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I would be careful doing that. The S.C.O.B.Y. from the kombucha, although great for the digestive tract of humans, might give the bees (who have an entirely different intestinal flora) problems. I...

I would visit your local Army surplus store and see if they have an ammo can that fits your smoker. They are airtight (will put out the smoker) and usually have a handle. I always keep my smoker in...

How long has it been aging? Meads often have "rocket fuel" thing going on for the fist 6 months to a year. After that they mellow nicely and will continue to do so for many years. What methods are...

Stay away from pin lock kegs. They are the "betamax" of homebrew kegs. Go for a ball lock keg. If you get a used keg make sure to replace the o-rings. Most ball lock keg posts require a 13/16'...

I guess it would be the same for beers? The best method is to "cold brew" the coffee in the fridge for 24 hrs. This way it cuts down on some of the more bitter qualities of the coffee that you...

Ben Brewcat is right on.


You can carbonate the juices the same way, just make sure that they don't have any preservatives. If you are adding yeast for carbonation, I really don't think it...

I think it is a bad idea not to keep the glass covered (when not in use). Even a little stray sunlight can cause the temp inside to rise. I could be wrong on this, but I think bees prefer the...

To further complicate things... I would use small cell foundation, and then go foundationless as soon as possible. It is not hard and it will save you money and make healthier bees. Foundation wax...

Don't try and re-cap twist off bottles. Sometimes they work and sometimes they don't. Non-twist off bottles can easily be found at your local recycling center, or you might ask a local bar. New...

Those are definitely a prime robbing target. I found that out the hard way. Even putting feeder then entrance reducer so the feeder is all the way on the other side of the reducer doesn't work that...

You know what you are doing. I have not really messed with mead that much (this upcoming year will be different), but I brew beer a lot. Awhile back I was able to speak with Dr. Chris White of...

It has never caused robbing in my yards. Even when there is a severe drought and you can hardly do inspections because robbing is so bad. The main reason is because the feeder is on the other end...

Thanks for posting this. This guy has his finger on what's going on. It's inspiring. It's up to us to take care of the fate of our industry.

I will definitely take TAMU up on their offer. They really have a great entomology program.

Oh, CampCreek bee aggressiveness is a relative thing*. It can vary from day to day, hour to hour. A...

Is this a hassle to do? Does it take a long time? Cost a lot? I know I can probably look up the prices online (I'm not THAT lazy), but what is your two cents on this? I have been wondering about...

You might ask this friend if he would let you put a swarm trap out at one of his yards too. It's not like you're taking bees from him, they would have left anyway.

I would not try to tackle removals without a bee-vac. If you get your name out in the area that you will pick up swarms for free you will probably have more than you can handle. You might just try...

My two cents is to cut a hole in the end that accommodates one of those plastic mason jar feeders. It makes it easy to help them out when they are first drawing out comb. Easy to check and easy to...

It's one of those things where you think that they would attach the heck out of the combs, but in practice, they hardly do at all. If they do, a pocket knife is all you need to cut them free. You...

I keep bees in the city of Austin and in Elgin. My TBHs have only one entrance about 5-6in long and 1/4 tall. They do just fine and are some of my stronger hives. Make sure that they have water...

It IS too late for you to turn back now...

I am setting up some bait hives this year. It is too much fun. I caught a swarm one time just leaving old equip in the bee-yard one time. You could...

I have never used chemicals or "treatments" of any kind. Ever. I have only used foundation my first two years of beekeeping. Foundation is probably the greatest introuducer of chemicals into the...

Thanks for the tip. You can never have enough of those!

That is really sad. I am just glad I have good neighbors. It seems like if the neighbors would have spoken with the beekeepers that they could have reached some conclusion. It's bad when people...

Part of what you are doing to combat the mites is to break the brood cycle (by killing the queen). This limits the growth of the varroa population. John Conner recommends it in 'Bee Sex...