There may have been a few moments when the mics were still live while the guys catch up with each other over recent events, upcoming projects, and a few strong opinions about some new TV shows. Tune in now if you'd like to hear some random chatter.
Ken and John sit down for their final main segment episode for 2020 as they ring in the Holiday Season. We find out who the winners were for Ken's Fruitcakes, as well as discuss an email from down under and talk about possibly building an AZ hive. Happy Holidays Everyone!
What is an acceptable drop rate during the winter, and how can you tell if finding dead bees at the entrance is normal or a sign of problems inside the hive? Also, its that time of year again and Ken has succumbed to his fruitcake madness!
Welcome to our first LIVE (at the time of recording at least) Listener Questions episode. In this installment the guys are joined by Jake from NE, Rachel from Oz, Frank from the UK, and JeffreyAnn, as well as several other members who were listening and chatting along in the comments section during the event. The guys tackle questions about good balling of queens by worker bees, knowing if you are feeding too much or not enough, inverting combs from removals to discourage usage, reclaiming frame...
Winter is finally making its first appearance in central Texas with our first freeze on the way. But, does Ken have his colonies all prepped and ready for the end of the beekeeping season? Do they have enough food? Did they get their mite checks done? Treatments? So many questions, and yet, we are all out of time!
During times of dearth (no food available in nature) honeybees can be highly prone to robbing. Even the slightest drop of a sugary substance can set off quite the catastrophic chain of events if the beekeeper is not careful. And, even when all precautions are taken, weak hives can fall victim to a horrific invasion.
It is time for another update from Ken’s self-proclaimed Redneck Brother from Another Mother Down Under… Brett! Only this time, its LIVE! Or, well at least it was live when it was being recorded. Tune in now to hear the abridged version of our first ever Live show with our Australian guests!
They guys are back, but obviously still not fully recovered from their traumatic tasting of the Buckwheat Honey samples. It very well may have short-circuited a few synapsis as well, seeing as how the guys can’t seem to maintain a single cohesive thought between the two of them. They touch on many varied topics from their recent honey experiences to some teases about the upcoming live episodes. Oh, and who is responsible for Ken losing more than half of his packages… that too!
John and Ken recap a few final thoughts on winter prep and give some last-minute pointers for those of us that may have been procrastinating. Winter… is coming early!
In this episode we will eventually learn what to do with our wax once we have harvested and uncapped our honeycomb... But first, Ken hijacks the show with some new honey to be tasted. Tune in now to learn what initial steps you can take to clean and preserve this wax and render it down for future use.
John and Ken are back in the rehearsal studio space this week to tackle some of the recent questions that listeners have sent in over the last few weeks. But first, they start off with a gift of Sourwood honey that they happily taste… again, and again, and again. This round we hear questions and feedback from Jeffrie Ann, Darrell S, Amy P, Jamie & Shannon, Blake, Kylie, and James S.
John and Ken sit down with the Honey Sommelier, C. Marina Marchese, from the American Honey Tasting Society. John has sent Marina a few samples of honey for the group to go through and taste in order to map out the different scents and flavors associated with each. The group sample two versions of spring honey, one from John's main apiary, and another from on top of the hotel in downtown Austin. There is also a sample of summer and fall/winter honey from John's apiary as well. Plus, John snuck i...
Spring has sprung down under, and Fall has come again to North America. That means winter will not be too far behind and it will be hitting the northern states sooner rather than later. Its time to reflect on the progress each hive has made this year and determine if they are capable of surviving winter on their own, or if it would be better to cut your losses now and potentially combine weaker colonies to create one new colony that hopefully has a better chance of surviving the coming winter. T...
On this episode John is joined by Nathalie Biggie to discuss how the foundations of natural and treatment free beekeeping has formed the basis for all that they do at Bee Mindful. From the minimalist approach to beekeeping using found and recycled resources, to the reasoning behind what it truly means to be treatment free, this episode covers a wide range of topics that ultimately keeps coming back to the importance of being mindful in all that we do with our bees.
Ken and John have some big news to share regarding the major changes and transitions the show has recently undertaken. They are joined by a couple of special, though silent, guests in the recording space today as well and eventually the conversation turns to the importance of fall mite treatments for colony healthy and well-being. Tune in now to catch up on all the exciting new changes and learn more about fall mite checks and treatments!
