- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The first booth, operated by the Dairy Council of California, handed out milk. The second booth, operated by the California State Beekeepers' Association (CSBA), shared honey.
"They go together," said Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, who helped staff the beekeepers' booth with CSBA president Bryan Ashurst and cousin Brock Ashurst of the Westmorland area (Imperial County) and their families; secretary-treasurer Carlen Jupe of Salida; and CSBA members Bill Cervenka of Half Moon Bay and Kathy Kellison of Santa Rosa. Kellison serves as the executive director of Partners for Sustainable Pollination.
The beekeepers know royalty when they see one (queen bee) and the Dairy Council knows a princess when it sees one. Dairy Princess Kayla Withrow of Wilton helped hand out milk and chocolate-flavored milk, while the beekeepers handed out blackberry, blueberry, citrus, clover and yellow starthistle Honeystix (honey-filled straws). A special treat at the beekeepers' booth was Häagen-Dazs ice cream, compliments of the premier ice cream brand which supports bee research at UC Davis.
The annual Ag Day recognizes California’s agricultural community by showcasing the scores of commodities that are produced in the state, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). Held this year on Wednesday, March 21, it was also a day for agriculturists to show their appreciation by "bringing together state legislators, government leaders and the public for a half day of agricultural education and treats," said CDFA spokesperson Steve Lyle.
Said one woman visiting the beekeepers' booth: "The Häagen-Dazs ice cream is what I come for every year."
For that, she can thank the bees. And for the generous donation of ice cream, she can thank Häagen-Dazs.
After all, without honey bees and their pollination of fruits, vegetables and nuts, half of the ice cream brand's flavors would cease to exist.
Indeed, the declining bee population troubled hundreds of visitors stopping by the beekeepers' booth. The most frequently asked question: "How are the bees?"
Still declining. The mysterious colony collapse disorder (CCD) is still a mystery, but the suspected culprits are a combination of factors, including pests, parasites, pesticides, diseases, malnutrition and stress.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Bee swarms are absolutely fascinating.
Several years ago, when bee breeder-geneticist Susan Cobey was teaching a queen- rearing class at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility at UC Davis, her students received an extra bonus: they witnessed a bee swarm.
Right in front of them, as if on cue, the bees left the entrance of a hive and clustered on a nearby tree branch. That was Lesson No. 1. Cobey and crew quickly captured them and moved the swarm to a vacant hive. That was Lesson No. 2.
Actually, bee swarms aren't that rare on the UC Davis campus. They're just difficult to see because we're usually looking down instead of up.
This week UC Davis employee Suzan Carson alerted us to a bee swarm in the North Hall/Dutton Hall complex. She pointed to a tree branch, about 30 feet off the ground, where, in the deepening shadows, a cluster hung like grapes. "Good eye!" we said.
Today, toting my telephoto lens, I returned to capture an image of the cluster. They were still there, but probably won't be for long. The pending rainstorm may drive them from their temporary home, observed Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology.
Norman Gary, emeritus professor of entomology at UC Davis, explains the ins and outs of swarms in his newly published book, Honey Bee Hobbyist: The Care and Keeping of Bees.
"The act of swarming is perhaps the most dramatic event in the lives of honey bees," Gary writes. "Here's how it happens: Egg production increases dramatically in response to warming spring weather as well as an abundance of pollen and nectar from spring flowers. Within a few weeks, the colony population essentially doubles. Multiple queen cells--usually at least six--are constructed in the brood nest. A few days prior to the emergence of a virgin queen, the old queen's ovaries begin to shrink. Egg-laying essentially stops, and she loses enough weight to permit flight for the first time since her mating flight."
So basically there's "no room in the inn" for the burgeoning population. The colony divides. The swarm usually heads for a nearby tree to cluster on a branch while the scouts search for a new--and appropriate--home.
Meanwhile, back at the old hive, new queens are emerging and what happens next isn't pretty. "Rival queens engage in fierce stinging attacks until only one virgin queen remains," Gary writes.
About a week later, the victorious queen will depart on her mating flight to a drone congregation area, mate with 12 to 25 or so drones, and then return to the hive to lay eggs--as many as 2000 a day during the peak season.
The queen will never leave the hive again...
Unless, on a warm spring day...
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
I don't know how long they'd been in the container, but they were anxious to leave. If you're a ladybug, a house is not a home without aphids.
Members of the California State Grange distributed these tiny containers of ladybugs at the California Agriculture Day on Wednesday on the State Capitol grounds. Grateful little kids excitedly exclaimed "Ladybugs! Ladybugs!" Their parents murmured "Yes! Yes! Great for the garden."
And that's exactly what we did with ours.
We had a red rose bush just waiting for them.
We removed the lid, tipped the container, and the two ladybugs raced out, right to an all-you-can-eat buffet of juicy aphids.
If you're yearning for your very own ladybugs, be sure to attend the 98th annual UC Davis Picnic Day on Saturday, April 21. The statewide UC Integrated Pest Management Program (UC IPM) traditionally gives away ladybugs at the entrance to Briggs Hall.
