Beekeeping, Submarines & Mental Wellness

WEBVTT

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May I have your attention, please? The following

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is not the real Jeff Fox review. If you have

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ever uttered the words, I can't wait for the

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first sting of the year. You might be a beekeeper

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or a masochist. If you flunked high school algebra,

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but you can do bee math in your sleep. You might

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be a beekeeper. If you have sting -proof gloves,

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but for some reason you never were, you might

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be a beekeeper. Welcome, welcome to Be Love Beekeeping

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presented by our great friends over at Man Lake.

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Now that we also have a video version of this

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podcast, we will regularly have a new product

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corner where we show and demonstrate great new

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beekeeping products, gadgets, inventions, maybe

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even techniques sometimes. So if you have something

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that you would like to see featured, shoot me

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an email eric at beelovebeekeeping .com Today

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we're headed to Florida to speak with beekeeper

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Joshua Diggins. Among other things he will explain

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how bee hives and submarines have a lot of similarities.

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Bet you never thought of that one before. But

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first a brief look into the mental health aspects

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of working with honeybees. To me it's always

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been a calming time of my day. When I'm in a

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hive I'm completely present. There's no work

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stress, no politics or world conflict, just peace

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in a place that could otherwise be seen as frenetic

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energy. I'm going to quote from a few studies

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here and they have shown some of the following

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benefits of beekeeping. First, stress reduction.

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The rhythmic hum of bees and the focused activity

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of beekeeping can induce a state of mindfulness

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helping individuals disconnect from daily stressors

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and promote relaxation, increase self -esteem.

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Successfully managing a hive, harvesting honey

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and contributing to the well -being of the colony

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can boost self -confidence and a sense of accomplishment.

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Enhanced connection to nature. Beekeeping provides

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a direct link to the natural world, fostering

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an appreciation for the environment and a sense

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of interconnectedness with ecosystems. Social

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connection. Beekeeping can be a social activity,

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bringing people together through clubs, workshops,

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and shared experiences. Therapeutic application.

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Studies have shown beekeeping to be beneficial

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in treating conditions like PTSD and improving

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the quality of life for individuals with mental

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illness. Now here's some examples of how these

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things are put into practice. Veterans mental

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health. Beekeeping programs have been implemented

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to help veterans with PTSD and anxiety transition

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to civilian life, providing a sense of purpose

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and community. Prison rehabilitation. Beekeeping

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has been used as a therapeutic intervention in

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prisons, reducing recidivism and promoting positive

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behavioral changes. Youth programs. So there

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have been many initiatives that utilize beekeeping

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to provide therapeutic support and community

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building for young people, particularly those

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from challenging backgrounds. Green prescribing.

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healthcare providers are increasingly prescribing

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time in nature, including beekeeping, to improve

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mental well -being and potentially reduce the

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need for traditional healthcare services. So

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in conclusion, beekeeping offers a unique and

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multifaceted approach to mental health, providing

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opportunities for stress reduction, self -improvement

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and social connection with growing evidence supporting

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its therapeutic potential. Other beneficial effects

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on mental health include reductions in feelings

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of anxiety and depression, as well as increases

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in positive feelings regarding overall health.

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Bees are a perfect example of what a community

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should look like, one researcher said. A bunch

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of people getting together to make something

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better and bigger than themselves that other

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people can keep building on. These benefits stem

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from the calming nature of working with bees,

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the opportunities for mindfulness, and the social

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connections fostered through beekeeping activities.

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So if you haven't tried beekeeping yet, I would

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recommend give it a shot. If you're a seasoned

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beekeeper, you probably already enjoy these mental

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and physical health benefits. But if you've lost

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some of that connectedness, some of that passion

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for time with the bees, I would encourage you

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to look for it again. Slow down, enjoy the moment,

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the sounds, the aromas, the overall feeling of

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peace and connection. It's what the love of bees

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is all about. Alright, enough of my metaphysical,

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philosophical soapbox. Let's meet today's guest.

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Hey I'd like to welcome to the show today Joshua

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Diggins coming to us from Florida. How are you

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Josh? I'm doing great Eric thanks for asking.

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Hey I appreciate you being on the show and you're

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one of those wonderful people that works for

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Man Lake. I want to hear all about your beekeeping.

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I want to hear about Florida. First I want you

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to tell me what do you do for Man Lake? So for

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Man Lake, I am currently the branch manager and

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commercial sales at the Florida location. So

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everything in our Florida location, from our

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shipping and receiving to our sales and our commercial

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customers, all falls on me. Sounds like a big

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job. Yeah, it definitely is important. You know,

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people need their products anywhere from hobbyists

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to commercial guys. So never a dull day for sure.

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For those of us who haven't been there, what

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part of Florida are you in? So the Man Lake location

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is located in Winter Haven, Florida. If you're

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not familiar with Florida at all, that's going

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to fall right in between Orlando and Tampa. And

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if you are familiar with theme parks or have

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small kids, then Lego Land is about 10 or 15

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minutes away from our building. All right. How

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long have you been keeping bees yourself? So

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I started keeping bees in late 2022. Going on

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four years now. Oh, okay. So you're sort of a

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newbie, but you've got experience enough that

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you can help people that come out to the store.

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Do you have hives at the store too? We do, yep.

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So not only do we have a fully functioning nuke

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yard for our customers that come in and purchase

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bees from us, we also have a training yard that

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we use for new employees to learn bees and then

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also for our YouTube videos to be able to train

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the YouTube audience. And you're on those. You're

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the big star. Hey the thing I wanted to talk

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about first that I thought was so interesting

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when we were talking about before was now you

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were in the Navy on a submarine right? Correct,

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yeah. Okay you were making a comparison to how

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a submarine works and how a beehive works. Now

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most people would say what they have nothing

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to do with each other. Go ahead and explain that.

