Professor David Evans is a virologist studying the biology of single stranded positive sense RNA viruses, including poliovirus, hepatitis C virus and deformed wing virus of honeybees. He has a fascinating, practical beekeeping blog, https://www.theapiarist.org/
- How does the colony determine the queen should be superseded, and the implications this has for practical beekeeping? Plus the water preferences of honey bees, and some bumblebee-mimicking hoverflies.
- An introduction to Varroxal, the new/old miticide available in the UK, and discussions on how it and FormicPro can be used control mites midseason. These provide the opportunity to avoid hard chemicals (like Apivar) and/or exploit late season nectars like heather and ivy.
- 3D printing saved my hives during Waspageddon, improved my honey sales, and was lots of fun when queen rearing. If you were tempted by part 1 in this series, then here are the background details — including what not to buy — in time for the Black Friday sales. Unless you're reading this next May.
- 'Matchsticks under the crownboard' … often recommended, rarely (coherently) justified, and contradicting colony behaviour. This and other topics related to winter insulation, condensation, and ventilation.
- Strategies to exploit midseason partial or complete brood breaks to control mites without needing to also treat in late summer. These may offer advantages to those keen to abandon 'hard' chemicals, avoid miticide resistance, or who target late-season nectar flows (e.g. heather, balsam, or ivy).
- The tedium of jarring and labelling honey gives me time to think about other things. I ponder how to safely store and carry lots of heavy jars, or label them informatively for customers, or where the bees foraged to collect all that nectar in the first place.
- What is the opposite of “Does what it says on the tin”? Recent evidence suggests that artificial queen mandibular pheromone does not suppress queen cell formation.
- The beekeeping season might be over, but the beekeeping chores never stop. Some are best done in the cooler temperatures of autumn — rationalising frames, defeating wax moths and preparing soft set honey — before the onset of winter.
- Vadescana (marketed as Norroa™️) is a radically different new mite treatment. How does it work? How well does it work? Is it the silver bullet that 'solves' the problem of Varroa, or is it misnamed and too difficult to use effectively? Is it even necessary?
- Water is essential for colony survival, particularly when temperatures are high. How much water does a colony need, which bees collect it, and where do they collect it from? As the climate changes, how can you ensure your bees have access to enough water?