HomesteadHensandHoney

Hello hello! This is part 2 of my review of 'The Thinking Beekeeper' by Christy Hemenway. This half of the book goes in depth on how to manage your top bar hive colony during its first year, complete with some very handy-dandy diagrams.  Please see my website for a rundown of everything discussed plus photos. Here is the garlic-water varroa treatment study I mention, and here is Christy Hemenway's...

Hello hello! This week, I'll be covering the first half of 'The Thinking Beekeeper' by Christy Hemenway, which is an excellent how-to guide on getting started with top bar hives. I also announce the winner of my giveaway! As always, please see my website for a rundown of everything discussed as well as photos from the book.  Additional resources: Scientific Beekeeping ( Trial of HoneySuperCell Sma...

This week, I’m sharing my thoughts and experiences with the Gold Star Honeybees top bar hive (complete kit); the quality of the materials, ease of putting it together, and how it is working out. I’m also hosting a giveaway for the book ‘The Thinking Beekeeper - Natural Beekeeping in Top Bar Hives’ by the owner of Gold Star Honeybees, Christy Hemenway. Details at the end of the episode! You can fin...

Welcome to episode 45! This episode is all about the adventures of Ginny, the guinea fowl hen. I also cover some facts about guinea fowl so that you can decide whether they might be a good fit for your homestead or farm.  Links of interest: Episode 101 of the Hive Jive Podcast (Telling the Bees) Female Guinea Keet call from Youtube Good Sprout Rescue Fowl Play Rescue My website (with photos and a...

Hello hello! This week, I finish up my book review of 'Honeybee Democracy' by Thomas Seeley with chapter 10 and the epilogue. Chapter 10 is all about how we can apply the 'swarm smarts' of honeybee swarms to our human forms of governing and decision-making. The Epilogue is a succinct summary of everything covered in the book.  I hope you enjoy it! A few handy-dandy links: My website for a rundown...

Hello hello! This week, we move on to Chapter 9 of Honeybee Democracy by Thomas Seeley. This chapter looks at how the decision making process of honey bee swarms is comparable to the decision making process of primate brains. Yes, really! Quick correction: at the end, I say my next episode will cover chapter 10 and the Prologue. I meant chapter 10 and the epilogue. Whoops!  Please see my website f...

Hello hello! This week, I push on with my book review of Honeybee Democracy by Thomas Seeley, and cover Chapter 8. This chapter is all about the dynamics of swarm flight. How do the bees make their way to their chosen nest site? Which bees lead the way? How many bees of the 10k+ within a swarm have visited the nest before? These questions and more will be answered! Please see my website for a rund...

Hello hello! This week, I am covering Chapter 7 of Honeybee Democracy, which is all about the swarm's final flight home. Have you ever wondered how a honeybee swarm manages to take flight all at once, as one great cloud of bees? What allows 10 thousand plus bees to take off as one cohesive unit? What signals to them to prepare for flight? You're about to find out! Please see my website for a rundo...

This week, I cover chapter 6 of Honeybee Democracy by Thomas Seeley. This chapter is all about how the scout bees of a swarm come to a consensus on their new nest site. We will learn about how nest site quality relates to waggle dance enthusiasm; how the discoverer scouts recruit other bees to support their site; and whether scout bees compare various nest sites to assess quality, or whether they...

Hello from snowy Ohio! This episode, we are tackling Chapter 5 of Honeybee Democracy by Thomas Seeley. This chapter focuses on the studies Seeley created to ascertain what sort of nest cavity is considered acceptable but not ideal by honeybees, in an attempt to deepen his understanding of how scout bees make decisions when assessing nest site options. I also talk about a sick hen who is cozy and w...

Hello hello! On to Chapter 4 of Honeybee Democracy by Thomas Seeley today. This chapter answers such questions as: how does a forager know when to start looking for potential nest sites? How is a nest site chosen if multiple options are found by scout bees? Is there a genetic component to which foragers become scouts when the need arises? Listen in and learn all about the fascinating dance-off of...

Hello lovelies! The book review continues with Chapter 3: Dream Home for Honeybees.  Please see my website for diagrams, photos from the book, and a full rundown of all the information covered.   CORRECTION CORNER: during the 'location, location, location' section of this episode/chapter, I realised too late that I had written down some dimensions incorrectly (and somehow missed them during my rea...