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I thought this was interesting. So really, it's

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really kind about the industry and then just

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beekeeping as a whole. On a submarine, less than

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1 % of active duty military members are on a

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submarine. So it's a very small niche segment

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of the military and they call us the silent service

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one because that's our job. We go down, we stay

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quiet and you only see us when we need us. So

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a lot of people think about submarines or maybe

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not even think about submarines and they don't

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really get the whole picture the whole concept

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and I relate that a lot to beekeeping whereas

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we call beekeepers the forgotten farmers because

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you know people see the honey they buy the honey

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but not too many people actually sit down to

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think about where does that money actually come

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from? So it's a very small niche part of the

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agricultural business. So much so that, you know,

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oftentimes beekeepers are forgotten about. And

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I relate that a lot to submarines as, you know,

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we were that 1 % silent service that people didn't

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really think about or didn't really know about

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too often. So that definitely has helped me and

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kind of put it all together and relate a little

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bit of beekeeping to my prior service. What about

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the community aspect of it? Because we think

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of a bee hive or a bee colony sort of as one

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mass but we know there's thousands and thousands

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of bees all making it happen and we think of

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a submarine as one submarine but there's a bunch

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of guys in there making that happen too. Can

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you explain is there some kind of a correlation

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there as well? Yeah, so as far as like the community

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aspect goes on it, you have those 200, 300 guys

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on a submarine all working together to complete

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that mission or even just to operate the submarine

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successfully. So that way everyone can kind of

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get back alive, if you will. And then the bees

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are the same way. A submarine was an all -male

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force and beekeeping is kind of an all -female

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force with all those female bees in there. But

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all of them working together to accomplish that

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one goal, whether it be a pollination contract

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or even just a honey yield for the season. So

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all right, let's talk beekeeping in Florida.

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What kinds of challenges do you have there compared

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to other places in the world? So I would say

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number one, small high beetles, especially during

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the rainy season, which is right now June into

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probably August timeframe is kind of our hurricane

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season. But before the hurricanes come, we get

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tons of rain, which just amplifies that small

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beetle, that small high beetle population. So

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it's definitely a constant struggle to maintain

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that equilibrium between the small high beetles

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and the actual colony itself, because there's

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no real eradicating them all. together. It's

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definitely something you just monitor and just

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try to keep it kind of at acceptable levels so

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that way they're not in there taking over the

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hive. So I would say number one first and foremost

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would definitely be that small hive beetle situation.

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What are some of the things that you have found

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work best? So far, the things that I've seen

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work best is constant monitoring. That would

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be the number one. You can put the beetle traps

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in there. You can put your Swiffer pads or your

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beetle towels in there. You can use your CheckMite

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Plus in there. But at the end of the day, if

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you are not in that hive, I would say every week

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and a half to two weeks, just checking on them,

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making sure that those beetles haven't kind of

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take hold. So to me, the number one combat against

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small high beetles on top of, you know, your

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traps, your towels, your, uh, check my plus is

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definitely going to be just monitor. Just keep

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an eye on it, especially during the rainy seasons.

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And especially if you already have a situation

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in your VR, just monitor like crazy. Are there

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different things that you can do with where you

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actually place the hives that help? Some people

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have told me that they have gravel or concrete

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around the hive stands. Have you found things

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like that help? So, I would definitely say prepping

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your yard if possible, especially for hobbyists,

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any kind of real thick tarp, maybe some gravel,

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concrete, anything to kind of keep them from

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burrowing down into that sandy soil that we have

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next to your hive and kind of completing that

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metamorphosis that goes on down there. And then

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also Permethrin, diatomaceous earth, just prep

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that ground before you get your bees in there.

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Or if you are having an issue, you know, it might

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be beneficial to kind of move those hives out

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so that way you can treat that ground and put

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them back. Also direct sunlight. Trees are nice.

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They're great for a beekeeper. You get the shade.

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You're not in there in a hundred degree heat,

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but small high beetles love shady areas. So as

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awesome as that hive is going to look tucked

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into some, some trees on your property, you're

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really just going to kind of. create the perfect

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environment for those small hot beetles to kind

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of come in and do what they do. Well, I appreciate

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that. I have to admit I'm no expert on them at

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all because we don't have them where I am. Thank

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goodness we have plenty of other problems, but

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that's not one of them. And so I don't have a

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ton of experience with it. So anything that you

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can share would be helpful because I know most

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people do have to deal with it. Yeah, for sure.

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So you're really lucky. Yeah. Not having that

00:13:18.379 --> 00:13:21.340
issue to deal with. Last fall, we had Andrew

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on the show from down there at your same location.

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And this was right after the hurricanes had blown

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through. And we were talking about some of the

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relief effort that Man Lake and a bunch of other

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groups had done. And again, we appreciate all

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of that and the beekeepers do. What kind of a

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bounce back have you seen? Has most of the beekeeping

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community come back pretty well from that? It

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really kind of messed up the pepper crop last

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year, the Brazilian pepper. It kind of came in

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right as that was getting ready to bloom. I think

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it was Hurricane Milton, the second one that

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year, kind of came in right as that was getting

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ready to bloom. So it knocked out a lot of that

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forage for those bees and a lot of the commercial

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guys kind of rely on that last crop of the season

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to hold that feed over. So that way they're not

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spending the money on the syrup and unnecessary

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things. So the hurricane definitely affects immediately,

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but then, you know, you have the months after

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that, that the plants and the trees are still

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trying to repair. So as of right now, just kind

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of scattered throughout Florida in general, I've

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heard not so good things about orange blossom.

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And now whether that was just due to the hurricane

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itself damaging some crops, or is it just because

00:14:34.549 --> 00:14:36.330
the development that's going on in Florida ripping

00:14:36.330 --> 00:14:38.970
out those crops? Goldberry was great this year.

