Hobby Beekeeping

Did this Hive actually Make it?

Back from the Edge? After I opened it up about a month ago and saw it was only two frames of bees, with no later activity, I gave it up. Didn't open it up again, but now the camera caught this. Orientation flight? Queen survived? At first thought it was just scouts, but now thinking I got lucky. What should I do now?

Waiting for Swarms

Farm updates with thoughts on survival. Planning strategies for 2026 and more insight into hive loss. Is hobby beekeeping even possible without treating?

Tractor Thoughts and Planning

Cutting the dried wildflowers gives me a chance to think about how I want to keep bees as a hobby beekeeper. The 95% loss has been amazing for research, but not so great for hobby beekeeping. Here are some thoughts on forward planning, and some preliminary ideas on what killed the hives.

Hive Autopsy

I go through the painful task of opening and cleaning out the dead hives. It's likely the worst part of hobby beekeeping. What did I find and what did I learn?

95% of the Hives have Died

At first, it is tough to see that all but one of our hives on the farm have died, but it's actually an incredible opportunity. Here's the story and some ideas on how likely, when your hives fail it's not what you think that killed them.