Research on Bee Die-Off • Beekeeping in Newfoundland - 7 Months in Cluster

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 do more

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splits than a gymnast, you might be a beekeeper.

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If you use a queen clip to keep your hair out

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of your face during hive inspection, you might

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be a beekeeper. says what's this sticky stuff

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on your door handles you might be a beekeeper

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welcome welcome to be love beekeeping presented

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by our great friends over at man lake Today,

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we'll be traveling to the Great White North for

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a lively discussion with a beekeeper whose bees

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are clustered for seven months of the year. But

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first, we're beginning to get answers to the

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Great American Bee Die Off of 2025. This press

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release is titled, New USDA Research Links Early

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2025 Honey Bee Losses to High Viral Loads and

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Mite Resistance. Now, please bear with me as

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I'm going to read most of this so that you can

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hear exactly what the researchers are saying.

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New research from the U .S. Department of Agriculture's

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Agricultural Research Service, USDA, ARS, sheds

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light on the causes behind the catastrophic honeybee

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colony losses reported by commercial beekeepers

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earlier this year. The findings point to alarming

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high levels of viral infections vectored by Varroa

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destructor, Varroa mites, with resistant genes

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to a common treatment as key drivers of colony

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collapse. The study, which analyzed samples from

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six major commercial beekeeping operations affected

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by the losses, provided the most detailed evidence

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to date of the biological factors behind the

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widespread die -offs. Collectively, these operations

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managed nearly 184 ,000 colonies, or roughly

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7 % of all U .S. hives, and reported losses averaged

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over 60 % just as bees were being staged for

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California's almond pollination season. Quote,

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the beekeeping and bee health community appreciates

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the work of the USDA ARS Bee Research Laboratories.

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They quickly took samples of lost colonies, and

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now that they've released the analysis, beekeepers

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can better understand what happened and take

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action," said Matt Malicka, Senior Project Director

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at Keystone Policy Center, which facilitates

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the Honey Bee Health Coalition. We understand

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more analysis is occurring, and we look forward

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to learning more about the other potential causes

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of these significant colony losses. Researchers

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found that deformed wing virus and acute bee

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paralysis virus in both pooled colony samples

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and individual bees showing shaking and other

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signs of morbidity. Experimental inoculation

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further confirmed these viruses as the likely

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cause of mortality in collapsing colonies. Crucially,

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All varroa mites collected from affected colonies

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tested positive for a genetic marker linked to

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resistance to amitras, the most commonly used

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miticide in commercial beekeeping. This finding

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underscores the urgent need for new tools and

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integrated pest management strategies. Quote,

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this is a critical moment for honeybee health,

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said Patty Sundberg, president of the American

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Beekeeping Federation. We can't continue relying

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on a single line of defense against Varroa. These

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mites are evolving quickly and our management

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tools must evolve just as fast. We also need

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to find treatments for these viruses and we await

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the release of how pesticide exposure and poor

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nutrition amplify the impacts from these viruses.

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While viruses and varroa were confirmed as primary

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contributors, the USDA ARS research also acknowledges

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other stressors, including pesticide exposure,

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poor nutrition, and environmental conditions

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may have exacerbated the losses. The findings

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released this week are a crucial first step in

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providing beekeepers actionable information,

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added Stephen Coy. president of the American

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Honey Producers Association. It highlights the

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necessity for additional miticides and methods

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of controlling varroa and the associated viruses.

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We urge the USDA to provide the results of the

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impacts of nutritional, chemical, and environmental

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stress as soon as possible. Beekeepers need a

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complete picture of what happened in order to

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make sound decisions regarding the health of

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our colonies. In 2021, the Honey Bee Health Coalition

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published Guide to Varroa mite controls for commercial

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beekeeping operations, which laid out a vision

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that addresses the risks of amatraz resistance

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created by off -label use. The continuous use

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of off -label amatraz with increasing dosage

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as it becomes less effective is likely to cause

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amatraz to lose its effectiveness. And I'll add

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in here, it sounds like that's exactly what happened.

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The USDA ARS researchers have submitted a manuscript

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to a scientific journal for peer review. Now,

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if you are the kind of person that wants to read

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the whole study straight from the horse's mouth,

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we will have that link in our show notes. So

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go ahead and click down there and geek out to

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your heart's content. I'd like to welcome to

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the show today, Rae -Lynn White, coming to us

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from, oh my gosh, Newfoundland, Canada. How are

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you, Rae -Lynn? I'm doing great, and I really

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love the way you pronounced it. It was proper.

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Like, that's the way you say it. Newfoundland

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or Rae -Lynn? Newfoundland. I'm like, don't kind

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of fool that up, but you got it right on. Well,

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I cheated. I've actually had somebody else on

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the show last year from Newfoundland. That's

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great. Absolutely. And she gave me the whole

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rundown on, do not say newfound land or anything

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like that, or you get a big time trouble. You

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are good. But I have you on the show because

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you're an expert in manuka honey, and that's

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what we're talking about today. Oh, give it up.

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I'm glad this is now live. Would you like to

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explain our inside joke to people? I was on an

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interview on CBC, which is a live television

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show, but They also do audio podcasts and it's

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also on YouTube. Anyway, they had callers call

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in and one of the callers called in and asked

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me about Manuka honey. And unfortunately, I'm

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not too familiar about Manuka honey, being from

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Newfoundland and all. We don't have that honey

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here. So I can pass that to you if you want to

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do a better explanation of it. I'm going to do

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this instead. I'm going to invite a listener

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from New Zealand to get a hold of me. Okay. Eric

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at Be Love, Be Keeping dot com. Someone that

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can talk about manuka honey and we'll do it sometime.

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Fabulous. I would love that actually to be educated

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about that. But you and I are not going to fake

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our way through that one. We're going to talk

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about things we know a little bit about. And

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the first one, I can't do that one either because

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you don't know anything about Varroa because

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you don't have to deal with it. No, I do know

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a lot about Varroa. simply because we always

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like a prevention, we always want beekeepers

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to be aware of it and educated about it. But

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thank goodness, we are probably one of the only

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places in the world, I think, that doesn't have

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Varroa. We had a guest on the show that is on

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Maui, or not Maui, Kauai. They don't have Varroa

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there yet or Molokai. Other than that, I don't

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know. I know Australia didn't do it for a while,

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but they certainly have it now, unfortunately,

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right? I'm guessing Antarctica is Varroa free.

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Yeah, I would think so. So in Newfoundland back

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in 1985, I believe the date, the government passed

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a law basically saying that you were not allowed

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to import any honeybees into the province. So

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they did that because of the whole Varroa and

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trying to stop it before it even got started.

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And thankfully, it actually was successful. And

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like I said, we have no Varroa here in the island.

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That's fantastic. You are blessed. Tell us a

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little bit more about beekeeping there. We know

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that the weather's got to be rough. Yeah. Tell

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us a little bit about that and things that you

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do and don't do as beekeepers. For example, I

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don't think you do a lot of pollination service.

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No. So Newfoundland is a huge, huge province

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in Canada. It is over a half million people,

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but it's more land than people. So most people

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are actually in the St. John's and surrounding

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area, not so much all over. So we have a lot

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of land that's not even used. Our biggest struggle

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here in Newfoundland with beekeeping is the weather.

