Question:
Our state fair is interested in having a live hive demonstration this year. I have thus far discouraged the idea of handling them behind a screen because I anticipate the bees would get pretty stressed out if we did it for any number of days.
They seem interested in setting up a perimeter around an [...]
OSU Honey Bee Lab
Wooster, Ohio
Author Archives: Jim
An Outdoor Bee Demonstration
July 27, 2009 – 2:44 pm
Q & A Honey Bound Brood Nest
June 24, 2009 – 2:17 pm
Question: I bought a 3# package in May of NWC (New World Carniolans). The queen was an egg laying machine. The hive grew rapidly, I had older drawn comb, some new comb and brand new frames for two deeps so I mixed it up. Once the first deep was 8 frames full I [...]
Colony Splits
June 23, 2009 – 5:37 pm
During spring and early summer months, healthy beehives can be divided into smaller units. Each component split is given either a mated queen or a couple of queen cells. With care from the beekeeper and good weather, the small colony will build up enough to survive the upcoming winter. As in all [...]
Garden pollinator populations
June 12, 2009 – 2:31 pm
Question: I haven’t seen any bees in my yard this year. Why not? I’m afraid my vegetables and fruit won’t get pollinated. Do I have a reasonable concern?
Answer: It is true that bee populations of all species have been in decline for the past thirty years. However, there are redundant pollinator systems [...]
Pending corrections to some nectar & pollen source information
May 26, 2009 – 10:59 pm
Many years ago, I developed nectar & pollen plant lists. These lists are commonly found in both hard-copy and electronic format. Though I have the following plants listed as bee plants, they are now considered to be invasive and should not be encouraged or propagated: Chinese Tallow Tree (Sapium sebiferum), Lespedeza (Lespedeza spp.), and Privet (Ligustrum spp.).
