if you just want to be a good neighbor or a thankful gardener, it’s easy to give bees a source of water.

(scroll down for video) Summer time seems like such a great time of year, but if you are a honey bee you favorite time of the year is really in the spring time. Why? Because there is more forage than all the honey bees in the area can possibly collect. In fact it is such […]

Bees are wild animals that forage on their own, but there are times when they could use a bit of help. Why should you feed your bees? And how should you do it? In this video, you’ll learn everything you need to know.

You might just find that you can save money on a honey extractor after you check out this method of harvesting your natural honey.

Catching a swarm is a total blast. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of getting some wild bees for free. You just gotta get a little courageous and suit up to your comfort level and go get ‘em. Here’s a neat little tip that might just get you a few extra bees this spring using some items that you may have in your garage.

April in north Georgia means swarming season. I tried for about three years before I finally caught my first swarm last year. I put one of my nuc boxes up in a Bradford pear tree about 7 feet off the ground and put some lemongrass oil on it in mid-March. I caught a swarm in it about a month later. But I failed many times before.

In this post, I wanted to pass along what has worked for me and what has not so far.

Each hive inspection is different because each colony is different, and there are other variables to consider like the time of year for example. These variables will determine what you will do upon inspection. With practice you’ll get the knack, so be patient and you’ll soon be a seasoned beekeeper ready to tackle any situation.

Top Bar hives are so cool. One of my very first colonies was a booming top bar hive that became our first “honey cow” for the backyard. I love watching the bees work the comb down the length of the hive. If you build one, make an observation window so you can check them out […]

What’s better than surfing the web or watching Netflix? Having your very own observation bee hive of course! Whether you are a newbee or a long time veteran beekeeper an observation bee hive is the coolest addition to any home.

Now is the perfect time to get a jump start on spring time preparations by building equipment like frames. Using a frame jig is an excellent way to build lots of frames and cut your work time down considerably. Here’s how:

It’s best to only have enough comb in your hive that your bees can cover and with cooler temperatures coming, they will start to cluster. Keeping warm will be easier in a smaller space.

I normally use an open feeder in the fall when we start to get cool weather and there is not much out there for the bees to forage on.  I’ve used liquid sugar water feeders as an open source for feeding, but with cooler temps it has to be very thick syrup or the bees can’t […]

There comes a time when the beekeeper has to step in and play referee.

It came earlier this month when I had to decide to squish an underperforming queen bee for the health of the hive.

Well, NOW is the time to start preparing your bees for late fall and winter. I wanted to share some things that will help you get your bees ready in time so they can ride out the cold weather that will be here before you know it.

If you have multiple hives you want to elevate, you may want to consider a hive stand. You could easily fit four production colonies on just one hive stand, and if you’re using only nucs, you could put even more. Learn how to build the hive stand in this great video tutorial below.