00:14:38.990 --> 00:14:42.100
So I'm going to say that now that we're I would

00:14:42.100 --> 00:14:44.679
say about eight months after the hurricane. I

00:14:44.679 --> 00:14:47.100
think that it is definitely starting to rebound,

00:14:47.100 --> 00:14:50.100
but we'll definitely really be able to tell come

00:14:50.100 --> 00:14:53.500
pepper season in September to kind of see where

00:14:53.500 --> 00:14:56.879
that lands. And then we'll definitely see hopefully

00:14:56.879 --> 00:15:01.100
a big boost or at least back to normal levels

00:15:01.100 --> 00:15:03.879
of the Brazilian coming in. If I were moving

00:15:03.879 --> 00:15:07.139
to a place that was hurricane prone, whether

00:15:07.139 --> 00:15:13.379
it's Florida or Texas, New Orleans or someplace

00:15:13.379 --> 00:15:16.700
in the South Pacific for that matter and I was

00:15:16.700 --> 00:15:19.559
just setting up my apiary Do you have any advice

00:15:19.559 --> 00:15:22.659
as far as? You know, hopefully the hurricanes

00:15:22.659 --> 00:15:24.899
don't roll through but if they're going to what

00:15:24.899 --> 00:15:27.480
can I do to prepare for it? That's a great question

00:15:27.480 --> 00:15:30.440
Eric So I would definitely say a lot of people

00:15:30.440 --> 00:15:32.220
can't pick their property just based on their

00:15:32.220 --> 00:15:34.799
bees alone So it's gonna be beneficial to prep

00:15:34.799 --> 00:15:37.500
those bees for success when when those hurricanes

00:15:37.500 --> 00:15:41.019
inevitably do come through so You want to keep

00:15:41.019 --> 00:15:43.820
them up off the ground. Cinder blocks, four by

00:15:43.820 --> 00:15:46.659
fours, just your general hive stand usually will

00:15:46.659 --> 00:15:48.840
give you enough clearance pending any kind of

00:15:48.840 --> 00:15:51.440
catastrophic flooding or anything like that.

00:15:51.720 --> 00:15:54.360
But I would say anywhere between 16 to 24 inches

00:15:54.360 --> 00:15:56.419
off the ground, you would definitely be in a

00:15:56.419 --> 00:15:58.980
safe zone. Again, really dependent on where exactly

00:15:58.980 --> 00:16:01.259
you're at and how big that hurricane is, but

00:16:01.259 --> 00:16:03.600
just your general inland areas, keeping it up

00:16:03.600 --> 00:16:05.460
off the ground to prevent that flooding inside

00:16:05.460 --> 00:16:08.850
the hive. Ratchet straps to keep it down. Quick

00:16:08.850 --> 00:16:11.429
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00:16:11.429 --> 00:16:14.269
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00:16:14.269 --> 00:16:16.750
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00:16:16.750 --> 00:16:20.250
bees, native bees, and other pollinators. The

00:16:20.250 --> 00:16:23.649
Man Lake app is a great resource for determining

00:16:23.649 --> 00:16:26.190
pollinator -friendly plants that thrive in your

00:16:26.190 --> 00:16:29.350
area, and its plant identification feature is

00:16:29.350 --> 00:16:32.190
super helpful and fun. When I see a plant covered

00:16:32.190 --> 00:16:35.250
in bees, I fire up the app, find out what it

00:16:35.250 --> 00:16:38.070
is, then plant them in my yard. If you haven't

00:16:38.070 --> 00:16:40.049
already downloaded the Man Lake app, give it

00:16:40.049 --> 00:16:42.889
a try today. Oh, and did I mention it's free?

00:16:43.710 --> 00:16:45.809
And if you're shopping for beekeeping supplies,

00:16:46.350 --> 00:16:49.470
don't forget your discount code MLBlove10. It's

00:16:49.470 --> 00:16:52.850
in the show notes for $10 off your first $100

00:16:52.850 --> 00:16:56.960
purchase. Last season when we had that hurricane

00:16:56.960 --> 00:16:59.539
roll through we had nukes sitting on four by

00:16:59.539 --> 00:17:02.460
fours So we just ended up throwing an extra four

00:17:02.460 --> 00:17:04.779
by four across the long way and then just kind

00:17:04.779 --> 00:17:06.859
of ratchet strapping them down just enough so

00:17:06.859 --> 00:17:08.859
that way that wind isn't gonna push them over

00:17:08.859 --> 00:17:11.779
and then after the hurricane kind of you you

00:17:11.779 --> 00:17:14.180
definitely want to assess resources in the hive

00:17:14.180 --> 00:17:17.079
and you definitely want to assess kind of the

00:17:17.079 --> 00:17:20.700
Forage around your area how bad did the plants

00:17:20.700 --> 00:17:23.619
and the trees get damaged to kind of really depend

00:17:23.619 --> 00:17:26.160
on? do we need to go ahead and supplement feeding

00:17:26.160 --> 00:17:28.180
to kind of get them through this area and more

00:17:28.180 --> 00:17:30.099
times than not if you are in that path of that

00:17:30.099 --> 00:17:31.720
hurricane you would definitely need to supplement

00:17:31.720 --> 00:17:34.420
feeding for sure. So it sounds like really a

00:17:34.420 --> 00:17:37.099
two -part thing. One, keeping them safe from

00:17:37.099 --> 00:17:39.960
the elements and then two, being prepared to

00:17:39.960 --> 00:17:42.500
feed them afterwards. You know, maybe stocking

00:17:42.500 --> 00:17:45.279
up on some of that ahead of time. Yeah, that's

00:17:45.279 --> 00:17:47.740
a great way to put it for sure. And I'd get those

00:17:47.740 --> 00:17:50.700
ratchet straps ahead of time too because when

00:17:50.700 --> 00:17:52.960
a hurricane is announced that it's coming through

00:17:52.960 --> 00:17:56.359
in three days You may be too late to find that

00:17:56.359 --> 00:17:59.200
kind of equipment. That's right. Yeah, and hurricanes

00:17:59.200 --> 00:18:01.380
are very tricky You know one one day they're

00:18:01.380 --> 00:18:02.940
they're headed straight for you and the next

00:18:02.940 --> 00:18:05.460
day they're they're headed 50 miles north of

00:18:05.460 --> 00:18:07.880
you So just definitely want to be on your toes

00:18:07.880 --> 00:18:10.740
And then if if you get an indication that a hurricane

00:18:10.740 --> 00:18:12.839
is coming close to your area You might as well

00:18:12.839 --> 00:18:15.059
just go ahead and prep for it just to be safe.

