- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Summer time...and the livin' is easy.
But not for the bees. Worker bees, which live about four to six weeks, literally work themselves to death gathering nectar, pollen, propolis (plant resin) and water to bring back to their colony.
So, when you sit down to summer meals, you can thank a bee.
Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, says one-third of the American diet is pollinated by bees. Without bees, we'd be eating such wind-pollinated grains as wheat and rice.
Our gardens and orchards yield such favorites as carrots, cucumbers, onions, apples, grapefruit, oranges,...
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Did you catch the buzz?
It's still a troubling scene for our nation's honey bees, but it appears that the total losses for the 2011-2012 winter aren't as bad as they could be.
In other words, managed honey bee colonies appear to be holding their own. Overall, they didn't take a sharp dive last winter.
The annual survey, conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Bee Informed Partnership, and the Apiary Inspectors of America shows that the honey bee colony losses averaged 30 percent for the winter of 2011-2012.
Compare that to 34 percent for the 2009-2010 winter, 29 percent for 2008-2009 winter; 36 percent for 2007-2008, and 32 percent for 2006-2007.
Kim Kaplan of the...
- Author: Penny Leff
Davis Wednesday afternoon farmers' market can be quiet in December, so what better time to learn a little about what's going on back at the farms? Every farmer I talked with today had delicious treats to sell and a story to tell. Here are a few:
Did you know that Gridley is the kiwi capital of America? There used to be a kiwi festival and a kiwi queen, but that all got too expensive for Gridley's kiwi farmers quite a few years ago, Frank Stenzel reports. He's getting ready to start pruning his 14 acres of kiwi vines next week; pruning will take a crew of 12 about two weeks. After pruning, each of the 25 or 30 canes on each kiwi vine will need to be tied to a trellis, very much like grape vines, to be ready for next year's...
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
The bees did it.
Well, they enabled it.
Take a look at one of May Berenbaum’s favorite honey recipes and you’ll know why she calls it “Apiscotti” or “Bee-Enabled Biscotti.”
Seven of the 12 ingredients (butter, honey, almond extract, nutmeg, cranberries, cherries, and almonds) depend on the pollination services of the honey bee, Apis mellifera.
May Berenbaum, professor and head of the University of Illinois Department of Entomology, kindly shared the recipe below.
You may know her as an entomologist, an administrator, a honey bee researcher, a book author, a columnist (American Entomologist), an opinion...
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Honey, sometimes described as the soul of a field of flowers, seized the spotlight at a recent benefit in Sacramento for UC Davis honey bee research.
The occasion: The Bee Informed event.
The site: The historic ballroom of the Citizen Hotel, Sacramento.
“Honey is one of my favorite ingredients to use in desserts because of its beautifully nuanced flavors and gorgeous colors,” said Bee Informed coordinator Elaine Baker (top left) of the Citizen Hotel/Grange Restaurant. “It’s just magical.”
The event, open to the public, raised $600 for the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven at the...
