This past Sunday at Gardenerd HQ we said goodbye to our bees. We've kept bees for 12 years now, but when the hubby went into anaphylaxis after being stung in April of 2024, we knew we had to change directions.
Our guest this week on the Gardenerd Tip of the Week Podcast is Charlotte Ekker Wiggins, a fellow beekeeper and writer. We chat about her ingenious beekeeping tips, as well as her tricks for gardening on a limestone hillside.
Our podcast guest this week is Kim Flottum, long time beekeeper and author of more than 6 books. His latest book, is all about common sense natural beekeeping.
Our guest this week on the Gardenerd Tip of the Week Podcast is Robin Jones of Honey Girl Grows. She designs and maintains culinary and pollinator gardens for resorts and corporate clients. Robin is also a science-based beekeeper who stewards hives around Southern California. We chat about what she grows for the bees and butterflies, as well as her top tips for gardening. Robin Jones out in the field. Photo courtesy of Robin Jones We interviewed Robin at one of…
Nicole Gennetta runs Heritage Acres, a 2-acre hobby farm in Pueblo West, Colorado. She and her husband tend poultry, bees, a garden and orchard. She's also a medically retired paramedic and firefighter who teaches CPR and community college classes. We're excited to have her as our guest this week. Nicole Gennetta runs Heritage Acres farm and has an online store. We chat about beekeeping, tending the various breeds of poultry on the farm, and how beekeeping can be therapeutic. Nicole…
Our 5-year-old hive up and died the other day. About a month ago, we noticed a pile of dead bees outside the hive. We didn't think much of it at the time. We've seen it before and nothing bad happened. We inspected and everything looked active and fine. But then...Bee death. It appears to have taken several weeks for most of the bees to leave or die, but when we cracked open the hive the remaining bees numbered in dozens…
It's spring, evidenced by the sudden appearance of bee swarms everywhere. I've received 3 requests from friends in the last 2 weeks to help find someone to rescue a bee colony that has swarmed into their backyard, water meter, or nearby tree. And then one showed up at Gardenerd HQ. Bee swarm rescues should be done by professionals, or at the very least, a beekeeper who has all the proper equipment on hand: A bee suit with veil and gloves…
We continue our Plants for Pollinators Series with Honeylove.org. Our latest video gives you helpful suggestions for trees and shrubs you can plant for the pollinators in your life. They need pollen and nectar throughout the year, and some of these trees and shrubs bloom during the dearth, when other flowers are done for the season. This list is just the beginning. Depending on your hardiness zone, native trees and shrubs are your best bet. Consult your local native plant…
I usually leave crafting to Martha Stewart, but this project has been four years in the making and I'm chuffed about it. Four years ago we began harvesting honey from our backyard bee hive. Four years ago we started saving the wax in order to make five new pillar candles for a swanky candelabra in the dining room. Last week, the dream came true. Many people don't know that before I became the Gardenerd, I was the Crafter of Things.…
It's honey harvesting time and we documented our latest harvest so you can see how it's done. We provide visual aids in this video for our favorite way to get bees out of the super you plan to harvest. We show you our harvesting equipment (handmade by our friends at Honeylove.org), and our other favorite tools to use during the process. Homegrown honey is the best. It's wild, it's treatment-free and it's raw. No heating, no filtering, just crushed and…