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And that differs like in the East Coast is way

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different than the West Coast. So East Coast,

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we don't get as much snow. However, we get cold

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temperatures and we get a lot of frost and thaw,

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yeah, freeze and thaw, freeze and thaw, which

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is obviously really hard for honeybees because

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they're in the cluster. They get tricked, they

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come out, and then they have to go back in. And

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another thing, too, when you think about our

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honeybees are in the cluster about seven months

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of the year. So that's a long time. And during

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that time, you know, we have to kind of peak

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up on a kind of mild day to see if they have

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thought in it and close it up quick. So that's

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one of the big struggles we have in Newfoundland

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is the weather. And again, like, our spring is

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not that great. I'm only now, and it's June 6th.

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No, June, what day is it? June 3rd. Is it June

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3rd? And I'm only now seeing drones actually

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in the hive. So very late. They're not sexually

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mature yet. So I have some queens probably going

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to go out mating next week. And I'm hoping that

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they're going to do well with that. But like

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I said, everything's a lot slower and a lot at

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a slower pace here in Newfoundland with bees.

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Yeah, without long of a time of them, I'll call

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it trapped in the hive. I mean, if it's too cold,

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they can't go outside, so they're trapped. There's

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a couple of things. One, obviously, they need

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enough to eat. Yeah. So I'd like to hear about

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why you feed them. But are there problems with

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the fact that they can't take a cleansing flight

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for months? OK, so let the eating part. So I

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really encouraged. encourage beekeepers, new

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and seasoned beekeepers, that they have a hundred

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pounds of honey going into their hive every winter.

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And when you think about it, that's not just

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a winter, that's seven months basically, that's

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what they have to chow down on for that amount

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of time. On top of that, I also, like when we're

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getting into March, I often say that's the real

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high month that we get a lot of losses, simply

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because bees run out of food. So I'm often encouraging

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people, you know what, go check to make sure

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they have I mean, I'm not saying you obviously

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cannot go up and do a live check and see if they

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have honey because it's too cold, but I would

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always make sure like March that they have some

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fondant and constantly put fondant right on until

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probably the first week in May. So that's the

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feeding part. And yes, you're right in regards

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to being trapped in the box. They are very much

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so. Usually like in April, sometimes we have

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warmer days. I often joke that We are, you know,

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through school and stuff, I've learned, you know,

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honey bees don't come out, yes, like 12 to 15

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degrees. However, bees in Newfoundland are flying

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free at probably six. They're very different

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bees. They're very hardy bees. They're very climatized

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to our weather and temperature. So there's nothing

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but seeing bees flying around at six degrees.

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So we get a kind of a warm day in April. We call

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it yellow rain. It's everywhere. They just hold

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it in and obviously let it out when they can.

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But yeah, and then it gets a point where it goes,

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they're freezing again. Obviously, then they're

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trapped in again until probably the first week

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in May. So again, we have the yellow rain again.

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So it's kind of constant. So they're very herdy

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bees. I think they're very, and very healthy,

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obviously, because you mentioned it, Varroa,

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but we also don't have wax moth. We don't have

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hide beetle. We don't have tracheal mites. We

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don't have... Foul brood? No, no foul brood,

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European or American. Like, yeah, I mean, our

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bees are really the big thing with us is the

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weather. And a lot of people going into the winter

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really don't know how to insulate their hives

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properly. So you get a lot of moisture buildup.

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And obviously, I always say wet bees, unfortunately,

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are dead bees when it comes in the winter time.

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Yeah. What's your philosophy on that insulation?

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Yeah. So for me, I took the leap this year, actually,

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and I overwinterized my hive. Eleven hives going

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into the winter, and all of them survived. I'm

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pretty happy about that. I actually put them

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in a shed. The shed itself isn't insulated, however,

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obviously it protects it from the wind. In Newfoundland,

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that's probably the most important thing to do.

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The wind is so cold and bitter. I did insulate

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them even though they were in this shed. So I

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go a little bit overboard with insulation, I

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feel. However, I do the proper ventilation so

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that there's no water buildup or dampness within

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the hive. So I use the Bridget insulation that

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you buy at Kent's. And I go all around it, obviously

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cover it. And then I have a top pillow, which

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is about eight inches high on the top of it,

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like going right over your inner cover. And I

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keep the entrance completely open. So there's

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no condensation. There's a right moisture and

00:14:23.539 --> 00:14:25.179
proper circulation. So we're not getting a lot

00:14:25.179 --> 00:14:27.159
of buildup moisture in the high. Yeah. And I

00:14:27.159 --> 00:14:29.100
think that's a mistake that a lot of us make

00:14:29.100 --> 00:14:32.080
is we want to insulate it so much that we close

00:14:32.080 --> 00:14:35.000
it all up. I did that one year. And they have

00:14:35.000 --> 00:14:37.840
to have some ventilation. Yeah. Even if it's

00:14:37.840 --> 00:14:41.179
cold. I actually do. I have two hives that here

00:14:41.179 --> 00:14:44.240
at the prison here in St. John's, so the federal

00:14:44.240 --> 00:14:46.559
prison. So I also do be keeping down there with

00:14:46.559 --> 00:14:49.919
the inmates. Now those hives down there, I kept

00:14:49.919 --> 00:14:52.779
them outside. I just insulate them like I just

00:14:52.779 --> 00:14:55.799
mentioned. And they were the strongest hives

00:14:55.799 --> 00:14:59.100
I have. Even though like they weren't inside,

00:14:59.120 --> 00:15:01.750
they were boom, and I'm already after making

00:15:01.750 --> 00:15:04.190
two splits on them. And it's only like middle,

00:15:04.549 --> 00:15:07.549
first part of June. I've heard about inmate programs

00:15:07.549 --> 00:15:09.629
before. I've read about some of them. Haven't

00:15:09.629 --> 00:15:11.809
had anybody on the show yet talking about them.

00:15:12.269 --> 00:15:14.669
Tell me a little bit about how that works. Yeah.

00:15:14.830 --> 00:15:17.610
How many inmates do you work with? So I was up

00:15:17.610 --> 00:15:21.370
in my apiary, working away and I overheard Jan

00:15:21.370 --> 00:15:23.549
Buehle, who's the facilitator for the steaming

00:15:23.549 --> 00:15:26.240
scarab project. So the Phoenix Garden projects,

00:15:26.480 --> 00:15:28.980
they're basically more about plants and planting

00:15:28.980 --> 00:15:31.159
and getting our hands in the dirt, and it's obviously

00:15:31.159 --> 00:15:33.840
quite beneficial. When I heard that, my ears

00:15:33.840 --> 00:15:36.240
like peaked. I was like, okay, we have to get

00:15:36.240 --> 00:15:39.399
bees in there too. So, to be honest with you,

00:15:39.440 --> 00:15:41.559
it was really easy to do. They were very open

00:15:41.559 --> 00:15:44.039
with it. They provide funding for hives. They

00:15:44.039 --> 00:15:48.120
provide funding for bees. And off I went, and

00:15:48.120 --> 00:15:51.200
I went in. So we do a group every Monday during

00:15:51.200 --> 00:15:53.440
the winter, like fall and winter. That group

00:15:53.440 --> 00:15:57.809
is Just be education. So we developed a module

00:15:57.809 --> 00:16:00.929
And everything every chapter obviously is all

00:16:00.929 --> 00:16:03.669
about beekeeping and we didn't kind of leave

00:16:03.669 --> 00:16:06.590
out the big words You know spermatheca or propolis

00:16:06.590 --> 00:16:09.110
those words are all there for the for the inmates

00:16:09.110 --> 00:16:11.629
to learn and learn how to pronounce them properly

00:16:11.629 --> 00:16:15.830
So yeah, so there's nine men in the group and

00:16:15.830 --> 00:16:19.389
when they're actually discharged obviously The

00:16:19.389 --> 00:16:21.950
wait list to this group is really long. They

00:16:21.950 --> 00:16:24.809
quickly fill up. So we usually keep it at nine.

