"Condensing" Beehives - Why & How

"Condensing" Beehives - Why & How

Before getting into the honey of it all, host Eric riffs on a string of bizarre highway mishaps — rolled-over bee trucks, a tofu spill, flaming ribeyes — proving that 2026 is just a weird year for cargo. Then the real magic begins: mechanical-engineer-turned-beekeeper Bill Hesbach drops some serious hive-mind wisdom on condensing hives, the practice of letting bees manage their own internal climate instead of beekeepers cranking up the ventilation. _____________ $10 off your next order! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/ [https://www.mannlakeltd.com/] • Discount Code: MLBEELOVE10 _________________ Turns out our buzzy friends are basically tiny thermodynamics geniuses — using CO2 to chill their metabolism, recycling latent heat from condensation, and even running their own swamp coolers in summer. Who knew beekeeping came with a side of physics class? The conversation gets delightfully nerdy (volcano-buried hives! snow as insulation! queens partying in CO2 chambers!) before Bill explains how to DIY your own insulated hive sleeve — and why a "quilt box" might be sabotaging your bees without you knowing it. Things wrap up with two classic wild & crazy beekeeper tales: a swarm-catching fiasco involving mistaken identity (turns out bees are sneaky little ninjas) and a jungle honey-hunt in Thailand that ends with giant Apis dorsata bees chasing panicked undergrads through snake-infested streams. Equal parts science lecture and adventure story — this one's a hive worth diving into. VIDEO VERSION [https://youtu.be/6d3189F9830] Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Mann Lake! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/ [https://www.mannlakeltd.com/] Mann Lake discount code: MLBEELOVE10 for $10 off your next order. Follow Us: https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/ [https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/] https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/ [https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/] Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com [Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com] Bill: https://www.wingdancehoney.com/ [https://www.wingdancehoney.com/]

Rescuing Bees In Cornwall, England

Host Eric Bennett, travels across the pond to Cornwall, England, for a fascinating conversation with Molly Earl, full-time beekeeper and founder of Bees Off and The Rescued Bee. Molly specializes in live bee removals — rescuing honeybee colonies from chimneys, walls, flat roofs, and other structures — and has grown what started as a two-hive hobby into an operation managing roughly 300 beehives across mid-Cornwall. ______________ $10 off your next order! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/ [https://www.mannlakeltd.com/] • Discount Code: MLBEELOVE10 _________________ The conversation covers her techniques, tools, the Cornwall beekeeping season, and pest management. Plus, Molly shares a couple of wild & crazy, memorable beekeeping stories that you won't want to miss... including how the pant leg of her beekeeping suit caught on fire! Video Version of This Episode [https://youtu.be/QTe8jKLzCSI] Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Mann Lake! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/ [https://www.mannlakeltd.com/] Mann Lake discount code: MLBEELOVE10 for $10 off your next order. Follow Us: https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/ [https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/] https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/ [https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/] Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com [Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com] The Honeycomb Conjecture: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s004540010071 [https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s004540010071] Molly Earl: https://beesoff.co.uk/ [https://beesoff.co.uk/]

Naked & Afraid Beekeeping

In this fun episode of Bee Love Beekeeping, host Eric Bennett sits down with Tara Skubella and Darrin Reay — survivalists best known from Discovery Channel's Naked and Afraid — to talk all things honey bees and beekeeping. The duo shares their passion project: a custom apitherapy bee hut built atop four Langstroth hives, where visitors breathe healing pheromones and soak up therapeutic vibrations without a single sting. ______________ $10 off your next order! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/ [https://www.mannlakeltd.com/] • Discount Code: MLBEELOVE10 _________________ Darren, a fabricator-turned-beekeeper with 13 hives and three consecutive winters of zero colony loss, also breaks down his smart insulation strategy — R40 on the lid, R10 on the walls — mimicking how wild bees survive in hollow trees and cliff crevices. Tara balances Darrin's nuts-and-bolts beekeeping approach by describing herself as a "bee alchemist" who leads breathwork retreats inside the hut and helps guests build genuine relationships with their colonies. Throw in Darrin's chaotic story of catching a swarm from atop a truck bed with a stepladder, Tara's near-miss with Africanized killer bees in Panama, and a beekeeper who runs a queen retirement home, and you've got one of the most entertaining beekeeping conversations you'll hear all year. Video Version of This Episode [https://youtu.be/cXCw4FMJTRw] Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Mann Lake! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/ [https://www.mannlakeltd.com/] Mann Lake discount code: MLBEELOVE10 for $10 off your next order. Follow Us: https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/ [https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/] https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/ [https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/] Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com [Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com] Tara & Darrin: https://www.beezenhuts.com/ [https://www.beezenhuts.com/] https://www.instagram.com/alpinewonderer/ [https://www.instagram.com/alpinewonderer/] https://www.instagram.com/tskubella/ [https://www.instagram.com/tskubella/]

