The Dutch Gold Christmas party took place last week! Here's a shot of some of the fine people that help make Dutch Gold Honey great!

It's officially getting cold outside. For Davey Hackenberg's bees, that means going down to Florida! I wish I was a bee right now. The November/December time period works best because the height of hurricane season is over in Florida which means less chance of any hive disasters from the weather. For beekeepers, this is an important time to make sure hives have PLENTY of food for the winter so the colony can stay strong for the almond crop early next year.

GMO's have again been in the news recently. Voters in Washington recently had the opportunity to decide if their food should be GMO labeled. Just like in California, the initiative was defeated. No change here in the states, but a couple weeks ago a Mexican judge banned GMO corn in Mexico sighting environmental concerns. No real evidence has shown that GMO food has negative health impacts on humans over the long term, but the amount of research is mounting on GMO's affect on bees. Some GMO crops don't produce pollen, leaving less food for bees. They are created to be pest resistant. I agree some pests can do a lot of damage on crops, but trying to repel all insects, like bees, cannot be good. Also, "Roundup Ready" crops are designed to be sprayed with herbicides. The application practices used to distribute these herbicides is another concern for bees. Being doused with man-made chemicals certainly doesn't sound like something any living thing should be subjected to.

Neonicotinoids continue to be one the focuses of bee death and it seems that some growers in Canada have been heard by Dupont Pioneer, the world’s largest producer of hybrid seeds. Health Canada noticed that areas of high corn production were also areas of relatively high bee mortality. Dead bees in these areas were tested and 70% of them had neonicotinoid residue on them. The bees most likely had been exposed to the insecticide in resulting dust when treated corn seed was planted. As a response to this and similar findings, Dupont is now offering neonic-free corn and soybean seed to Canadian farmers. This should help Canadian farmers and bees next year in 2014, but the company is not planning to offer this in the U.S. anytime soon as a company official stated that the neonicotinoid issue is "less visible" in the U.S. 

This year there have been a number of news articles in the press about the decline of the honeybee. American beekeepers as well as beekeepers from around the world have experienced significant declines in their bee numbers. I thought it was interesting how the recently reported percentage of bee loss over the last winter in Canada was 28.6%. Some Canadian territories reported higher loss percentages, the overall percent from Canada was 28.6%. This number seemed quite low so I got Davey's opinion. He believes that the number is definitely lower than reality, also noting that the man in charge of these numbers in Canada is employed by one of the giant pesticide companies that many believe is the cause of bee loss. Other recent reports have also been talking of the 90% butterfly decline in Eastern Canada. This is clearly a shocking decline that Davey believes is caused by similar factors to bee decline. When thousands and thousands of acres are being converted to corn fields all the time, pollinating insects have less and less sources of food. At the same time, they are being increasingly bombarded with more and more chemicals which may help crops, but harm everything else in the process. Just in the United States alone, 40% of all corn grown goes to making ethanol, a substance proven to cut down on a car's gas mileage! It is only a matter of time before we realize we cannot keep doing this for the sake of the pollinators, and in extension, all life on earth.

Wax moth larvae are very destructive and can quickly destroy stored beeswax combs. They tunnel and chew through combs leaving behind significant damage to a hive. Combs containing bee larvae and pollen are their favorite. Female moths usually lay eggs in clusters on comb or in small cracks in a hive. There are two kinds of wax moths – lesser and greater. Lesser wax moths are usually solitary where greater wax moths are usually found in groups. Both types of wax moth larvae feed on combs, pollen and litter found on the hive floor. Unfortunately, there are no chemicals approved to kill these wax worms while in your hive. The only sure way to keep this from becoming a problem in your hive is to keep your bees strong and healthy so they can manage them successfully on their own.

This past Saturday was National Mead Day! If you haven't noticed, mead is making a rather impressive return. Remember in school when you would read old English literature where groups of men would feast and drink until they all fell asleep? They were enjoying mead. If you don't know what it is, it is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented honey. It is deliciously sweet and many times joined with fruit. Some people refer to it as 'honey wine'. You may have to search the store for a while to find it, but I have a feeling it will be easier to find in the next few years. Go out and find some now!

Recently I noticed that a large art supplier was buying Dutch Gold honey and I wondered why an art supply company would be buying honey. It sounded a little curious so I looked into it and found out that honey is actually used to make watercolors! The binding agents in watercolor typically include glycerin and gum arabic, but both of these tend to dry out quickly. A humectant is needed in the mixture to retain moisture. Typically, the humectant in most watercolors is corn syrup because it is cheap, but some companies continue to use the original ingredient, honey, in their paints. Honey has been used since the 19th century in watercolors and it is better at retaining moisture than corn syrup. Honey keeps watercolor from hardening, gives an artist great washes and stays moist for longer, allowing an artist more time to manipulate the paint!