00:18:15.180 --> 00:18:17.299
Tell me about your work with hives for heroes

00:18:17.549 --> 00:18:20.470
Okay, yeah, great. So, Hives for Heroes, I ended

00:18:20.470 --> 00:18:23.670
up kind of finding by accident. I was at a bee

00:18:23.670 --> 00:18:28.430
expo in Alabama and I saw their booth set up

00:18:28.430 --> 00:18:30.789
and I reached out to them and just let them know

00:18:30.789 --> 00:18:32.609
that I was a veteran and just really curious

00:18:32.609 --> 00:18:34.950
about the program. And their rep told me all

00:18:34.950 --> 00:18:37.190
about it, which is if you don't know about it,

00:18:37.210 --> 00:18:39.750
it's a great program and all they do is just

00:18:39.750 --> 00:18:43.039
a matching service, essentially. It's free to

00:18:43.039 --> 00:18:46.019
sign up for veterans, first responders, I believe

00:18:46.019 --> 00:18:48.440
even teachers as well. And then what they do

00:18:48.440 --> 00:18:52.900
is they kind of locate a mentor or an experienced

00:18:52.900 --> 00:18:56.259
beekeeper within your area to match them up with

00:18:56.259 --> 00:18:58.900
you. So that way, if you want to learn beekeeping.

00:18:59.200 --> 00:19:01.440
They have someone that's experienced that will

00:19:01.440 --> 00:19:04.160
be able to kind of guide you and help you out.

00:19:04.460 --> 00:19:06.460
That was the gist of the program. And I got kind

00:19:06.460 --> 00:19:08.519
of really excited about it, especially after

00:19:08.519 --> 00:19:10.819
about two or three years of being in my role

00:19:10.819 --> 00:19:13.279
here and kind of really getting a deep dive into

00:19:13.279 --> 00:19:17.180
beekeeping. So I took on a mentee, her and her

00:19:17.180 --> 00:19:19.559
granddaughter, and we spent, they ended up moving

00:19:19.559 --> 00:19:21.339
away about eight months into it, but we spent

00:19:21.339 --> 00:19:24.619
about eight months every weekend doing hive inspections,

00:19:24.960 --> 00:19:27.160
going from the basics, teaching them how to light

00:19:27.160 --> 00:19:30.230
a starter. to teach them how to read frames and

00:19:30.230 --> 00:19:33.029
then key things to look for as the season kind

00:19:33.029 --> 00:19:36.690
of progressed. So it's a really great program,

00:19:37.049 --> 00:19:39.910
one for just community, being able to kind of

00:19:39.910 --> 00:19:42.150
link up with fellow veterans and first responders

00:19:42.150 --> 00:19:44.950
and just kind of have that, that mentor mentee

00:19:44.950 --> 00:19:47.990
relationship. And then also you kind of get away

00:19:47.990 --> 00:19:50.730
from the YouTube beekeeping, which I'm not against.

00:19:51.039 --> 00:19:53.160
Um, everyone got to learn their own way, but

00:19:53.160 --> 00:19:55.440
to have actually someone there where you can

00:19:55.440 --> 00:19:57.640
put hands on with them and they can kind of walk

00:19:57.640 --> 00:20:00.920
you through, um, and maybe identify things that,

00:20:00.920 --> 00:20:03.259
you know, are not covered in beekeeping videos,

00:20:03.259 --> 00:20:06.460
you know, where the swarm cells are located and

00:20:06.460 --> 00:20:08.599
hive beetles and what it looks like when hive

00:20:08.599 --> 00:20:11.500
beetles take over a hive and wax moths. And then

00:20:11.500 --> 00:20:13.460
the, just the treatments and things like that.

00:20:13.480 --> 00:20:16.220
So it's, it's a great program. I encourage anyone

00:20:16.220 --> 00:20:19.119
that wants to get into beekeeping that has. any

00:20:19.119 --> 00:20:21.359
kind of background in military or police or teaching

00:20:21.359 --> 00:20:24.059
to sign up for that program. And then I do know

00:20:24.059 --> 00:20:26.759
that they really need mentors as well. So you

00:20:26.759 --> 00:20:28.819
don't have to be a first responder or a veteran

00:20:28.819 --> 00:20:30.960
to sign up to be a mentor. Maybe you just kind

00:20:30.960 --> 00:20:33.480
of want to pass on that knowledge to fellow people.

00:20:33.579 --> 00:20:36.279
So if you've got beekeeping experience, I definitely

00:20:36.279 --> 00:20:39.160
recommend reaching out and signing up to be a

00:20:39.160 --> 00:20:42.400
mentor as well. We had one of the head people

00:20:42.400 --> 00:20:45.519
of Hives for Heroes on the show back last December,

00:20:45.579 --> 00:20:49.019
so that was December 2024. And by the way, all

00:20:49.019 --> 00:20:53.440
of those past episodes can be found, well, wherever

00:20:53.440 --> 00:20:56.680
you're getting this podcast, but also on BeLoveBeKeeping

00:20:56.680 --> 00:20:59.839
.com. You can even go in and put in a search

00:20:59.839 --> 00:21:02.180
term like Hives for Heroes or something like

00:21:02.180 --> 00:21:04.700
that, and it'll pull up that episode if you want

00:21:04.700 --> 00:21:06.980
to. If you want to know more, one of the things

00:21:06.980 --> 00:21:09.960
that he mentioned to me was the benefits of people

00:21:09.960 --> 00:21:14.519
with PTSD. and how this can be a really therapeutic

00:21:14.519 --> 00:21:17.039
thing for them. It's not just, hey, let's teach

00:21:17.039 --> 00:21:20.339
beekeeping to people. It can really change people's

00:21:20.339 --> 00:21:23.400
lives in very, very positive ways. For example,

00:21:23.519 --> 00:21:26.259
the suicide rate among veterans is super high.

