Apiary News
August 13, 2011
The Year in Bee Health. 2011 has been a very healthy year for my 70 beehives. Queen loss during the winter accounted for the death of about 10 hives overall. Dampness contributed to the death of some hives at Green Gulch. Mice and mites were among the multiple causes that lead to the deaths of some hives in Brentwood and Green Gulch. My healthiest apiaries are at the Wind Farm in Tracy, Scarlatta Farm in Tracy, and Knoll Farm in Brentwood. The hives in these locations requeen themselves and many of these hives need no mite treatment. As we approach the fall, all hives in all locations seem strong. Many have produced large honey surpluses of 100 pounds or more. About 30 of the hives are producing 60 pounds or so.
Honey. Am harvesting honey allmost daily from one or more locations. Am doing mostly bulk this year although i have lots of honey in 8 oz. and 1 lb. jars. Hope to store enough honey to take care of all my current customers until next May.
Honey Prices Going Up. As of September 1, must raise honey prices. Prices have stayed the same for the last several years and we have tried to be more efficient to keep prices low, but the cost of patroleum has had an impact on everything: glass jars, plastic buckets, shipping of all supplies, and just the day to day of driving to apiary locations and delivering honey. Please see the Honey link for new prices. Raw Local Honey
Fall Beekeeping Workshop at Knoll Farm in Brentwood.. Our last beekeeping workshop of the year will be held on August 20 at Knoll Farm, a pioneer organic farm in Brentwood. on August 20. Please see the workshop link gor details. Beekeeping Workshops 2011
Honeybees at City Center. Last February we started hives on the roof top of San Francisco Zen Center located in the heart of Hayes Valley. Both hives have done very well and to date the honeybee monk force led by Marcia Lieberman have harvested at least 120 pounds of honey. City Center is selling its honey in its book store and at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monestary. City Center is also selling beeswax candles.
For a bit of information about the zen bees read Shundo Hayes bog for March 4 "Bessu and Bees" http://theinosblog.blogspot.com/2011_03_01_archive.html
July 19, 2010
Honey. Taking off honey at all apiary locations. Much better year than the last three. With more soil moisture; more bloom and extended bloom. Have honey from the fruit trees and wild flowers of Frog Hollow Farm; rosemary and fruit trees of Knoll Farm; and the star thistle dominated honey of the Tracy Wind Farm. The backyard hives are producing mostly privit honey. This honey is purchased by my Tracy neighbors looking for alergy relief. Although the bees have recovered from a disasterous winter at Green Gulch Farm and have stored some surplus, there will be none available for sale. All the honey this year goes to feed the monks. Honey prices are current: Raw Local Honey .
Help. Have received alot of help in keeping the honeybee world organized. My grandson Joseph has become and expert in botteling and also goes out with me to cut honeycombs from the frames. Am very grateful for his help and he is also good company. Joseph shares my interest in history; particularly Tracy history and the history of World War II. Ian Stewart, a former student of mine from Tracy High days, has also provided valuable and enthusiastic assistance in all areas of beekeeping. But particularly the dark side of beekeeping: removing and cleaning out dead hives and getting equipment ready for reuse. My son-in-law Andy Peralta has helped me move hives, clean up my apiaries, and cut combs. Really appreciate his help. Aaron Erb and Joanna Lentz are my helpers at Green Gulch and am thankful for their help in keeping hives healthy in a very challenging environment.
Workshops. Preparing Bees for Winter on Sunday, July 25 will be the last workshop of the year. Still room for anyone who is interested. Check Beekeeping Workshops 2010 for more details. Will be held at Green Gulch Farm and the price of registration includes a delicious vegetarian lunch.
Bee Health. After a tough winter and cruel spring, good health has returned to all the apiaries. Winter brought unexpected queen death at all the apiaries and starvation at Green Gulch. Spring brought some continued queen loss and hives that died from varroa infestation. Swarming, swarming, swarming. Some of my hives swarmed even with checkerboarding and splitting, but on the other hand caught many swarms. Six swarms found me while cleaning up used bee boxes. They smelt the smell of a home and inhabited empty hives in my back yard, the Tracy Windfarm, and Opsel Farm. The healthiest apiaries remain Knoll Farm and the Wind Farm where the hives are surrounded by wild abundant uncultivated growth all year long.
November 29, 2009
Return from Spain. Returned two weeks ago from our vacation in Spain. Walked about 100 miles of the Camino de Santiago Compostela, and visted Barcelona, Madrid, and Toledo. Even though it was fall, we had ample opportunity to do some bee sightseeing. Visited a honey bee museum outside of Arzua in the province of Galicia, bought some beekeeping equipment in Compostela, and tasted honey everywhere we went. In Madrid we visited a honey store which sold different varities from their region and line was continuous during the half hour we were there. For some pictures from our trip visit Beeseason Scrapebook.