00:16:25.649 --> 00:16:27.929
They learn through the fall and the winter and

00:16:27.929 --> 00:16:29.809
then in the spring and summer they're out with

00:16:29.809 --> 00:16:33.049
me in the hives. So when I go down, obviously

00:16:33.049 --> 00:16:35.529
this time of year, I always say to beekeepers,

00:16:35.669 --> 00:16:37.570
you need to check your hive once a week just

00:16:37.570 --> 00:16:39.830
to make sure things are okay, that a queen, there's

00:16:39.830 --> 00:16:42.350
no swarm cells, all that good stuff. So I go

00:16:42.350 --> 00:16:45.210
down once a week and I get to take four inmates

00:16:45.210 --> 00:16:48.070
out with me. when I do the hive checks. So there's

00:16:48.070 --> 00:16:50.029
certain inmates down there that they can do a

00:16:50.029 --> 00:16:52.490
complete hide inspection and me just standing

00:16:52.490 --> 00:16:55.169
back and they're doing it all on their own and

00:16:55.169 --> 00:16:56.990
they knew nothing obviously about bees when they

00:16:56.990 --> 00:17:00.029
first came in prison. So for me as a social worker

00:17:00.029 --> 00:17:02.330
you know I think beekeeping and social work goes

00:17:02.330 --> 00:17:04.910
hand in hand and some of the biggest deepest

00:17:04.910 --> 00:17:07.329
conversations I've had with inmates have been

00:17:07.329 --> 00:17:10.450
while we're beekeeping. It's a very much mindful

00:17:10.450 --> 00:17:13.809
activity. It's really grounding. It's just the

00:17:13.809 --> 00:17:15.670
boars and the bees. That's all they think about.

00:17:15.730 --> 00:17:17.210
They don't think about the problems they've had

00:17:17.210 --> 00:17:19.690
in the community or their loved ones. You know,

00:17:19.769 --> 00:17:22.150
at that point, they're just all about the bees.

00:17:25.029 --> 00:17:27.009
Quick break to thank our presenting sponsor,

00:17:27.390 --> 00:17:31.019
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00:17:31.019 --> 00:17:33.519
everything I need to take care of the health

00:17:33.519 --> 00:17:36.319
of my bees, mite checks and treatments, beetle

00:17:36.319 --> 00:17:39.140
management, hive health and nutrition, pollen

00:17:39.140 --> 00:17:42.819
substitutes, food and feeders, and the knowledge

00:17:42.819 --> 00:17:45.700
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00:17:49.339 --> 00:17:51.279
for her icon in the bottom right hand corner

00:17:51.279 --> 00:17:55.079
of your screen at manlakeltd .com. While you're

00:17:55.079 --> 00:17:57.779
there, don't forget your discount code MLBlove.

00:17:57.799 --> 00:18:01.160
It's in the show notes. For $10 off your first

00:18:01.160 --> 00:18:07.660
$100 purchase. So it's very successful. I was

00:18:07.660 --> 00:18:10.000
hoping to add more hives down there this year,

00:18:10.140 --> 00:18:13.839
but I feel it's the amount of time it takes for

00:18:13.839 --> 00:18:16.539
me to do a hive inspection. It takes up too much

00:18:16.539 --> 00:18:18.400
time for the correctional officers to actually

00:18:18.400 --> 00:18:20.720
add more hives. So we're going to keep it at

00:18:20.720 --> 00:18:23.859
two and just get the boys out more and let them

00:18:23.859 --> 00:18:26.640
do the hive inspections. Does it ever seem scary

00:18:26.640 --> 00:18:29.279
to go in there and do that? Not at all. You know,

00:18:29.460 --> 00:18:32.000
I've, if anything, I've been treated with utmost

00:18:32.000 --> 00:18:35.920
respect. The boys are so appreciative of what

00:18:35.920 --> 00:18:38.680
we do. I mean, this is all volunteer, right?

00:18:38.799 --> 00:18:41.319
No one is getting paid for this. And they know

00:18:41.319 --> 00:18:43.779
obviously that I'm going in because I want to

00:18:43.779 --> 00:18:46.720
teach and I want them to learn and enjoy beekeeping.

00:18:47.140 --> 00:18:49.980
So if anything, I was always treated with respect

00:18:49.980 --> 00:18:54.369
and Yeah, it's just wonderful and one day we

00:18:54.369 --> 00:18:56.769
actually had correctional officers two correctional

00:18:56.769 --> 00:18:59.250
officers actually join us and that's like in

00:18:59.250 --> 00:19:01.630
some prisons That's like a big no -no, right?

00:19:02.009 --> 00:19:04.490
But they did and they actually you've seen a

00:19:04.490 --> 00:19:07.009
correctional officer and an inmate All the barriers

00:19:07.009 --> 00:19:09.170
down boundaries down and they're interacting

00:19:09.170 --> 00:19:11.849
as people which they should be so it's pretty

00:19:11.849 --> 00:19:14.609
precious That is great and they know it's a privilege.

00:19:14.609 --> 00:19:16.869
So yeah, they're probably on their very best

00:19:16.869 --> 00:19:19.529
behavior Absolutely and a great skill for them

00:19:19.529 --> 00:19:23.019
to learn. Yeah There's one prisoner or inmate

00:19:23.019 --> 00:19:25.819
that's actually going to be sent to a federal

00:19:25.819 --> 00:19:28.859
penitentiary, the provincial, and that's why

00:19:28.859 --> 00:19:31.059
he says he's going to miss the most is the beekeeping.

00:19:31.819 --> 00:19:35.359
So it's sad, but hopefully he'll find an opportunity

00:19:35.359 --> 00:19:38.539
wherever he might go and develop that a little

00:19:38.539 --> 00:19:40.980
bit further. You're doing some good out there

00:19:40.980 --> 00:19:43.559
in the world with beekeeping. That's something

00:19:43.559 --> 00:19:46.960
that we love to push here. By the way, Rae Lynn

00:19:46.960 --> 00:19:50.420
is known on social media as Bee Haven. That's

00:19:50.420 --> 00:19:54.359
right. big time, big time group following her.

00:19:54.720 --> 00:19:57.240
Let's talk about community a little bit. It's

00:19:57.240 --> 00:19:59.859
one thing I love about beekeepers. Everybody

00:19:59.859 --> 00:20:02.480
gets along. You and I were both at the North

00:20:02.480 --> 00:20:05.559
American Honey Bee Expo. I didn't know you then,

00:20:05.579 --> 00:20:08.859
but I'll see you there this next year. Absolutely.

00:20:09.559 --> 00:20:12.140
Beekeepers are a great community. And there are

00:20:12.140 --> 00:20:16.319
all kinds of clubs all over the world. And every

00:20:16.319 --> 00:20:20.259
club has their own personality. And I just wanted

00:20:20.259 --> 00:20:24.059
to get a little bit of your input on what kinds

00:20:24.059 --> 00:20:26.380
of things can you do to make a club experience

00:20:26.380 --> 00:20:29.059
a good one? That's a good question, actually.

00:20:29.380 --> 00:20:33.160
So I was involved in the club here in St. John's

00:20:33.160 --> 00:20:35.700
or in Newfoundland and Labrador. Unfortunately,

00:20:35.819 --> 00:20:37.839
it wasn't a very pleasant experience for me.

