All the News that's Fit to Print

Wednesday in the Columbus Dispatch, honeybees got front page above the fold placement. Our rainy weather has made beeing a bee even more difficult in Ohio. One of the beekeepers mentioned, Barry Conrad, is the one from whom I learned most of what I know about bees. He's the beekeeper who drove to Georgia to get my bees.

Please see Hard-hit honeybees can’t get a break on Page A1 of Wednesday, May 11, 2011 issue of The Columbus Dispatch http://digital.olivesoftware.com/Olive/ODE/ColumbusDispatch/LandingPage/LandingPage.aspx?href=VENELzIwMTEvMDUvMTE.&pageno=MQ..&entity=QXIwMDEwMQ..&view=ZW50aXR5

It seems that in addition to the litany of woes of the honeybee (mites, the mysterious colony collapse disorder, etc.), this rainy weather packs a double whammy. Not only do the bees not go out collecting pollen and nectar in the rain, the rain washes the pollen out of the trees and flowers so when the sun finally shines the pollen is not available. Pollen is the protein source for feeding brood. We expect this will not be a good year for the honey harvest.

The Central Ohio Bee Association meets every Wednesday evening at the OSU beeyard. It's a terrific opportunity to see everything going right in a hive, and a few things going wrong. It is also a good time for newbee beekeepers to ask questions of more experienced ones. Just in case you are on "Jeopardy," if the answer is "red maple tree," the question is "where does red pollen come from?"