The Buzz

Hello Copper River Valley 

It's been a while since I've written an article on beekeeping.

Farming, agriculture and raising livestock is just hard in Alaska. We have a farmer friend in Texas and some bees moved into some junk bee equipment he had laying around. They've been in there for years.

Last year we gave them some new boxes and frames to live in. I was there last month in January and they seem to be doing just fine. No one has ever fed them sugar syrup, no one has ever given them a pollen patty, no one's ever treated them for varroa mites.They seem to be doing just fine on their own. 

If you've ever been to Hawaii you've probably seen the feral chickens. They're pretty skinny. If we let a flock of chickens out here by themselves, between the owls, the hawks, the falcons, the foxes and coyotes, they probably wouldn't make it till fall and come winter it'd be lights out. 

I've heard that Alaska produces about 5% of its own food stuffs. [Editor’s note: While some experts think this figure could be a reasonable ballpark, there is insufficient data to verify it.]

Creating sustainable agriculture for our state is not for the faint of heart. The people I know involved in these endeavors work really hard at it. 

When I first started keeping bees I didn't know anyone who tried to winter them. The first couple bee classes I went to, it was taught that at the end of the season you either shook them out on the ground or you sucked them up with a shop vac. In just the last five years or so it's become pretty common for Alaskans to winter their bees.

Some winter better than others. By far the Russians are the best for Northern climates. They winter really well. They're very conservative with their foods reserves. They can survive with a small winter nest. They don't build up until natural conditions are right. Having said all that if they don't build up to a very large colony in time for the major nectar flow you just don't get a huge honey crop 

I've kept Russians, Carniolans Caucasians & Buckfast. 

I've never personally had Italians but I have dealt with them. They have some great traits. They're gentle and they produce a good honey crop if the weather's nice. They build up fast, they build up large. The bad thing is they're gluttons. I've seen a box of Italians go through a hundred pounds of sugar syrup and starve to death. If your intention is to shake them out on the ground in the fall they're just fine for that. 

I've heard about a breed called Saskatraz. I mean what a cool name, right? Saskatraz ! I've read that they're a cross between Russians and Italians and they have the trait of wintering well and yet being gentle like Italians. Russians are known for being well a bit pissy for lack of a better word. 

I'm thinking to try those this year They have a lot of really good qualities and the people I know that have them really seem to like them. I've had some good Caucasians and I've had some good Buckfast. I’ve never really cared for Carniolans. 

The best bees I ever had were Russians and the worst bees I ever had were Russians. I think it really depends on the bee breeder and the traits that his particular strain of bees has.

So in the spring, bees are put into wire or plastic boxes (packages) and shipped to Alaska. They generally are four pounds some weigh three pounds. They come with a queen. I think when I first started they were about $75 -$100. Last year I saw packages that went up to $270 for a four pound package with a Russian queen. I know a couple long time beekeepers that have started bringing up packages for significantly less. They're not trying to make a lot of money; they're trying to promote beekeeping and help others with something they truly enjoy.

We have been working on a co-op here in Kenny Lake trying to buy packages in bulk and get a better price. We generally have our order put together in mid March at the beekeepers’ gathering.

The dream is to be able to winter our bees and never buy another package. It must have been about 10 years ago we had a really easy winter. They were in the bee barn for just over five months. They came out strong, they built up fast and I don't think I lost a single box of Russians. 

I think it was about four years ago we had that snowfall on September 17 maybe 18? 

And I think there was still a foot of snow on the ground on May 1? 

I think the bees were in the bee barn almost seven months that year. I lost 50% of my bees. I think 75% came out of the barn but some were so small from winter die off that they really weren't viable as a colony.

Anyway, this year's Beekeeping gathering (I call it the Bee Social) is scheduled for Saturday March 21. 9:00 am - 4:00 pm at the Kenny lake community league building (about seven mile New Edgerton.)

In the morning there are some local beekeepers who will teach on beginning beekeeping. 

Around noon Patty has her 4-H presentation. Lunch is provided by the 4-H kids- there is a donation jar for that. 

After lunch we have a couple work stations set up for practical hands on dealing with equipment and a little more in-depth beekeeping. 

One thing that sets our group apart is our mentors. New beekeepers need to have a mentor. 

None of us want to see a new beekeeper kill their Queen and make a bunch of mistakes 

This year Dawn Cogan is planning on attending. 

She's a long time beekeeper and has taught beekeeping for I don't know 15 years? She taught a class here eight years ago or so. 

She doesn't know it yet but she's on the schedule for doing something.

We will be putting in our yearly co-op bee package order. Occasionally some beekeepers do a little equipment buying and selling or swapping used equipment. 

So if you are a beekeeper or interested in beekeeping or just curious about beekeeping everyone is welcome. This is a free event. There is no charge for the class. 

You can contact Patty Hauptman at 4O9-O224 or Tari Patinka at 953-2O75 for more information. 

Okay here's the corniest bee joke going it's approaching dad's status 

IT’S A SWEET DEAL 

Best to you all

Brad K