00:20:38.200 --> 00:20:41.779
And that's why B. Halen was born. I really kind

00:20:41.779 --> 00:20:44.480
of sat down one night and I kind of thought about...

00:20:44.109 --> 00:20:46.730
what would I like to see in a club or what would

00:20:46.730 --> 00:20:49.589
I like for new beekeepers or even seasoned beekeepers

00:20:49.589 --> 00:20:54.450
to experience. And one of the big pillars of

00:20:54.450 --> 00:20:58.210
Bee Haven was kindness. Ask your questions and

00:20:58.210 --> 00:21:01.470
no made fun of, no bullying. So all of that was

00:21:01.470 --> 00:21:04.150
what Bee Haven was actually built on and I'm

00:21:04.150 --> 00:21:07.609
really happy to what it has come to today. So

00:21:07.609 --> 00:21:11.130
for example, following over, I think it's almost

00:21:11.130 --> 00:21:14.069
36 ,000 followers. A lot of them are in the US,

00:21:14.230 --> 00:21:17.890
which surprises me. Germany, I have some in Mexico.

00:21:18.549 --> 00:21:21.329
It's just overwhelming when I see where people

00:21:21.329 --> 00:21:24.170
are from. But the group is such a community group.

00:21:24.470 --> 00:21:27.549
And we have beekeepers, seasoned beekeepers,

00:21:28.549 --> 00:21:30.369
answering questions of new beekeepers. I don't

00:21:30.369 --> 00:21:32.269
have to do a thing. It's almost like it's rolling

00:21:32.269 --> 00:21:35.109
on its own now. The rules are set, the boundaries

00:21:35.109 --> 00:21:38.430
are up, and it's just totally beekeeping, and

00:21:38.430 --> 00:21:41.109
it's respectful, and it's a very educated place

00:21:41.109 --> 00:21:43.529
to be. But what about clubs? You said you didn't

00:21:43.529 --> 00:21:45.890
have a great experience and you don't have to

00:21:45.890 --> 00:21:48.130
go into detail because we don't want to slam

00:21:48.130 --> 00:21:52.490
on anybody here, but maybe maybe teach us what

00:21:52.490 --> 00:21:56.430
is good citizenship in a club. Yeah, so I think

00:21:56.430 --> 00:21:59.390
respect is a big thing, you know, and for me

00:21:59.390 --> 00:22:02.289
as a newbie keeper back when I had joined that

00:22:02.289 --> 00:22:05.170
club, I wanted to learn and that was a big thing

00:22:05.170 --> 00:22:07.750
for me and my personality is like I'm not going

00:22:07.750 --> 00:22:11.519
to do a half job. I want to do all the job. So

00:22:11.519 --> 00:22:13.619
when I started beekeeping, I wanted to know as

00:22:13.619 --> 00:22:16.480
much information as I could and as much education.

00:22:17.220 --> 00:22:20.579
So then I sought out the University of Montana

00:22:20.579 --> 00:22:23.460
Beekeeping Program, and I enrolled in that very

00:22:23.460 --> 00:22:26.180
tough course, very educational course. I loved

00:22:26.180 --> 00:22:28.720
it. But, you know, unfortunately, some people

00:22:28.720 --> 00:22:32.039
weren't happy about that or not very wanting

00:22:32.039 --> 00:22:34.839
to use the information or the education that

00:22:34.839 --> 00:22:37.380
I received. Certainly I would pass it on. And

00:22:37.380 --> 00:22:39.200
I was frowned upon for actually trying to better

00:22:39.200 --> 00:22:42.099
myself with that. So that didn't sit well with

00:22:42.099 --> 00:22:45.319
me. A lot of conversations with my hubby. And,

00:22:45.339 --> 00:22:48.680
you know, as a social worker, again, didn't feel

00:22:48.680 --> 00:22:51.099
that it was appropriate or the right way to treat

00:22:51.099 --> 00:22:54.180
a person. So again, that's when I kind of off

00:22:54.180 --> 00:22:57.200
-rooted and I haven't looked back. And since

00:22:57.200 --> 00:22:59.880
I've kind of went on my own and started up Bee

00:22:59.880 --> 00:23:03.039
Haven, I think I've enjoyed beekeeping so much

00:23:03.039 --> 00:23:05.700
more. It's not about drama. It's not about...

00:23:05.640 --> 00:23:09.500
you know, who's better than who, it's about camaraderie,

00:23:09.859 --> 00:23:12.539
it's about respect and just learning from each

00:23:12.539 --> 00:23:15.299
other. And I'm glad you mentioned about the Bee

00:23:15.299 --> 00:23:17.559
Expo because that's what I feel here. When I

00:23:17.559 --> 00:23:20.500
walked into the Bee Expo the first day, it was

00:23:20.500 --> 00:23:22.740
just such a warm feeling and everybody was in

00:23:22.740 --> 00:23:25.440
a great spirit. You could talk about bees for

00:23:25.440 --> 00:23:27.500
like eight hours and no one would think you're

00:23:27.500 --> 00:23:30.079
a geek. Like it was cool to be able to have those

00:23:30.079 --> 00:23:32.710
conversations. And you know what? You could have

00:23:32.710 --> 00:23:35.670
had the most successful YouTuber there. And when

00:23:35.670 --> 00:23:37.609
you approached them, they were just like you've

00:23:37.609 --> 00:23:40.369
known them for years. That's my experience anyway,

00:23:40.369 --> 00:23:43.630
but I cannot wait to go back and see some of

00:23:43.630 --> 00:23:46.369
those guys next year. Kamen puts on a good show

00:23:46.369 --> 00:23:48.930
and a lot of good people go. I mean, it was worth

00:23:48.930 --> 00:23:52.309
going to. So there's your free plug, Kamen. Oh,

00:23:52.390 --> 00:23:55.430
Kamen's a good guy. He doesn't give me free entrance,

00:23:55.769 --> 00:23:59.599
but we'll plug it anyway. Yeah. But yeah, I've

00:23:59.599 --> 00:24:03.539
heard horror stories from people around our country.

00:24:04.059 --> 00:24:06.460
Some love their beef club. Some have been like,

00:24:07.140 --> 00:24:09.759
oh, there was this big war between treatment

00:24:09.759 --> 00:24:12.079
-free people and people that really think you

00:24:12.079 --> 00:24:14.460
have to treat a lot, because there are a lot

00:24:14.460 --> 00:24:17.779
of different philosophies in beekeeping. And

00:24:17.779 --> 00:24:21.440
so I'm with you. Let's just show respect and

00:24:21.440 --> 00:24:24.500
realize that everybody does things a little bit

00:24:24.500 --> 00:24:27.079
different and that's okay. Yes, exactly. And

00:24:27.079 --> 00:24:29.299
I think we want to learn from bees. When you

00:24:29.299 --> 00:24:31.559
think about the hive and how they work together,

00:24:31.940 --> 00:24:34.119
you know, and they respect one another, you know

00:24:34.119 --> 00:24:35.980
what, I think there's a lot of lessons we can

00:24:35.980 --> 00:24:38.220
learn from the beehives on what they do and how

00:24:38.220 --> 00:24:41.059
they build a hive and make it strong. So speaking

00:24:41.059 --> 00:24:43.279
of social media, one thing that I saw on your

00:24:43.279 --> 00:24:47.584
Facebook page just recently was something about...

00:24:47.579 --> 00:24:50.940
Queen cups versus Queen cells and helping people

00:24:50.940 --> 00:24:53.339
understand the difference and what they mean.

