The Peace Bee Farmer

Local beekeeping associations are a community of friends who share a common interest These associations also provide training and experience in the art and science of beekeeping.

Spiderwort, seen in today’s photo, is in bloom now.

Honey bee populations expand rapidly in the spring.

While honey bees do not fly in cold weather, they do venture out of their hive on the occasional warm winter day.

We cannot go deep into our bee hives in the winter, but it is good advice to make a brief inspection of our hives on warm winter days.

Heifer Ranch is a working ranch and agricultural demonstration farm at Perryville, Arkansas.

Honey bee foragers collect four things to bring into their hives: nectar, pollen, propolis and water.

Honey bees produce queens on three occasions: when the colony reproduces through swarming, when the colony replaces its queen through supersedure, and in emergencies when the colony loses its queen.

April is the busiest month for bees and beekeepers.

The honey bee’s year begins on December 21, the winter solstice, and the start of our winter.

Heifer Ranch at Perryville, Arkansas, part of Little Rock-based Heifer International, is celebrating its eightieth anniversary with a mission of ending hunger and poverty while caring for the earth.

Making colony divisions, also called making splits, follows the natural behavior of honey bees.

The bees are flying today.

I am pleased to announce that the Bemis Honey Bee Farm has established a Memorial Beekeeping Scholarship honoring my late wife, Rita Peace Underhill, who along with me built Peace Bee Farm.

December 21 marks the winter solstice, the date with the year’s shortest daylight and longest night.

Following two days of rain, the sun broke out on a crisp and cool April morning.

The sun is setting across the snow-covered rolling hills of the PalouIse of eastern Washington State .

The death of Elizabeth II, the Queen of England brings public expressions of sympathy conveyed in traditions dating back hundreds of years.

There is a tradition that has been passed down for hundreds of years in which the bees are notified of the death of their keeper.

Beekeepers are science people.

People become beekeepers for a number of reasons.

Beekeepers across Arkansas and beyond our borders know Jon Zawislak (rhymes with Zah-Fish-Lock) simply as Jon Z.

As the seasons change from summer to fall, conditions in the bee hive and tasks for the beekeeper change as well.

The worker bees in a strong colony protect the fragile beeswax combs that hold honey, pollen, bee bread, and brood required to sustain the colony.

Honey bee foragers bring flower nectar and pollen into the hive as food.