The UC Davis Department of Entomology, housed in Briggs Hall, will be hosting cockroach races, termite trails, maggot art and honey tasting and scores of other activities. This year, due to popular demand, Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen will be doubling the amount of honey. (Check out last year's entomological photos at Briggs Hall and at the Bohart Museum of Entomology.)
Meanwhile, the good folks planning the campuswide Picnic Day invite all to attend. They wrote on their website: "This family friendly event is free for all to come and experience the richness of diversity and achievement at UC Davis and the surrounding community in the areas of research, teaching, service and campus life."
And experience the wonderful world of ladybugs!
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The first day of spring--Tuesday, March 20--yielded a diversity of insects in the fava beans planted in the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven, a half-acre bee friendly garden adjacent to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility on Bee Biology Road, University of California,Davis.
A flurry of insects joined the honey bees: ladybugs, a blow fly, a stink bug, an alfalfa butterfly, European paper wasp and scores of aphids.
Fava beans (Vicia faba), one of the world's oldest cultivated crops and native to the Mediterranean region, are also known as broad beans, horse beans, pigeon beans, and the like.
"In North America, Canada is perhaps the largest producer of fava beans since they produce best in cool summer areas," write San Joaquin County Farm Advisors Gary Hickman and Mick Canevari in a Family Farm Series publication of the UC Davis Small Farm Center. "Minnesota and the lake states produce small acreages. In California, fava beans are grown as seed crops along the coast from Lompoc to Salinas and in the Northern Sacramento Valley, but in other areas of the state they are grown mostly as a cover crop or for green manure."
You can learn more about fava beans in the UC Davis Small Farm Center publication. Meanwhile, the insects hanging out in the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven are definitely favoring the fava beans.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The Davis Bee Sanctuary is the place to "bee" on Saturday, March 31.
That's when the Davis Bee Collective, a community of small-scale beekeepers founded by a former UC Davis entomology graduate student, will host the grand opening of their newly landscaped apiary, aptly named the "Davis Bee Sanctuary."
The event, open to the public, is scheduled from 1 to 5 p.m. at the site on Orchard Park Drive, Davis. The main ceremony starts at 1 p.m. However, folks will be filtering in and out from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., said Derek Downey, a seven-year beekeeper who coordinates the Davis Bee Collective and the Davis Bee Sanctuary.
Where is the Davis Bee Sanctuary? It's adjacent to the western edge of The Domes, a cooperative student housing community known for its dome-shaped structures. If you drive past The Domes on Orchard Park Drive, you'll see the Bee Sanctuary at the end of the street.
Ant specialist Eli Sarnat, who received his doctorate in entomology from UC Davis in 2009, founded the Davis Bee Collective in 2005. Now residing in Happy Camp, Siskiyou County, Sarnat is a postdoctoral researcher based at the University of Illinois, Urbana. And yes, he still keeps bees. He and a beekeeping partner maintain about 20 hives in Happy Camp.
His friend, Derek Downey, who received his bachelor's degree in engineering from UC Davis in 2009, joined the Bee Collective in 2005. Then in 2011, Downey founded The Bee Sanctuary as the place to keep the bees.
Downey owns and operates a small beekeeping business, the Davis Bee Charmers; he catches swarms, relocates hives, and teaches beekeeping lessons to individuals and groups.
Among those participating in the work parties at the Bee Sanctuary, held every Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m., are Melanie Lataste and her husband, Pierre Arrial of Nantes, France. Arrial is a postdoctoral scholar in the UC Davis Department of Geology.
What's on tap Saturday, March 31? "Come meet the beekeepers," Downey says. The event will include tours, honey tasting, a permaculture lesson covering hugelkultur (the drought-tolerant technique being used at the sanctuary), a free flower giveaway, seed exchange (bring seeds), and a presentation on native bees, which also will be sharing the sanctuary.
A special guest will be Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology.
Downey invites interested persons to join the Bee Collective and Bee Sanctuary; information on how to join is on the Davis Wiki website. Downey moderates the Google group and adds new members. "If someone wants to just help out and learn about bees, they are always welcome to take part," he said. "We will have hives that are collectively managed so everyone can learn together. If someone wants to keep their own hive there, it is first-come, first served. We have space for 10 to 12 hives, max."
Members of the Bee Collective share resources, such as beekeeping equipment, books, and tools. Downey accepts donations for the Bee Collective and Bee Sanctuary (email him at davisbeecharmers@gmail.com). He recently received dozens of donated perennials.
One of the hives at the sanctuary is actually a birdhouse, or what Mussen calls "a birdhouse for wood ducks." Davis homeowners "installed it to invite birds to live in it," Downey said, but a swarm of honey bees soon claimed it. So, Downey moved the birdhouse--bees and all--into the sanctuary.
Today (Tuesday, March 20) the bees in the birdhouse swarmed, as expected. They're now occupying a nearby hive in the sanctuary.
Downey anticipates filling the other empty hives soon with swarms.