00:24:53.960 --> 00:24:58.000
Would you give us a little 101 on that? I really

00:24:58.000 --> 00:25:01.539
enjoy that topic very much. And again, more geared

00:25:01.539 --> 00:25:03.500
towards, you know, the beginner beekeepers, because

00:25:03.500 --> 00:25:05.900
I remember when I was starting, you know what,

00:25:06.059 --> 00:25:08.140
if I saw a bunch of swarm cells, I didn't know

00:25:08.140 --> 00:25:10.480
they were swarm cells. It just never dawned on

00:25:10.480 --> 00:25:12.960
me. And again, as a new beekeeper. You know,

00:25:12.960 --> 00:25:15.299
you try and educate yourself as much as you can

00:25:15.299 --> 00:25:16.900
before you get your bees, but obviously you're

00:25:16.900 --> 00:25:19.319
not going to learn anything, everything. I mean,

00:25:19.319 --> 00:25:21.500
everybody learns every day about beekeeping,

00:25:21.519 --> 00:25:24.640
something new. So yes, so the difference between

00:25:24.640 --> 00:25:27.339
a cup and an actual cell or a super procedure

00:25:27.339 --> 00:25:30.980
cell or a swarm cell, big differences. The queen

00:25:30.980 --> 00:25:33.339
cups to me, when I think of a queen cup, I think

00:25:33.339 --> 00:25:36.400
of practicing. So honeybees are always practicing

00:25:36.400 --> 00:25:39.359
if mom becomes, you know, if mom dies or if mom

00:25:39.359 --> 00:25:42.549
becomes sick or and how to replace. Queen cups

00:25:42.549 --> 00:25:45.509
to me, they're practicing. I used to always think,

00:25:45.569 --> 00:25:47.349
oh my gosh, to building queen cups or something

00:25:47.349 --> 00:25:49.309
wrong, I got to have a look. That's not always

00:25:49.309 --> 00:25:52.349
the case. When you see a queen cup with an egg

00:25:52.349 --> 00:25:54.950
or a larvae in it, yeah, that's when you start

00:25:54.950 --> 00:25:57.509
to have to worry and wonder what's going on.

00:25:57.970 --> 00:26:00.930
Even worry more or wonder more if you think you

00:26:00.930 --> 00:26:03.809
have a very good laying queen, very healthy queen,

00:26:03.849 --> 00:26:06.769
and you start seeing queen cups. And a lot of

00:26:06.769 --> 00:26:09.680
people... you know, discuss the fact of the placement

00:26:09.680 --> 00:26:11.900
of queen cells or the placement of queen cups.

00:26:11.920 --> 00:26:14.599
To me, typically, swarm cells are supposed to

00:26:14.599 --> 00:26:16.880
be at the bottom of the frame. Supercedure cells

00:26:16.880 --> 00:26:18.980
would be in the middle of the frame. Obviously

00:26:18.980 --> 00:26:20.680
bees are going to throw those curve balls every

00:26:20.680 --> 00:26:22.119
now and then. They're not going to follow them,

00:26:22.299 --> 00:26:25.180
but always. However, you know, just recently

00:26:25.180 --> 00:26:28.000
I had a new follower reach out to me and said,

00:26:28.099 --> 00:26:30.279
you know what, I have something very similar

00:26:30.279 --> 00:26:32.920
in my hive. And the picture was a bunch of swarm

00:26:32.920 --> 00:26:35.519
cells on the bottom of a frame. So I messaged

00:26:35.519 --> 00:26:38.529
her privately. and had a good chat with her and

00:26:38.529 --> 00:26:41.849
kind of gave her directions of what I would do

00:26:41.849 --> 00:26:45.410
if it was my hive. And sure enough, it was swarm

00:26:45.410 --> 00:26:48.390
cells. And she went out yesterday morning and

00:26:48.390 --> 00:26:50.769
she actually made a split. She took the swarm

00:26:50.769 --> 00:26:52.910
cells from the bottom box, put it in the top

00:26:52.910 --> 00:26:55.569
box, separated them. Bang, she's got two hives.

00:26:55.730 --> 00:26:59.309
And hopefully, the swarm tendency has been gone.

00:27:00.089 --> 00:27:03.950
So yeah, it can be a very confusing topic to

00:27:03.950 --> 00:27:05.710
new beekeepers, the difference between the two

00:27:05.710 --> 00:27:08.809
different cells. For those that don't understand

00:27:08.809 --> 00:27:11.309
yet what they look like, explain the difference

00:27:11.309 --> 00:27:13.990
in what they look like. So they know which one

00:27:13.990 --> 00:27:17.329
is a cup versus a cell. So the the swarm cells

00:27:17.329 --> 00:27:20.089
and the superstition cell obviously looks the

00:27:20.089 --> 00:27:22.670
same. It's like I always compare it to like a

00:27:22.670 --> 00:27:24.569
peanut. You know those old -fashioned peanuts

00:27:24.569 --> 00:27:26.470
you used to crack and eat. Exactly that's what

00:27:26.470 --> 00:27:30.250
it looks like. Now a cup is just not even half

00:27:30.250 --> 00:27:33.130
of a cell actually. It's just like a little dish.

00:27:33.269 --> 00:27:36.289
How about that? It's a little dish and it doesn't

00:27:36.289 --> 00:27:38.470
hopefully get any bigger. And there's usually,

00:27:38.549 --> 00:27:40.950
if you have a healthy queen and your hive is

00:27:40.950 --> 00:27:42.950
not overpopulated, there's not going to be an

00:27:42.950 --> 00:27:45.650
egg late in that. So they look quite different.

00:27:45.690 --> 00:27:48.009
So if you see, you'll know the difference obviously

00:27:48.009 --> 00:27:50.710
when you see them. So just to summarize, if you

00:27:50.710 --> 00:27:54.750
see a queen cup, should you panic? No, not panic.

00:27:54.849 --> 00:27:57.250
However, have a look in it. If there's an egg

00:27:57.250 --> 00:28:00.250
or a larvae, yeah, not panic. Just have a look

00:28:00.250 --> 00:28:02.309
in your hive and see the health of your hive,

00:28:02.349 --> 00:28:04.430
what's going on in your hive. whether you have

00:28:04.430 --> 00:28:06.970
a queen, whether your hive is overpopulated.

00:28:07.390 --> 00:28:09.549
And then if all that checks the box says, well,

00:28:09.690 --> 00:28:12.250
I would definitely either you could split the

00:28:12.250 --> 00:28:15.809
hive or you could actually take that egg and

00:28:15.809 --> 00:28:17.329
make another new. There's a lot of different

00:28:17.329 --> 00:28:20.289
things you can do when you find a cup with an

00:28:20.289 --> 00:28:22.589
egg in it. All right. I gave you a little bit

00:28:22.589 --> 00:28:25.910
of warning earlier. I want to hear a wild and

00:28:25.910 --> 00:28:28.769
crazy beekeeping story from up there in Newfoundland

00:28:28.769 --> 00:28:32.049
or Labrador or somewhere around you. Something

00:28:32.049 --> 00:28:34.329
that happened to you. Yeah, so I'm going to tell

00:28:34.329 --> 00:28:37.690
the story. I wasn't going to, but it's my first

00:28:37.690 --> 00:28:41.349
swarm. As a brand spanking new beekeeper, brand

00:28:41.349 --> 00:28:44.009
new suit, I was good to go. I got the call, buddy.