Today John sits down with author and reluctant beekeeper, Dave Doroghy. Dave recently released a new book about his misadventures in beekeeping called “Show Me the Honey – The Adventures of an Accidental Apiarist.” The guys discuss some of the trials and tribulations that Dave went through after receiving a hive of honeybees as a gift from his sister. Tune in now to hear Dave tell you from experience what not to do when keeping bees.
In this special bonus episode of The Hive Jive, John sits down with Gemma Astley from Homestead Hens and Honey. The pair talk about how Gemma got started in podcasting, her love for animals big and small, and a few of the adventures and misadventures on the homestead. From whippets to bees, and chickens to lizards, this episode has it all… even a sorted love affair between a tortoise and ceramic pot! Tune in now for truly one of a kind interview with plenty of laughs along the way.
In this latest listener questions episode, the guys tackle emails and online submissions from: Asha K, Charli B, Rachel S x2, James (Jimmy P), Jadyn S, Jamie S, Louise J, and Roger T. Tune in now to see what interesting questions and answers might apply to your own beekeeping adventures!
Though Ken has mentioned it a few times, and a few listeners have also asked about it, the timing for Fall Splits completely slipped John's mind. Where we usually do really well about getting the content out to you just before you need it, we totally dropped the ball on this one. So, tune in now to hear how Fall Splits work, and when you really should start them to ensure the best chances of success.
The original point of this episode was to talk about some of the natural predators of the Honeybee during the peak of summer. However, first we must due some quick updates from around the world, and then we should probably figure out what the heck B.A.V. stand for exactly.
Oh my gawd its back again! (The summer dearth that is...) John reminds us that most things in beekeeping are cyclical and points to a couple of episodes from year one of the podcast that can help you through this tough spot of summer. The guys also tackle a few listener questions from Becca, Tim, and Rachel.
John checks in with Ken to see how things are going so far. Has Ken finally learned his lesson about not being a Front Porch Beekeeper? We’ve heard a lot about how many new colonies have been acquired by either swarm capture or water meter removals, but how many colonies have been lost this year? Let’s see what answers are to be had…
In this episode the guys discuss a few listener stories regarding bee stings, as well as some YouTube videos about Honey Bees Choosing what they prefer. Tune in now to catch the buzz!
In this episode John adds a couple of after-thoughts to the previous honey extracting episode. Also the guys discuss some of the findings from John’s recent visit up to see Ken’s hives and their Hail Mary attempt to salvage what they could.
This episode has been a year in the making for those of you who have been following alongside the podcast in time with your own beekeeping journey. And, if everything has gone well, and mother nature was kind to you and your bees, hopefully it is time for your first legitimate honey harvest!! Tune in now as John walks us through the concept of the honey harvest and extraction process.
John sits down with Steve Jimenez from Hives for Heroes to discuss the important work that they are doing to help save veteran’s lives, and rescue bees in the process. There are countless heroes out there who come back to a world they don’t often relate to any longer. They struggle to cope with the things they have seen and done and they fall victim to the effects of PTSD. Often these individuals fall through the cracks in our society, and they slip away. This is a sad and unfortunate reality fo...
It’s Ken’s Birthday!!! Or, rather, it was his birthday. He is happy to be 21 again, or maybe it was 22. It’s hard to keep track once you are up there that far. But, the addition 3 dozen and 6 years experience sure does help out along the way. (You do the math!) In this episode we catch up on Ken’s swarm traps, talk about BetterComb briefly, and have a sneak peek ahead to a potential honey harvest.
Ken curls up for a nice little nap while John tackles another batch of Listener Questions from ya’ll.
Ken learns a hard lesson in what happens when you get lax and just do “Front Porch Beekeeping”… meaning you simply watch the bees from the entrance coming and going, peek in via an observation window, or crack the lid just long enough to say “Yep, there’s bees in there.” Unfortunately that last remark is all you can actually gather from this style of observation, and you don’t really know what might be going on deeper inside the colony. Often this leads to missing key signs that could have possi...
John sits down with NYC’s premier beekeeper, Mr. Andrew Coté, to discuss what it is like being a 4th generation beekeeper in the Big Apple. The guys cover a wide range of topics including the challenges of rooftop beekeeping, having hives on United Nations soil, and helping beekeepers around the world via Bees Without Borders. Andrew also gives us a sneak peek at what it was like writing his new book “Venom and Honey: Confessions of an Urban Beekeeper.” Tune in now!
