Maine State Beekeepers Association
We love honeybees - you should too
With all the terms and jargon that go with beekeeping, knowing the underlying meaning of words may help you remember their uses. Beware of the lazy verbal trap of calling every box a super. According to the dictionary, a definition of “super” is: A prefix from Latin, with the basic meaning “above, beyond.” Words formed with super- have the following general senses: “to place or be … [Read more...]
Those of you who have been members of the Maine State Beekeepers Association for a few years probably remember the grant project I conducted with Larry Peiffer comparing Northern-raised nucs, commercially raised packages, and commercially raised packages that we re-queened with northern queens. For those of you who haven’t heard of the project, we compared 54 colonies over the 2009 & 2010 … [Read more...]
By now, a number of Maine’s beekeepers have had the opportunity to meet and inspect their hives with David Smith. Dave’s service is available due to a coordinated effort by Walt Whitcomb, Commissioner, Maine Department of Agriculture; Caudwell Jackson, Deputy Commissioner; David Lavway, Director, Division of Animal & Plant Health and Senator Russell Black, Wilton. Dave started on June 11th … [Read more...]
by Sarah A. Gould My journey with bees is one that is different from many of the stories of my fellow beekeepers. For one thing, I began beekeeping at 15 years old. This fact alone differentiates me from many other beekeepers who perhaps have turned this hobby into a side career or retirement hobby. This is not say that there isn’t a strong population of younger beekeepers, but compared to … [Read more...]
Last fall, Megan Gaven casually mentioned that she would like to see Phil and I teach beekeeping. Why? Who knows, but I agreed. It has been said by wiser people than I that to teach a subject, you must truly master it. If that is the criteria, I have no business teaching. But Phil assured me that I didn’t need to know everything about beekeeping to teach beginners, just more than they know. … [Read more...]
Review by Andrew Dewey Michael Bush is a queen bee producer living in Nebraska who has for many years answered countless postings on internet forums BeeSource and BeeMaster, as well as the Organic Beekeepers mailing list. His web site (bushfarms.com) contains a cornucopia of information about bees and how to work them. And as Bush makes very clear, most of the book’s content can actually be … [Read more...]
![Warren D. Small, 34 [1978 - 2012]](http://mainebeekeepers.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/warren-d-small-128x150.png)
Warren D. Small, resident of Livermore, died unexpectedly Tuesday, July 31st at his home. In addition to the MSBA, Warren was a member of the Androscoggin County Beekeepers. He and his daughter Riley loved to go tend to the bees, and Rachel was always the first to greet him when he walked through the door. Messages of condolence may be sent via finleyfuneralhome.com … [Read more...]
by Jodi Moger There wasn’t any one thing that led me to honey bees. In spring 2002, I bought the book Beeing: Life, Motherhood and 180,000 Bees by Rosanne Daryl Thomas. I had neither bees nor children, but I must have read the book a half-dozen or more times over the next few years, I found it so compelling. My kiddo arrived in 2004. Our family’s desire to be self-reliant began to … [Read more...]
Nordhaus introduces us to John Miller, a third-generation commercial beekeeper based in North Dakota who makes his living hauling his hives all over the western United States. He also happens to be a funny, meticulous and conscientious beekeeper who works his trade out of a love and fascination for bees. He certainly doesn’t do it for the money. Hannah Nordhaus, a journalist with no … [Read more...]
Do you have bees you need removed?
Have no fear. Our Honey Bee Swarm Removal Team can help ASAP, or direct you to the right person in your area.
Members of the Maine State Beekeepers Association are indicated with a bee icon … [Read More...]
This document is intended as a reference and standard for honeybee management in Maine, with particular emphasis on urban/suburban … [Read More...]
Annual Bee Schools are sponsored by Local Chapters, Adult Education Programs, and sometimes in cooperation with the County Extension Service. These … [Read More...]
Varroa Treatment Comparison
Maine beekeepers are thinking about their bees and parasitic mite controls, spurred by the arrival of this year's beekeeping supply catalogs, coupled with the recent snow melt after January's rain and wind event. Already, there are reports of hive mortality and requests for information and post mortem inspections. So far, most of the inspections reveal mortality due to Varroa and several cases … [Read more...]