Winter has us in its grip. Our cold season has arrived and the bees are less active. The colonies spend most of their time in a tight cluster around the queen and the brood. The queen is laying fewer eggs and workers are outside fewer hours during the day. The bees are still bringing in pollen.
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Winter light shines through a honeycomb in Joe and Ariane's hive photo by Arian Trelaun
Honey for Sale. The beekeeping journals say that honey production in California is 75% of a normal year. Haven't experienced a normal year ever. But, honey is less than last year. Didn't take any honey off at Green Gulch and production was down in Tracy, but better in Brentwood. Have ample honey in 8 oz., 1 lb., and 2 lb. jars. Some 1 gal. and 2 gal. buckets. A botttle of honey makes a good gift for the holy days. Honey prices are current Raw Local Honey .
Beekeeping Workshops. 2010 Beekeping workshops at Green Gulch Farm have been finalized and their descriptions are on the webpage. Have revised the experienced and beginning bekeeping workshops. More beginning workshops are being offered so that we can keep the size to 15 participants per workshop. Am offering a new workshop: Honeybees as a Source of Wonder which is open for anyone interested in bees and will stress the beauty and emotions of the honeybee world. Beekeeping Workshops 2010.
September 29, 2009
Winter is coming to the Apiaries. Appears that the weather is shifting and the fall nectar flow in Tracy and Brentwood is about over. When visiting the hives to take off the last of the honey am noticing the annual ritual of workers forcing out the drones from the hives. Hives are full of bees, but the queens are laying fewer eggs. The colony is packing its brood chamber with honey and pollen in preparation for the colder months.
Honey Harvest. Am finishing up the harvest and by the end of this week all crushing, straining, and botteling will come to an end. Have ample supply of bottled and bulk honey to take care of all my customers if the demand is what it was last year. There will be no honey available from Green Gulch this year. Anticipated the third year of drought in the Central Valley and added more hives in new irrigated locations.
Bee Health. So far so good. The bees are entering the cooler months with ample stores and better over-all health than ever. A few hives had infestations of varroa, but treated these with thymol and formic acid and they are looking more robust. No signs of foulbrood or nosema. May all beings be well and happy.
Spain. Will be away for awhile to Espana to walk the Camino to Compestella and visit the bee inspired works of Gaudi in Barcelona. Will return home by the middle of November.
August 16, 2009
Beekeeping Workshops. Good year for workshops. Conducted five workshops at Green Gulch Farm and met many inspired and dedicated people who are now keeping bees in the Bay Area and Davis. Workshops are over for this year, but am planning new workshops for 2010. Descriptions should begin to appear soon. Beekeeping Workshops 2009
photo by Jonathan Sandoe
On a cool July 25 we concluded the workshop series with Preparing Bees for Winter in the 55 degree temperatures at Green Gulch
Honey Harvest is in full swing. Have been extracting and crushing for several weeks and will continue into September. Honey is not as plentiful this year, but should be able to meet customer demand. Just finished extracting about 45 gallons of mostly star thistle and alfalfa honey from the Wind Farm in Tracy. I like to eat my honey with pecorino cheese, and baklava. Honey prices are current. Raw Local Honey
New Intern. Mike Tessien will be doing and internship in environmental studies with me for the next year. Mike, who is finishing his degree at SF State, will be learning and helping out with all the usual beekeeping chores. He will also assist in redesigning this webpage, a new honey label, and conducting research on bee health and honey. Am very happy to have mike working with me.
Helping with the Bees. This year have been very fortunate to have people help me with the various facits of keeping 70 hives. Members of my family, including my brother Brian, my two sons-in-law Andy and Alex, and my daughter Emily have helped me move hives and pull frames of honey and extract them. Bobby Peralta, a friend from San Diego and Tara Roseborough have helped me do it all. Am grateful for all their help.
Bee Health at the Apiaries. Have had no occurance of Nosema, American Foulbrood, or CCD. Have begun to treat for mites for those hives that need some help with formic acid at Green Gulch and Apiguard in the Tracy and Brentwood.
Splitting and Nucs for Sale. Each year I split a number of my hives in the late summer to control mites and to make increase. Introduced Minnesotta Hygenic and New World Carniolan queens to splits in my apiaries in the central valley and had the splits make their own queens at Green Gulch. Will have a few nucs for sale.
March 10, 2009