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Announcing Bee Squad Participant colony design and photo contest. We look forward to seeing how you design and paint your hives. Keep in mind that your apiary setting, including location and surrounding landscaping, will have an impact on your pictures. the setting of the colony and the artistic approach to the photo will all be considered when deciding on the best of the best.

We welcome entries from our Home Apiary Help, Mentoring Apiary and Hive to Bottle customers. We will let the public vote for their favorites in an online contest held during the month of July. The colony photos with the most votes will be featured in our 2014 Bee Squad Calendar. Also, the Bee Squad will be voting for their favorites in additional categories (creativity, location, hive box colors, etc.) and awarding prizes at our annual celebration at the end of the season.

Submissions must be made by June 30th, 2013.

Please click here for contest details.

The American Beekeeper Federation National Conference was held in conjunction with the American Bee Research Conference this January in Hershey Pennsylvania. These two events brought beekeepers and bee researchers from all over the world under one roof to share the latest findings in honey bee health, the state of pollinators, and progress toward projects aimed at helping pollinators.

Varroa mites and the viruses vectored by the mites remain the number one threat to honey bee health, followed by nutrition and pesticides in the environment. Jody Gerdts introduced beekeepers and researchers to the Bee Squad as a new approach to extension work that is proving quite successful. Funding is short everywhere demanding that new programs be self supporting and modeled after a traditional business philosophy.

The idea of bringing research and sound mentorship to beekeepers in a timely fashion and gaining insight into trends in small scale operations drew much attention. Be on the lookout for other Bee Squad programs popping up around the country in the next few years.

Pictured here from left to right
Dr. Yves Le Conte-Directeur de la recherche Domaine St Paul Avignon, France
Elizabeth Frost- Bee Informed Partnership Chico California
Dr. Keith Delaplaine-Professor and Program Director University of Georgia
Jody Gerdts-Bee Squad Coordinator and technician University of Minnesota

Welcome to the Bee Squad Beelog. The Bee Squad crew invites you to check in and see what fantastic adventures we are having helping you help bees.

Before this morning's snow bees enjoyed some crab trees in full bloom near Prior Lake. From my place under the tree, all I could hear was the humming buzzing of little workers collecting nectar and pollen. Spring has Sprung!