00:21:26.299 --> 00:21:29.519
And this is just one of so many things that we

00:21:29.519 --> 00:21:32.579
can do to get involved and help with some of

00:21:32.579 --> 00:21:35.319
that kind of stuff. And you don't have to be

00:21:35.319 --> 00:21:38.500
a 50 year beekeeper or something like that if

00:21:38.500 --> 00:21:41.099
you're if you're experienced you can be a mentor

00:21:41.099 --> 00:21:44.619
if you need the help and are interested Yeah,

00:21:44.619 --> 00:21:47.579
reach out to them. Okay enough plugs for them

00:21:47.579 --> 00:21:49.960
But but hey, I think they're a great organization

00:21:49.960 --> 00:21:52.599
and I appreciate that you're someone that is

00:21:52.599 --> 00:21:56.859
willing to step up and help them All right. I

00:21:56.859 --> 00:22:00.339
want to hear With your beekeeping and it's only

00:22:00.339 --> 00:22:03.470
been four years but I know you've been deep into

00:22:03.470 --> 00:22:06.609
it all day every day pretty much. Can you give

00:22:06.609 --> 00:22:08.869
me an idea of a wild and crazy story that you've

00:22:08.869 --> 00:22:12.490
had beekeeping? Yeah, so wild and crazy, maybe

00:22:12.490 --> 00:22:15.410
not, but wild and painful for sure. Every beekeeper

00:22:15.410 --> 00:22:18.349
eventually is going to get stung. We always cross

00:22:18.349 --> 00:22:20.829
our fingers and hope it's at least through the

00:22:20.829 --> 00:22:23.809
suit so it takes kind of that away, but every

00:22:23.809 --> 00:22:25.430
now and again your bees just have a different

00:22:25.430 --> 00:22:28.930
idea for you. So I spent all day long. I was

00:22:28.930 --> 00:22:31.250
in a bee suit. It was probably middle of July

00:22:31.250 --> 00:22:33.789
in Florida. So it's pushing like a hundred something

00:22:33.789 --> 00:22:36.670
degrees all day long, prepping the bee yard,

00:22:36.869 --> 00:22:39.130
getting the permethrin laid out, getting your

00:22:39.130 --> 00:22:41.970
tarp down, getting the hive stands laid out and

00:22:41.970 --> 00:22:44.549
moving the bees. And I didn't have any issues

00:22:44.549 --> 00:22:47.630
all day long. So I finish up the bee yard. I

00:22:47.630 --> 00:22:49.750
get all the bees in place and everyone's doing

00:22:49.750 --> 00:22:52.309
well. So I go back inside. I change out of my

00:22:52.309 --> 00:22:55.279
beekeeping suit. And I think to myself, Man,

00:22:55.299 --> 00:22:57.079
I didn't get a picture. I would really like to

00:22:57.079 --> 00:22:59.640
get a picture of this, so that way I can show

00:22:59.640 --> 00:23:02.500
how beautiful my bee yard looks. So I walk back

00:23:02.500 --> 00:23:05.059
there, get a picture, nothing fancy, and then

00:23:05.059 --> 00:23:07.880
as I'm walking away, one of those bees comes

00:23:07.880 --> 00:23:10.980
and stings me right in the wrist. No suit, no

00:23:10.980 --> 00:23:14.440
gloves, and my hand was probably as big as a

00:23:14.440 --> 00:23:17.359
catcher's mitt for I would say every bit of three

00:23:17.359 --> 00:23:20.750
or four days. And then trying to get to the office

00:23:20.750 --> 00:23:23.029
and do work on the computer and type and things

00:23:23.029 --> 00:23:25.569
like that was definitely hard one handed for

00:23:25.569 --> 00:23:28.670
sure. So that's just one instance. Another great

00:23:28.670 --> 00:23:30.990
story that I have is, I mean, I remember we talked

00:23:30.990 --> 00:23:33.769
about getting a bee in your veil and how that

00:23:33.769 --> 00:23:36.349
is pretty common for the most time, especially

00:23:36.349 --> 00:23:39.069
if you've been doing it, you know, longer than

00:23:39.069 --> 00:23:40.569
a couple of weeks, you're eventually going to

00:23:40.569 --> 00:23:43.390
get one of those bees in your veil somehow. We

00:23:43.390 --> 00:23:46.529
had a swarm in the back of our building, coming

00:23:46.529 --> 00:23:48.789
out of one of our nukes. And I did not know,

00:23:48.950 --> 00:23:50.910
as I'm walking through the bee yard, I just noticed

00:23:50.910 --> 00:23:54.589
kind of a funny shaped leaf, if you will, is

00:23:54.589 --> 00:23:56.910
what I thought it was as I was walking by. But

00:23:56.910 --> 00:24:00.180
closer look, it was probably about... a football

00:24:00.180 --> 00:24:03.859
size cluster of bees just on the ground. So I

00:24:03.859 --> 00:24:06.880
have my suit on and I get down on my hands and

00:24:06.880 --> 00:24:08.759
knees and I'm looking for this queen just wanting

00:24:08.759 --> 00:24:10.359
to catch her so that way I can get all these

00:24:10.359 --> 00:24:13.299
bees back into a box. In the meantime, the bees

00:24:13.299 --> 00:24:16.700
are just crawling all over my suit. I mean, I

00:24:16.700 --> 00:24:19.579
have probably this big of a cluster just right

00:24:19.579 --> 00:24:22.220
here on my pocket. They're all over my head.