Bee Venom Therapy • Drone Races • Making Queens

Hold onto your veils, because this week's episode is a wild ride through the wonderful world of beekeeping with Ohio-based guest Emily Mueller, a certified master herbalist, doctoral student, homeschooling mom of four, and — most importantly — a certified crazy bee lady. Beekeeper Emily schooled us on the art of drone races, the jaw-dropping healing powers of propolis for cavities and cold sores, and bee venom therapy, which she's been administering to herself and others for more than a decade. ______________ $10 off your next order! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/ [https://www.mannlakeltd.com/] • Discount Code: MLBEELOVE10 _________________ Emily also walked us through her swarm removal business, her queen-rearing process, her propolis mineral paste (6,000 jars sold!), and the time she caught a flying queen mid-air with her bare hands from the top of a 50-foot ladder. She's also the beekeeper who talks to her bees, scolds them when they misbehave, and credits the hive with giving her a meditative calm she never found elsewhere. Whether you're a seasoned beekeeper or just bee-curious, this episode delivers equal parts science, soul, and sheer chaos. Video Version of This Episode [https://youtu.be/uUzwYeK5FbQ] Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Mann Lake! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/ [https://www.mannlakeltd.com/] Mann Lake discount code: MLBEELOVE10 for $10 off your next order. Follow Us: https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/ [https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/] https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/ [https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/] Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com [Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com] Emily Mueller: https://www.muellerhoneybee.org/ [https://www.muellerhoneybee.org/] https://www.facebook.com/MuellerHoneyBee [https://www.facebook.com/MuellerHoneyBee]

Secrets of Sustainable Beekeeping - With Beekeeper Michael Scott

What happens when bees ignore your perfectly prepared swarm trap and instead move into a beat-up, broken-lidded box on a woodshed floor? Pure beekeeping magic, apparently. Host Eric Bennett, kicks off this episode with exactly that delightful chaos before welcoming guest Michael Scott from Indiana, Pennsylvania — a town whose name exists solely to confuse people. The two dive deep into sustainable beekeeping, covering everything from honey colors (light and citrusy tulip poplar vs. dark, rich knotweed) to the idea that the best beekeeper might just be the one who gets out of the bees' way and lets them do their thing. ______________ $10 off your next order! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/ [https://www.mannlakeltd.com/] • Discount Code: MLBEELOVE10 _________________ Michael drops some serious wisdom: real sustainable beekeeping isn't just about you not buying bees — it's about making life better for every bee in your area, including the feral population buzzing around that nobody's counting. He makes a compelling case for ethical beekeeping, warns against importing bees from out of state, and introduces his clever Renaissance Hive, inspired by Anasazi cliff dwellings. He also shares a wild first-removal story involving a very angry colony, a lot of running, and what can only be described as full-body flailing. The takeaway? Beekeepers who listen to their bees — rather than just lecture them — are the ones who thrive. Video Version of This Episode [https://youtu.be/RIpOpEJHFAU] Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Mann Lake! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/ [https://www.mannlakeltd.com/] Mann Lake discount code: MLBEELOVE10 for $10 off your next order. Follow Us: https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/ [https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/] https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/ [https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/] Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com [Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com] Michael Scott: https://thethrivinghive.com/index.html [https://thethrivinghive.com/index.html]