00:28:44.190 --> 00:28:46.589
I was like, obviously I should have had my things

00:28:46.589 --> 00:28:49.450
packed away and organized as I do now on my truck.

00:28:49.890 --> 00:28:52.490
I didn't. So at first I got the call and then

00:28:52.490 --> 00:28:56.250
I started thinking I had to get a wire. Anyway,

00:28:56.349 --> 00:28:58.950
so I went through the garage, got stuff I did

00:28:58.950 --> 00:29:02.269
not need, packed it in, off I went. So it was

00:29:02.269 --> 00:29:04.390
at the university. The swarm has been there,

00:29:04.390 --> 00:29:06.849
was there probably about two to three days. There

00:29:06.849 --> 00:29:09.049
was a lot of calls on it and I eventually got

00:29:09.049 --> 00:29:12.009
to me. So I booted and the adrenaline rush, I

00:29:12.009 --> 00:29:13.730
just have to say, and you probably know as well,

00:29:14.029 --> 00:29:16.150
you get, when you get that call there's a swarm

00:29:16.150 --> 00:29:19.609
is like unexplainable. It's just an awesome feeling.

00:29:19.750 --> 00:29:24.670
So I booted it on April. And why is that? It

00:29:24.670 --> 00:29:27.069
just shouldn't be that big a deal. I don't know

00:29:27.069 --> 00:29:29.769
if anyone gets it. I hope they do. Normalize

00:29:29.769 --> 00:29:32.829
it for me. Well, especially when you're new.

00:29:33.029 --> 00:29:36.009
It's like freebies plus a whole new experience

00:29:36.009 --> 00:29:39.349
plus plus plus. So this was at the university.

00:29:39.609 --> 00:29:42.269
So I went in. It was like 10 o 'clock in the

00:29:42.269 --> 00:29:45.309
night. There wasn't a person to be in sight.

00:29:45.430 --> 00:29:47.309
It was a pretty scary place in the dark. But

00:29:47.309 --> 00:29:49.980
I went. And they had all this, you know, you

00:29:49.980 --> 00:29:52.279
know, the police tape don't cross. They had all

00:29:52.279 --> 00:29:55.319
that around the swarm. So I went in. Of course,

00:29:55.339 --> 00:29:57.880
you know, swarms aren't aggressive, right? What

00:29:57.880 --> 00:30:00.859
I was told. That's what I learned. But anyway,

00:30:01.059 --> 00:30:04.099
so I go in. Somebody lied to me. Oh, yeah. I

00:30:04.099 --> 00:30:06.900
go in. I didn't have my day. I'm like, how you

00:30:06.900 --> 00:30:08.579
doing ladies? What are you doing here tonight?

00:30:08.720 --> 00:30:10.440
Ladies. So I started to talk to them when I went

00:30:10.440 --> 00:30:12.660
over to touch them. Well, holy cow. They were

00:30:12.660 --> 00:30:15.630
like Africanized bees. They're like, boom. So

00:30:15.630 --> 00:30:19.069
I booted it over to the Jeep and I got my my

00:30:19.069 --> 00:30:21.089
veil on and I tell you they weren't friendly

00:30:21.089 --> 00:30:24.750
at all and Anyway, the tree it was just a different

00:30:24.750 --> 00:30:27.369
tree. It wasn't a tree I could shake was this

00:30:27.369 --> 00:30:29.089
big old tree and they were like stuck in the

00:30:29.089 --> 00:30:31.630
middle of it How the heck do I get him out of

00:30:31.630 --> 00:30:33.509
there? So, you know what? I got the hands going

00:30:33.509 --> 00:30:35.950
and I just scooped them scoop by scoop put them

00:30:35.950 --> 00:30:38.390
in the box Eventually, obviously the Queen was

00:30:38.390 --> 00:30:41.420
in there and all of them walked in But afterwards,

00:30:41.519 --> 00:30:44.000
I was told, I wish I had known this information

00:30:44.000 --> 00:30:46.920
before I went, that the bees were there probably

00:30:46.920 --> 00:30:51.119
three days. And it was drizzly. So obviously

00:30:51.119 --> 00:30:53.880
they were super cranky, they were cold, and they

00:30:53.880 --> 00:30:56.960
were hungry. So all that's a recipe for mean

00:30:56.960 --> 00:31:00.319
bees. I just wish I had known that before. However,

00:31:00.660 --> 00:31:03.099
lesson learned, I will never approach a swarm

00:31:03.099 --> 00:31:06.500
without my veil on ever again. And I often say

00:31:06.500 --> 00:31:08.400
to people, you really need to wear your bee suit

00:31:08.400 --> 00:31:10.900
going after a swarm. Now, not everybody feels

00:31:10.900 --> 00:31:13.480
that way, but I guess I learned the hard way.