00:24:22.500 --> 00:24:25.559
And then as I'm looking for this queen, I just

00:24:25.559 --> 00:24:29.569
feel the slightest tickle on my ear. and that

00:24:29.569 --> 00:24:32.109
just all too familiar buzzing sound right past

00:24:32.109 --> 00:24:35.269
your ear. I pause for a second and I'm like,

00:24:35.549 --> 00:24:37.670
okay, is one of these really in my veil or maybe

00:24:37.670 --> 00:24:40.309
just my mind's playing tricks on me? And then

00:24:40.309 --> 00:24:43.089
sure enough, right across my nose, it flies and

00:24:43.089 --> 00:24:47.289
I'm just, okay, don't panic. That's when you

00:24:47.289 --> 00:24:50.109
start causing crazy reactions is when you start

00:24:50.109 --> 00:24:54.150
slapping and knocking everything around. So I

00:24:54.150 --> 00:24:56.450
get up and I just start walking away from the

00:24:56.450 --> 00:25:00.250
bees. and just ever so gently brushing all the

00:25:00.250 --> 00:25:02.690
bees off of me just so I can get this one bee

00:25:02.690 --> 00:25:05.690
out of my suit. And I think it took me probably

00:25:05.690 --> 00:25:09.410
all of 50 yards to walk to be able to get all

00:25:09.410 --> 00:25:11.730
these bees off long enough to where I could get

00:25:11.730 --> 00:25:14.289
my veil off and get this one bee out. So I made

00:25:14.289 --> 00:25:17.069
it out without no issues. The bee didn't get

00:25:17.069 --> 00:25:19.230
me in my face. I didn't want that distinctive

00:25:19.230 --> 00:25:22.390
raccoon look that you get when you get stuck

00:25:22.390 --> 00:25:24.829
in the face. Definitely an experience for sure.

00:25:25.629 --> 00:25:28.009
Well, sounds like you still swell up quite a

00:25:28.009 --> 00:25:30.109
bit you probably haven't been stung enough yet

00:25:30.109 --> 00:25:33.089
No, yeah, I definitely I try not to get stung

00:25:33.089 --> 00:25:35.910
just because I do swell up quite a bit when uh

00:25:35.910 --> 00:25:38.470
when I do When I do get stung outside of the

00:25:38.470 --> 00:25:40.950
suit inside the suit, you know stung multiple

00:25:40.950 --> 00:25:43.849
times But at that point it's just kind of annoying

00:25:43.849 --> 00:25:47.069
little itch Definitely try try to avoid that

00:25:47.069 --> 00:25:49.829
direct skin contact for sure the full -on sting

00:25:49.829 --> 00:25:53.279
most of us find that The more you get stung,

00:25:53.480 --> 00:25:55.339
the less it affects you, the less you're going

00:25:55.339 --> 00:25:58.619
to blow up. Although I would love to see a picture

00:25:58.619 --> 00:26:01.680
of your hand looking like a pitcher. What'd you

00:26:01.680 --> 00:26:03.960
call it? A catcher's mitt? A catcher's mitt.

00:26:04.019 --> 00:26:05.539
Yeah, I think I might have a pitcher somewhere.

00:26:05.680 --> 00:26:07.619
I'll have to get that over to you for sure. Send

00:26:07.619 --> 00:26:10.000
that over to me. People are going to like that.

00:26:10.400 --> 00:26:12.599
Anyway, yeah, that'd be in the veil the first

00:26:12.599 --> 00:26:16.299
time. That's an experience of self -control.

00:26:16.619 --> 00:26:20.609
Very true. Yes, very true. So working in a store

00:26:20.609 --> 00:26:24.309
and for a company like Man Lake who has gazillions

00:26:24.309 --> 00:26:27.690
of products for beekeepers Are there some that

00:26:27.690 --> 00:26:30.029
stand out or maybe some brand new things that

00:26:30.029 --> 00:26:32.349
you've seen that you think are pretty cool? So

00:26:32.349 --> 00:26:35.250
yeah, a couple of things that I love personally,

00:26:35.430 --> 00:26:39.829
and I try pretty much every new product, if it's

00:26:39.829 --> 00:26:42.329
applicable to my beekeeping setup, just to kind

00:26:42.329 --> 00:26:46.069
of experience it all and just to see what I like

00:26:46.069 --> 00:26:48.950
and what I do not like. And to me, a hive tool

00:26:48.950 --> 00:26:51.930
is just one of those things. A hive tool you're

00:26:51.930 --> 00:26:54.430
gonna need, whether it's an actual hive tool

00:26:54.430 --> 00:26:57.539
or a variation of that hive tool. At first I

00:26:57.539 --> 00:27:00.240
started with just your regular hive tool standard

00:27:00.240 --> 00:27:02.779
and then your j -hook but what I found and I

00:27:02.779 --> 00:27:04.819
actually brought one here so that way I could

00:27:04.819 --> 00:27:09.500
show you this is the easy pry and it has kind

00:27:09.500 --> 00:27:12.980
of a weird end on it with just your typical beveled

00:27:12.980 --> 00:27:14.940
end on the other side but what this allows you

00:27:14.940 --> 00:27:18.680
to do is get that frame and then as you kind

00:27:18.680 --> 00:27:22.339
of tilt it this is just long enough to sit on

00:27:22.339 --> 00:27:26.079
that other frame. So it's definitely very beneficial

00:27:26.079 --> 00:27:29.420
getting like that very first frame out Just because

00:27:29.420 --> 00:27:32.160
once it's propolized and it's kind of real snug

00:27:32.160 --> 00:27:34.759
inside there It kind of gets a little difficult

00:27:34.759 --> 00:27:37.539
to kind of dig in there and try it out whereas

00:27:37.539 --> 00:27:41.180
this just one end of it and you can kind of Pry

00:27:41.180 --> 00:27:43.279
it out one side and then pry it out the other

00:27:43.279 --> 00:27:45.500
side and just makes life a little bit easier

00:27:46.259 --> 00:27:49.140
So I really enjoy this hive tool I recommend

00:27:49.140 --> 00:27:51.420
it pretty much to everyone who asked me my opinion

00:27:51.420 --> 00:27:53.420
on it But your standard hive tool works just

00:27:53.420 --> 00:27:55.779
as great, but in my preference. This is the one

00:27:55.779 --> 00:27:59.039
right here I've never used one like that. That's

00:27:59.039 --> 00:28:00.960
cool. Hold that up again. There was also a little

00:28:00.960 --> 00:28:03.799
hole in there Turn it. Yeah, what's the purpose

00:28:03.799 --> 00:28:08.240
of that? So the hole really has no significant

00:28:08.240 --> 00:28:10.299
purpose other than like storage. You got a hook

00:28:10.299 --> 00:28:12.980
on your truck or maybe next to your bee yard.