Happy new year, my lovelies! I hope you had a safe and relaxing holiday away from the hustle and bustle.  This week, I continue with my review of 'Honeybee Democracy'. Chapter 2 covers information that is very familiar to many of us: the societal structure of the honeybee colony, how queen bees are reared, the process of swarming, etc. I hope it's not too dull for you to hear it all again but I'd...

Hello hello! This episode, I start reviewing 'Honeybee Democracy' by Thomas Seeley. This is a very popular book that was recommended by many so I hope you enjoy it! Please see my website for photos, diagrams, and a rundown of everything discussed. I start things off today with some fun facts about opossums! Then I cover the prologue and Chapter 1 of this fascinating book that investigates the coll...

Welcome! This week, I compare my 2019 goals to those of 2020, and discuss what worked and what didn't. I go over issues I had in the hives, general time-sucks, unexpected accomplishments, changes I made on the homestead, and what I am planning for 2021.  A few links of interest for this episode: my website (for photos and a rundown of everything discussed); the blog post I found that details how t...

Happy Turkey Day! Take a break from eating obscene amounts of pie and other decadent holiday treats, and listen in to the final part of my series on basic chicken biology/anatomy. This week, I discuss the digestive, urinary, male reproductive, nervous, and circulatory systems.  Please see my website for a rundown of everything discussed, as well as some handy-dandy pics/graphs.  Here's the funny M...

This week, I am continuing my 'chicken theme' and talking about chicken biology. This is part 1 in a 2 part series, and covers the skin, immune system, lymphatic system, muscles, skeletal system, and respiratory system. Part 2 will cover the digestive, male reproductive, nervous, and circulatory system.  Check out my website for a run down of everything discussed as well as photos and informative...

Hello! Episode 31 covers all my hive news (spoiler: it's not great), the loss of a hen, the introduction of a new hen, and finally some common reproductive disorders in chickens. I go over the reproductive system of our feathered friends, and talk about a few disorders that you might come across in your flock.  Please check out my website for a rundown of everything discussed (and photos!).  Wikip...

It's here, the final chapter!!  Episode 30 covers chapter 11 of 'The Lives of Bees'  by Thomas Seeley, summarizing all that has been discussed in the book so far, and offering suggestions as to how we can manage our colonies in a more bee friendly manner.  For a rundown of everything discussed (as well as a few photos), please see my website .  Thanks for listening! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/...

Hello hello! This is the second to last chapter of the book. Huzzah! We learn all about colony defense, which includes a fair amount of information about the development of varroa mite resistance behaviours in honey bees. This is particularly timely for me as I'm dealing with high mite loads this year, which I detail at the beginning of the episode.  Please see my website for photos and a transcri...

I'm back with the book review that never ends! Today, we learn all about how bees regulate the temperature of their brood nest; how they generate heat via their flight muscles; and how wild nest cavities provide key insulation advantages to the wood-ware we use in our managed apiaries.  Please see my website for photos from the book chapter. Also, please note that I erroneously say that the Univer...

Hello hello! Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing John Swan, host of the Hive Jive podcast. I'm a huge fan of this podcast, and I've been listening from the beginning, so when John asked me if I'd like to do an interview, I jumped at the chance! We were using some new software/equipment for this episode so I'm afraid the sound quality is not as good as usual. My apologies! And thank you for...

Welcome back to the book review that never ends! This chapter is all about food collection and is fascinating. You will be amazed at just how much pollen and nectar is needed to sustain a single colony of honey bees! And have you ever wondered how far a single foraging bee will travel in her lifetime? Because you're about to find out! I also chat a little about how things are going here at home. Q...

I'm back with the book review that never ends! This week, I cover chapter 7, which is all about honey bee reproduction, including such interesting subjects as the average amount of drones vs queens produced in a year; the optimal amount of worker bees that leave with the first swarm; what effects the production of 'afterswarms'; and how the honey bee is much like an apple tree! Confused? You soon...

Hello hello! This week, I discuss everything that's been going on here, including: why people should be wearing masks, living in a COVID hotspot, heat stress in chickens, how I came to adopt my first whippet, and how cocktails can creep up on you and lead to impromptu sleepovers where I end up covered in cats!   I also discuss my first honey harvest, and detail how things went, what equipment was...