00:31:13.960 --> 00:31:16.559
I'll always wear my bee suit. OK, now we've all

00:31:16.559 --> 00:31:19.680
seen people on YouTube that are all done up,

00:31:19.799 --> 00:31:22.319
have perfect makeup and everything and no bee

00:31:22.319 --> 00:31:25.119
suit whatsoever, no protective gear, and they

00:31:25.119 --> 00:31:27.079
go in there for those swarms. Would you please

00:31:27.079 --> 00:31:30.319
explain how they can do that? And is it a good

00:31:30.319 --> 00:31:33.480
idea for beginners, by the way? So I'm not going

00:31:33.480 --> 00:31:36.500
to get in trouble, am I? So, you know, a lot

00:31:36.500 --> 00:31:38.180
of those things that you see on Facebook with

00:31:38.180 --> 00:31:40.240
the perfect hair and the makeup and the tight

00:31:40.240 --> 00:31:43.559
jeans and whatever, I think, you know what, it's

00:31:43.559 --> 00:31:45.640
staged. And that's just my opinion. I'm not saying

00:31:45.640 --> 00:31:47.299
that that's exactly what happens. That's just

00:31:47.299 --> 00:31:50.779
my opinion. When they can go in and this board

00:31:50.779 --> 00:31:53.740
comes really easy off the floor to expose this,

00:31:53.740 --> 00:31:58.980
you know, five frame or five thing of wax of

00:31:58.980 --> 00:32:01.920
hive, like, it doesn't happen that easy. I just

00:32:01.920 --> 00:32:03.579
think of some of the states that I get in when

00:32:03.579 --> 00:32:06.579
I'm beekeeping like, holy cow, like it's not

00:32:06.579 --> 00:32:09.259
good. So when you go in perfect and their nails

00:32:09.259 --> 00:32:11.839
done, these people have their nails done. I had

00:32:11.839 --> 00:32:14.240
no idea. I think it's very staged. That's just

00:32:14.240 --> 00:32:17.440
my opinion. My opinion is they've checked out

00:32:17.440 --> 00:32:20.839
that swarm first. Yeah. If they were smart, they

00:32:20.839 --> 00:32:23.759
checked it out first. If they were doing a cutout,

00:32:23.880 --> 00:32:26.059
they did the cutting the day before. So the bees

00:32:26.059 --> 00:32:29.680
have calmed back down. Yeah. And yes, I was also

00:32:29.680 --> 00:32:33.319
taught that swarms are so nice. You don't even

00:32:33.319 --> 00:32:35.420
need your bee suit or anything. The first one

00:32:35.420 --> 00:32:38.400
that I did was huge and it was not nice, but

00:32:38.400 --> 00:32:42.380
I captured a relatively small one last week that

00:32:42.380 --> 00:32:45.440
was actually on my property and they were the

00:32:45.440 --> 00:32:48.759
sweetest things ever. I could have had makeup

00:32:48.759 --> 00:32:52.619
and nails and everything on and gone out and

00:32:52.619 --> 00:32:55.299
scooped them up. They just, for some reason,

00:32:55.720 --> 00:32:58.299
looked like they were gonna be sweet and I had

00:32:58.299 --> 00:33:00.839
a veil on I didn't have gloves or anything and

00:33:00.839 --> 00:33:04.279
they were just Yeah, they were just happy to

00:33:04.279 --> 00:33:06.240
be there and happy to go where I wanted them

00:33:06.240 --> 00:33:09.700
to go But it's not always that way folks. No

00:33:09.700 --> 00:33:13.279
when you get into beekeeping and you know You

00:33:13.279 --> 00:33:15.980
don't and this is just my opinion, right? I mean

00:33:15.980 --> 00:33:18.660
obviously, you know, I work I'm it for you know

00:33:18.660 --> 00:33:21.240
a social worker I work within the system and

00:33:21.240 --> 00:33:23.059
you know, obviously I wear dresses and all that

00:33:23.059 --> 00:33:25.230
kind of stuff, but I'm beekeeping No, that's

00:33:25.230 --> 00:33:27.609
not the way that I present myself because it's

00:33:27.609 --> 00:33:31.730
just not easy to do when you're in like 19 degree

00:33:31.730 --> 00:33:34.289
Fahrenheit. What's that in Fahrenheit with you

00:33:34.289 --> 00:33:38.150
guys? 19 degrees. Having done the math in my

00:33:38.150 --> 00:33:42.009
head, that is 66 .2 degrees Fahrenheit. That's

00:33:42.009 --> 00:33:43.829
a little low, actually, for some of the places

00:33:43.829 --> 00:33:48.130
up in the United States. So let's say it's about

00:33:48.130 --> 00:33:50.430
100 degrees here in Newfoundland and you're in

00:33:50.430 --> 00:33:52.920
a bee suit. You're warm, you're sweaty, you're

00:33:52.920 --> 00:33:55.660
sweating, you got honey all over you. You're

00:33:55.660 --> 00:33:58.160
not the best sight, I'm just saying. That's just

00:33:58.160 --> 00:34:00.400
my opinion. Yeah, do you think bees react to

00:34:00.400 --> 00:34:02.099
the sweat? Do you think they like it or hate

00:34:02.099 --> 00:34:04.880
it? Absolutely. I think they don't like it, actually.

00:34:04.960 --> 00:34:06.440
And the same thing with your breath. I mean,

00:34:06.619 --> 00:34:09.460
bees are really involved. Smell, yes, the sight,

00:34:09.619 --> 00:34:11.460
but like pheromones are so important for honey

00:34:11.460 --> 00:34:13.980
bees. And I think absolutely they react to that

00:34:13.980 --> 00:34:16.320
stuff. Well, here's your trivia for the day.

00:34:16.360 --> 00:34:18.940
Their sense of smell is 50 times stronger than

00:34:18.940 --> 00:34:22.679
that of a dog. Yeah, so interesting things that

00:34:22.679 --> 00:34:25.300
we can't smell they often can and when you think

00:34:25.300 --> 00:34:27.280
about it They don't have noses. So that's even

00:34:27.280 --> 00:34:29.360
cooler because it's their antenna that picks

00:34:29.360 --> 00:34:31.380
up that well I thought they smelled through their

00:34:31.380 --> 00:34:33.820
ears funny man, which they don't have either.

00:34:33.820 --> 00:34:37.420
Come on really man Alright, leave us with one

00:34:37.420 --> 00:34:40.380
bit of advice and then I've got one last question

00:34:40.380 --> 00:34:43.559
for you after that Well, you know what? And again,

00:34:43.559 --> 00:34:46.119
I'm going to go on the rant of, you know, personal

00:34:46.119 --> 00:34:48.920
equipment and protective. And I just tell a story.

00:34:48.940 --> 00:34:51.380
And this is a wonderful man out in the West Coast

00:34:51.380 --> 00:34:55.260
of Newfoundland. He was a new beekeeper. So he

00:34:55.260 --> 00:34:58.639
was actually going to do some nukes, like create

00:34:58.639 --> 00:35:00.719
some nukes with his other beekeeper. I'm going

00:35:00.719 --> 00:35:03.059
to call him beekeeper. So anyway, he went out

00:35:03.059 --> 00:35:05.360
and he did nukes. He didn't wear a suit. This

00:35:05.360 --> 00:35:08.599
beekeeper is supposed to be experienced, supposed

00:35:08.599 --> 00:35:11.280
to be teaching other people how to beekeep. told

00:35:11.280 --> 00:35:13.539
him not to wear a suit, told him not to wear

00:35:13.539 --> 00:35:15.619
any equipment whatsoever, just come on, we'll

00:35:15.619 --> 00:35:20.519
do it. He got stung over 160 times and he was

00:35:20.519 --> 00:35:25.639
in eMERGE. In one day? In one day. Oh man. So

00:35:25.639 --> 00:35:27.619
he was in eMERGE, they had to give him adrenaline,

00:35:28.119 --> 00:35:32.119
he was really sick, like really sick. So my piece

00:35:32.119 --> 00:35:35.260
of advice, wear your equipment, absolutely. And

00:35:35.260 --> 00:35:37.239
another piece of advice, can I say two? You can

00:35:37.239 --> 00:35:40.139
do three if you want. So another piece of advice

00:35:40.139 --> 00:35:42.860
I have is that you know what I don't know this

00:35:42.860 --> 00:35:45.320
everywhere But there's some beekeepers in Newfoundland.

00:35:45.380 --> 00:35:47.380
They're a little bit shady and that's sad to

00:35:47.380 --> 00:35:51.000
say However, when you go pick up your nuke make

00:35:51.000 --> 00:35:53.800
sure you're getting it from a reputable You know

00:35:53.800 --> 00:35:56.380
beekeeper and that you have a queen and that

00:35:56.380 --> 00:35:58.199
you have what's supposed to be in a new Which

00:35:58.199 --> 00:36:00.360
should be you know your resource grains your

00:36:00.360 --> 00:36:02.579
brood and most importantly Like I said your queen

00:36:02.579 --> 00:36:04.739
because there's some beekeepers that sell nukes

00:36:04.739 --> 00:36:07.119
that don't have a queen and that's not a good

00:36:07.119 --> 00:36:10.070
start for a new beekeeper, absolutely. How do

00:36:10.070 --> 00:36:12.849
people know a reputable one? How do they tell?

00:36:13.469 --> 00:36:15.530
Yeah. So word of mouth is a big thing, especially

00:36:15.530 --> 00:36:17.409
here in Newfoundland. I mean, we're a very small

00:36:17.409 --> 00:36:21.489
province. I have many beekeepers that I know

00:36:21.489 --> 00:36:23.630
of that I pass on their names because I know

00:36:23.630 --> 00:36:25.449
that I trust them and they love bees just as

00:36:25.449 --> 00:36:28.030
much as I do and know what should be in a nuc.