00:28:13.279 --> 00:28:15.799
My recommendation to new beekeepers as well is

00:28:15.799 --> 00:28:18.079
always keep a spare one out by your hive. Countless

00:28:18.079 --> 00:28:20.539
of times I have definitely walked out to my bee

00:28:20.539 --> 00:28:23.960
yard and was like, I forgot my hive tool. And

00:28:23.960 --> 00:28:26.299
as anyone knows, if they're propylized and you

00:28:26.299 --> 00:28:27.779
have to sit there and try to use your fingers

00:28:27.779 --> 00:28:30.160
to kind of crack these open, it's not impossible,

00:28:30.180 --> 00:28:31.819
but it definitely makes your job a little bit

00:28:31.819 --> 00:28:34.430
harder. So, just for storage purposes, that little

00:28:34.430 --> 00:28:36.549
hole right there. Just so you can hang it up

00:28:36.549 --> 00:28:38.269
on a nail or something. Just so you can hang

00:28:38.269 --> 00:28:42.670
it up. Now, if you find it useful, great. But

00:28:42.670 --> 00:28:44.950
for the main part, it's just this little end

00:28:44.950 --> 00:28:47.869
that just makes it great to me. Just that ingenuity

00:28:47.869 --> 00:28:50.210
where they just bent it a little bit more so

00:28:50.210 --> 00:28:52.769
that way you can get it to rest on that one additional

00:28:52.769 --> 00:28:55.890
frame to prop it up. So, I love it. I'm going

00:28:55.890 --> 00:28:58.150
to order one of those. I love gadgets. I can't

00:28:58.150 --> 00:29:00.619
wait to give it a try. Awesome then I would say

00:29:00.619 --> 00:29:03.119
probably my second my second thing protective

00:29:03.119 --> 00:29:05.259
clothing is always a big issue for me because

00:29:05.259 --> 00:29:07.660
I do swell up So I just try to kind of be as

00:29:07.660 --> 00:29:10.359
safe as possible But I used to do the goatskin

00:29:10.359 --> 00:29:12.539
gloves, which I really liked because they were

00:29:12.539 --> 00:29:15.400
very thin Dexterity and the fingers were there

00:29:15.400 --> 00:29:17.839
You didn't kind of have that big bulky finger

00:29:17.839 --> 00:29:20.059
like you do and like your cowhide gloves and

00:29:20.059 --> 00:29:22.519
things like that So I use goatskin for a while

00:29:22.519 --> 00:29:24.700
but what I noticed with the goatskin is after

00:29:24.700 --> 00:29:26.980
you kind of sweating them a little bit that that

00:29:27.309 --> 00:29:29.470
that goat skin gets a little bit thinner and

00:29:29.470 --> 00:29:31.349
a little bit easier for those stingers to get

00:29:31.349 --> 00:29:34.990
through. So Man Lake came out with tactical gloves

00:29:34.990 --> 00:29:37.430
is what we call them and they offer them in this

00:29:37.430 --> 00:29:39.769
size and then I believe just kind of right up

00:29:39.769 --> 00:29:42.369
to your wrist as well. So you have different

00:29:42.369 --> 00:29:44.430
styles of them which I just use the ones that

00:29:44.430 --> 00:29:46.650
go up to my wrist but it's vented which makes

00:29:46.650 --> 00:29:50.089
it a lot cooler. Which I love there's a lot of

00:29:50.089 --> 00:29:52.950
space with some padding and some netting in between

00:29:52.950 --> 00:29:55.849
your actual skin So I would say probably about

00:29:55.849 --> 00:29:57.809
an eighth of an inch which makes it great So

00:29:57.809 --> 00:29:59.970
the bees don't get through it and then it also

00:29:59.970 --> 00:30:02.109
has that dexterity in the fingers that I like

00:30:02.109 --> 00:30:04.869
as well So I'm not I'm not stuck with that big

00:30:04.869 --> 00:30:07.569
bulky cowhide and so I have a little bit more

00:30:07.569 --> 00:30:09.549
Dexterity in my fingers to kind of manipulate

00:30:09.549 --> 00:30:12.509
the frames and and do just other things like

00:30:12.509 --> 00:30:15.700
my smoker things like that So you find the dexterity

00:30:15.700 --> 00:30:17.440
is good enough for all of that and you're not

00:30:17.440 --> 00:30:20.279
squishing a lot of bees and stuff. Right yeah

00:30:20.279 --> 00:30:22.480
it's kind of the best of all the world's adequate

00:30:22.480 --> 00:30:25.859
protection and then mobility for sure. Well Josh

00:30:25.859 --> 00:30:28.559
hey I appreciate you being with me today I've

00:30:28.559 --> 00:30:31.740
learned some things. I want to leave our listeners

00:30:31.740 --> 00:30:34.519
with this and that is Josh what do you love about

00:30:34.519 --> 00:30:38.950
bees so much? I just, I love how the colonies

00:30:38.950 --> 00:30:42.569
work really. I love the learning of the seasons.

