Dewey Caron

Good Record Keeping this Fall

In 2015, I surveyed 250 OR backyarder beekeepers during April seeking answers to questions about overwintering losses, colony feeding, sanitation and varroa control efforts (2015 survey questions posted on website pnwhoneybesurvey.com/annual-surveys). Loss levels you reported were 27% for both 8-and 10-frame Langstroth hive beekeepers, double that number for 5-frame nucs and Top bar hives and intermediate […]

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Feeding Fall Colonies

     Feeding bees in the fall is unquestionably a way to make the  difference whether a colony survives overwinter or not. When colonies are light on food stores, feeding a heavy sugar syrup or not extracting capped honey can improve winter survival. It is the best management option to insure the proper fall configuration and

Feeding Fall Colonies Read More »

Feeding Fall Colonies

     Feeding bees in the fall is unquestionably a way to make the  difference whether a colony survives overwinter or not. When colonies are light on food stores, feeding a heavy sugar syrup or not extracting capped honey can improve winter survival. It is the best management option to insure the proper fall configuration and

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A Year for Swarms

This has been the spring to start colonies by hiving a swarm. The mild winter meant fewer overwintering losses (see results for WVBA backyard beekeepers posted here and on www.pnwhoneybeesurvey.com) together with our mild spring, providing abundant pollen and nectar foraging conditions, has resulted in numbers of swarms. Reports of colonies swarming more than once

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WVBA Winter losses

At the March and April WVBA meetings I distributed paper copies and directed members to a web-based survey document as a continuing effort to define overwintering success. This was the 7th year of such survey activity. I received 230 responses from OR backyarders, keeping anywhere from 1 to 50 colonies; Willamette Valley members sent in

WVBA Winter losses Read More »

WVBA Winter losses

At the March and April WVBA meetings I distributed paper copies and directed members to a web-based survey document as a continuing effort to define overwintering success. This was the 7th year of such survey activity. I received 230 responses from OR backyarders, keeping anywhere from 1 to 50 colonies; Willamette Valley members sent in

WVBA Winter losses Read More »