00:36:28.289 --> 00:36:31.289
So ask around, make sure you, you know, you ask

00:36:31.289 --> 00:36:33.710
your questions. And you know what? I'm also a

00:36:33.710 --> 00:36:36.099
fan that a couple of days before you go pick

00:36:36.099 --> 00:36:38.039
up your nuke, it's okay to say, can I come over

00:36:38.039 --> 00:36:40.280
and have a look and have that beekeeper go through

00:36:40.280 --> 00:36:42.440
the nuke with you and look at your queen and

00:36:42.440 --> 00:36:44.380
look at the resources in your frames to make

00:36:44.380 --> 00:36:46.400
sure you're getting what you're paying for. In

00:36:46.400 --> 00:36:49.239
Newfoundland, nukes are probably going at about

00:36:49.239 --> 00:36:52.920
$3 .50 here in the province. And that's Canadian.

00:36:53.119 --> 00:36:56.420
That's a lot. Yeah. Well, that's Canadian, so

00:36:56.420 --> 00:37:01.829
that's like $100 US, right? Yeah. Yep. I'm exaggerating

00:37:01.829 --> 00:37:04.889
there. It's not that bad of an exchange rate.

00:37:04.969 --> 00:37:08.809
It is. Oh, it's pretty bad. Let me do some math,

00:37:09.050 --> 00:37:14.190
Rae -Lynn. It's 0 .73. So now that I've done

00:37:14.190 --> 00:37:20.369
my math via Google, about $255. And I see them

00:37:20.369 --> 00:37:24.769
anywhere from 150 to 200 plus here. OK, yeah.

00:37:24.969 --> 00:37:27.289
So that's a little on the high side for what

00:37:27.289 --> 00:37:29.630
we see, but, you know, they're different everywhere.

00:37:30.389 --> 00:37:33.369
OK. And I think, again, with Newfoundland, you're

00:37:33.369 --> 00:37:35.789
not allowed to import honey bees. So when you

00:37:35.789 --> 00:37:38.409
are starting off, you have to try to find a beekeeper

00:37:38.409 --> 00:37:40.510
within the province that are willing to sell

00:37:40.510 --> 00:37:43.929
you bees. I remember when I started, I had this

00:37:43.929 --> 00:37:47.070
wonderful, and I really look up to him, Peter

00:37:47.070 --> 00:37:49.829
Armitage here in the city, and he sold me my

00:37:49.829 --> 00:37:51.590
bees. And he had an interview with me, actually.

00:37:51.650 --> 00:37:53.920
You're four. He let me take the bees. So I thought

00:37:53.920 --> 00:37:56.719
that was pretty cool. Good for him. Yeah, he's

00:37:56.719 --> 00:37:58.960
a wonderful beekeeper. I look up to him. He's

00:37:58.960 --> 00:38:02.099
a mentor for sure. And I remember that. And he

00:38:02.099 --> 00:38:03.900
had to, you know, there was requirements. You

00:38:03.900 --> 00:38:06.900
had to have a course and it was great. Good.

00:38:07.199 --> 00:38:09.719
Yeah, I agree. All right. Advice number three.

00:38:10.079 --> 00:38:13.400
Get a mentor. Perfect. Yeah, big time. Yeah,

00:38:13.500 --> 00:38:15.840
a lot of people. And you know what? On the site,

00:38:15.920 --> 00:38:18.519
I get a lot of questions around the day and I

00:38:18.519 --> 00:38:20.480
absolutely love it. And I try to get to every

00:38:20.480 --> 00:38:23.590
single one of them. I've actually done first

00:38:23.590 --> 00:38:26.650
hide inspections with people over FaceTime. I

00:38:26.650 --> 00:38:28.230
mean, it's just unfortunately, that's the way

00:38:28.230 --> 00:38:30.570
it is sometimes. And if there's nobody around,

00:38:30.590 --> 00:38:33.190
you know, I'm always up for help. But yeah, so

00:38:33.190 --> 00:38:35.590
make sure you, you know, find, try to find yourself

00:38:35.590 --> 00:38:38.489
a reputable beekeeper as a mentor that is going

00:38:38.489 --> 00:38:41.869
to like nurture you, respect you, encourage you,

00:38:42.010 --> 00:38:44.190
not kind of talk down to you or tell you how

00:38:44.190 --> 00:38:46.230
to do it. Because everyone bee keeps differently.

00:38:47.009 --> 00:38:50.010
Raylene can be found at Bee Haven all over the

00:38:50.010 --> 00:38:52.610
place online. And hey, we just might put a link

00:38:52.610 --> 00:38:54.809
in the show notes, too. Thank you for having

00:38:54.809 --> 00:38:56.889
me. It was great to have a conversation. Hey,

00:38:56.949 --> 00:38:59.429
I still have one last question for you. You cannot

00:38:59.429 --> 00:39:03.550
get away this easy. But I can tell, I can tell

00:39:03.550 --> 00:39:07.389
from our previous conversation also that you

00:39:07.389 --> 00:39:11.389
really love bees. Tell us why. What is it about

00:39:11.389 --> 00:39:15.769
them? Oh, I absolutely love bees. So I saw a

00:39:15.769 --> 00:39:17.670
thing, I put it on my Facebook site actually,

00:39:17.730 --> 00:39:20.190
and it was like, I'm in a relationship with honeybees.

00:39:20.269 --> 00:39:23.590
And that explains it for me perfectly. I love

00:39:23.590 --> 00:39:27.010
building bees. I love making healthy bees. There's

00:39:27.010 --> 00:39:29.530
nothing like going up in the morning in my apiary

00:39:29.530 --> 00:39:32.309
and just hearing them buzz and watching them

00:39:32.309 --> 00:39:34.929
going in and out of the hive. I don't know. It's

00:39:34.929 --> 00:39:37.409
just something about bees that's so relaxing

00:39:37.409 --> 00:39:39.860
and it's therapeutic. It's really good for your

00:39:39.860 --> 00:39:42.239
mental health. And I also love how it brings

00:39:42.239 --> 00:39:45.480
people together. So you have a bunch of people

00:39:45.480 --> 00:39:48.059
in a room, you don't know anything about them.

00:39:48.320 --> 00:39:51.000
As soon as a bee comes up, you know, if they're

00:39:51.000 --> 00:39:53.159
beekeepers, obviously, the conversation starts.

00:39:53.420 --> 00:39:56.380
and it's the best conversations you'll ever have.

00:39:56.679 --> 00:40:00.480
Like when you go into, like I said, the Bee Expo.

00:40:00.840 --> 00:40:02.659
You know, everyone was strangers when you first

00:40:02.659 --> 00:40:04.599
walk in. But I'll tell you, by the end of the

00:40:04.599 --> 00:40:07.500
Bee Expo, everyone's like your friend. It's wonderful

00:40:07.500 --> 00:40:10.119
how it brings people together. Awesome. All right.

00:40:10.159 --> 00:40:16.260
Thanks a lot, Rae -Lynn. Thank you. Thanks again

00:40:16.260 --> 00:40:19.019
for joining us here on Bee Love Beekeeping, presented

00:40:19.019 --> 00:40:22.949
by Man Lake. Remember right now to follow or

00:40:22.949 --> 00:40:26.570
subscribe and share this podcast. Also a quick

00:40:26.570 --> 00:40:29.010
shout out to Vita B Health for their support.

00:40:29.710 --> 00:40:32.570
Vita's Varroa Control range of products includes

00:40:32.570 --> 00:40:36.989
Apistan, Apigard, and now Varroxan Extended Release

00:40:36.989 --> 00:40:40.849
Oxalic Acid Strips. Thanks guys. And remember,

00:40:41.130 --> 00:40:43.309
if you're not just in it for the honey or the

00:40:43.309 --> 00:40:46.010
money, you're in it for the love. See you next

00:40:46.010 --> 00:40:46.329
week.