00:30:42.970 --> 00:30:45.890
I definitely just looking out across just my

00:30:45.890 --> 00:30:48.890
landscape at home or just on my drive to work,

00:30:49.190 --> 00:30:51.410
learning the different plants and the different

00:30:51.410 --> 00:30:54.109
seasons to which they bloom and what's beneficial

00:30:54.109 --> 00:30:57.410
and what's not beneficial for honey making and

00:30:57.410 --> 00:31:01.990
pollen for the bees. So I really love that you

00:31:01.990 --> 00:31:04.150
take something like beekeeping where you're just

00:31:04.150 --> 00:31:08.269
learning how these bees operate and how you can

00:31:08.269 --> 00:31:12.569
kind of influence that operation to maybe increase

00:31:12.569 --> 00:31:15.250
a honey yield or pollination of your garden,

00:31:15.390 --> 00:31:18.589
but also just zoning out, zooming out away from

00:31:18.589 --> 00:31:22.049
that colony and just all the other things that

00:31:22.049 --> 00:31:25.009
kind of make you open your eyes and say, oh,

00:31:25.150 --> 00:31:27.410
look, my orange blossom is starting to bloom

00:31:27.410 --> 00:31:30.799
down the street. That happens in late February,

00:31:30.900 --> 00:31:34.519
early March. So it's really awesome that you

00:31:34.519 --> 00:31:37.579
start with beekeeping and then it just kind of

00:31:37.579 --> 00:31:39.660
expands out to where now you're keeping track

00:31:39.660 --> 00:31:42.539
of weather. Now you're looking at seasonal flowers

00:31:42.539 --> 00:31:45.099
and plants, and then you're keeping track on

00:31:45.099 --> 00:31:47.299
what's kind of around you and the forage that

00:31:47.299 --> 00:31:50.180
you're able to kind of get these bees to go and

00:31:50.180 --> 00:31:53.799
draw nectar from. So I just love the aspect that

00:31:53.799 --> 00:31:57.279
it starts with beekeeping and then zoom out.

00:31:57.609 --> 00:32:00.049
all of a sudden you're just in depth and a whole

00:32:00.049 --> 00:32:01.730
lot of other things that you never really would

00:32:01.730 --> 00:32:05.029
have thought of. That is so true. I think the

00:32:05.029 --> 00:32:08.750
bees are so fascinating and it's also made me

00:32:08.750 --> 00:32:11.509
so much more aware of everything else around.

00:32:11.529 --> 00:32:14.529
We have a lot of, you know, wild flowers in the

00:32:14.529 --> 00:32:17.109
hills by me and things like that that I didn't

00:32:17.109 --> 00:32:20.190
pay as much attention to before, but now I do

00:32:20.190 --> 00:32:22.630
and I appreciate all of those kinds of things.

00:32:22.809 --> 00:32:25.769
Anyway, Josh, appreciate your time. Any closing

00:32:25.769 --> 00:32:29.289
thoughts? My closing thoughts to anyone who is

00:32:29.289 --> 00:32:32.230
listening to this that maybe is not into beekeeping,

00:32:32.809 --> 00:32:35.569
highly recommend it. It's a community like no

00:32:35.569 --> 00:32:39.190
other. Just relating that back to some rainforests.

00:32:39.210 --> 00:32:41.670
You talk to someone about you being a beekeeper

00:32:41.670 --> 00:32:44.490
and it's definitely a conversation starter. It's

00:32:44.490 --> 00:32:46.210
something that not a lot of people hear about.

00:32:46.619 --> 00:32:49.599
And then also you talk to people about beekeeping

00:32:49.599 --> 00:32:51.700
and they are a beekeeper and all of a sudden

00:32:51.700 --> 00:32:54.539
you have so many things to talk about So it really

00:32:54.539 --> 00:32:58.220
kind of really brings people together So if you

00:32:58.220 --> 00:33:00.680
are in beekeeping and just starting out, I would

00:33:00.680 --> 00:33:03.019
definitely recommend joining your local bee club

00:33:03.019 --> 00:33:05.519
Just to kind of have that camaraderie and that

00:33:05.519 --> 00:33:07.980
that source of information there for you And

00:33:07.980 --> 00:33:10.400
if you haven't gotten to beekeeping and you're

00:33:10.400 --> 00:33:12.559
just kind of listening this as a passing through

00:33:12.559 --> 00:33:15.619
podcast I would definitely recommend just doing

00:33:15.619 --> 00:33:18.740
some doing some looking up and some education

00:33:18.740 --> 00:33:21.579
on it. So that way you can kind of, even if you

00:33:21.579 --> 00:33:24.079
don't get into beekeeping, at least learn where

00:33:24.079 --> 00:33:26.259
your local honey is coming from and just the

00:33:26.259 --> 00:33:28.980
amount of work that goes into producing that

00:33:28.980 --> 00:33:31.079
honey. So that way, hopefully it will encourage

00:33:31.079 --> 00:33:33.420
you to buy local, support those small mom and

00:33:33.420 --> 00:33:35.859
pop businesses that go out every day and work

00:33:35.859 --> 00:33:40.839
in this heat to make that happen for you. Thanks

00:33:40.839 --> 00:33:43.180
again for joining us here on Bee Love Beekeeping

00:33:43.180 --> 00:33:47.160
presented by Man Lake. Remember right now to

00:33:47.160 --> 00:33:50.759
follow or subscribe and share this podcast. Also

00:33:50.759 --> 00:33:53.460
a shout out to Vita Bee Health for their support

00:33:53.460 --> 00:33:57.119
of the show. Vita's Varroa Control range of products

00:33:57.119 --> 00:34:01.880
includes Apistan, Apigard, and now Varroxan Extended

00:34:01.880 --> 00:34:05.059
Release Oxalic Acids Trips. Hey thanks guys,

00:34:05.339 --> 00:34:08.199
we really appreciate it. Enjoy this beautiful

00:34:08.199 --> 00:34:11.170
summer, enjoy your bees, and remember... If you're

00:34:11.170 --> 00:34:14.110
not just in it for the honey or the money, you're

00:34:14.110 --> 00:34:16.090
in it for the love. See you next week.