Queens Episodes

In this episode, Jim Tew shares a messy and mysterious beekeeping challenge that begins with two unrelated problems—a failing observation hive and a suspected drone-laying queen. The result is a tangle of questions, classic troubleshooting, and a fair bit of head scratching. Jim walks listeners through his efforts to identify whether he’s dealing with a drone-laying queen, laying workers, or a queenless colony with atypical brood patterns. As he methodically shakes out bees, uses a long-retir...

In this hands-on episode of Honey Bee Obscura, Jim is back in the bee yard and walks listeners through a personal and sometimes risky process: directly releasing new queens into newly installed packages. As he narrates the steps in real-time, he reflects on past successes—and hard-learned lessons—of skipping the traditional candy plug method.

In this episode of Honey Bee Obscura, Jim Tew takes listeners into the bee yard to share his experience installing two packages of bees. He discusses the realities of package season, including unexpected challenges like ants, and reflects on why...

In this reflective episode, Jim Tew shares an honest and personal conversation about queens—both the winged kind in the hive and the ones we buy in cages. Sitting among his thriving colonies, Jim weighs the pros and cons of letting bees raise their...

In this archive special episode of Honey Bee Obscura, Jim Tew is joined by Anne Frey from Betterbee to discuss the unpredictable and sometimes puzzling world of queen honey bees. While queens are typically diligent workers with a singular focus on...

In this engaging episode, Jim welcomes Anne Frey from Betterbee to discuss a variety of timely beekeeping topics. They delve into the challenges of early mite infestations, highlighting the importance of proactive treatments. Jim and Anne also explore...

In this episode, hosts Jim Tew and guest Anne Frey, delve into the intriguing and sometimes baffling phenomenon of beekeepers being unable to locate their hive's queen. Whether you're an experienced beekeeper or just starting, losing sight of your...

In this episode, Jim Tew takes listeners on an intricate journey into the life of a honey bee egg, uncovering its quiet but highly active existence. Despite the challenge of discussing such a microcosmic topic, Jim eloquently demystifies the...

In this intriguing episode, Jim Tew and Anne Frey delve into the unexpected and often perplexing world of queen bee behavior and physiology that diverges from the norm. This episode explores the rare but fascinating occurrences that beekeepers might...

In this episode of Honey Bee Obscura, we dive into the intricacies of nurturing nucleus colonies (nucs) with beekeeping expert Anne Frey from Better Bee. Jim and Anne discuss the benefits and methods of working with nucs, emphasizing their role in...

Beekeepers must often confine their bees to the hives for long or short periods of time, whether it be to move them from one yard to another, or if pesticides are to be used in neighboring fields and even transporting home package bees or nucs in the...

In today’s episode Jim invites Becky Masterman to discuss the lasting impact of Dr. Walter Rothenbuhler’s seminal research on honey bee hygienic behavior. His work, which has been a bedrock in the field of apiculture, sheds light on the genetic...

In the intricate realm of beekeeping, the queen bee reigns supreme, yet she remains a mysterious figure for many beekeepers. Join Jim as he welcomes Anne Frey, the head beekeeper of Betterbee, to delve into the fascinating world of Queen Quirks:...

Replacing a seemingly good queen can be a difficult decision to make. If her brood pattern is good, the colony temperment is nice, they've produced a good crop... and the only fault against her is that she is last year's queen... should you replace...

On today’s episode, Kim and Jim discuss all the pros and cons about marking queens. Lots of questions come up when you mention marking queens. For most of us it’s a no brainer. “Look, there’s that yellow spot, there’s the queen!” MARKING...

The queens that come with packages today seem to be different that those we could get five or ten years ago and we think that points to some changes need to be made regarding a simple concept – Patience. It would appear that it’s taking a bit...

This is the time of year to think seriously about the queens you have in your colonies, or the queens you had in your colonies last season. If replacement is on the table, what should you be looking for? The simple and probably best answer is… a...

If you have a colony of honey bees, chances are, at some point, some year, that colony will become queenless. If you do not realize it and the bees are unsuccessful at re-queening themselves, there is a pretty good chance, your colony will end up with...

Swarm season is fun and exhilarating. Much has been written about swarms. They’ve been studied, photographed, pursued and just… watched. But what does the beekeeper do with the parent colony the next day? What do they do with the swarm after...

A good rule when raising a few queens is to keep it simple. And not having to graft larvae from one cell to another is as simple as could be. So, how can that be done? The Hopkins method is one way, where you simply put a frame with eggs and larvae in...