95% of the Hives have Died

This One Thing could have Saved my Bees

This Science has been around for over 30 years, but this way to help honeybees with natural organic compounds wasn't something I talked about. I simply didn't know. I feel pretty stupid, but I am going to change what I do in this one important way. You may think about doing it too.

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?