How To Episodes

As spring approaches, Jim Tew and Anne Frey talk through the real-world decisions behind ordering, transporting, and installing honey bee packages. From how many colonies to buy to the risks of overheating during travel, this episode offers practical, experience-driven guidance for beekeepers preparing for the new season.

When it comes time to remove honey from your colonies, the job can feel like one of the most physically demanding tasks of the beekeeping season. In this Honey Bee Obscura archive special from September 2022, hosts Kim Flottum and Jim Tew revisit their practical—and often humorous—discussion about getting honey supers off the hives without losing your mind, your back, or your bees. Kim describes his backyard setup, complete with wagons, covers, and a trusty leaf blower, while Jim details his mor...

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 episode of Honey Bee Obscura, host Dr. Jim Tew takes listeners on a reflective and thought-provoking journey through the changing landscape of beekeeping practices over the decades. From his early experiences wiring frames and embedding wax...

Managing large honey bee colonies comes with its own set of challenges and rewards, but are bigger colonies always better? In this episode, Jim Tew is joined by Anne Frey of Betterbee to explore the benefits and potential downsides of managing large...

In this episode, Jim Tew takes a deep dive into the world of big colonies, posing the question: Are larger hives always better? With his signature blend of humor and beekeeping wisdom, Jim unpacks the complexities of managing booming colonies,...

In this special archive episode of Honey Bee Obscura, Jim Tew and the late Kim Flottum dive into the age-old debate between starting with packages or nucleus colonies (nucs). Whether you’re a beginner beekeeper or looking to expand your apiary, this...

In this episode, Jim delves into the art and practicality of building your own bee boxes. He reflects on his journey with woodworking, from crafting frames and supers to the challenges of creating durable hive components. Jim shares stories of his...

In this episode, Jim reflects on some key learning points from his years of beekeeping—particularly the lessons learned the hard way. He shares a story of purchasing bees from a grieving widow and the valuable, though painful, takeaways from...

In this episode, Jim and Anne Frey from Betterbee discuss the crucial topic of setting realistic expectations for potential new beekeepers. They share their experiences and insights on the importance of proper education, preparation, and understanding...

In this episode, Jim takes listeners on an adventurous journey to inspect a fallen hive. Accompanied by his friend Bob Romick, Jim travels through rural Ohio to assess the damage and potential causes of the hive's collapse. He shares the challenges of...

In this episode, Jim Tew shares valuable lessons learned from his early days in beekeeping, focusing on the challenges of removing bees from old structures. Reflecting on his 50 years of beekeeping experience, Jim recounts humorous and insightful...

In this episode, Jim Tew dives into the humorous and often frustrating situations beekeepers face when neighbors expect them to handle all sorts of "bee" problems. Jim shares personal stories of dealing with carpenter bees, yellowjackets, and...

In this episode, Jim Tew shares his tried-and-true methods for lighting and using a smoker, essential tools for any beekeeper. He delves into the evolution of his technique; from the fuel he prefers to the simple but effective system he's developed...

In this episode, Jim introduces listeners to the world of beekeeping through the experiences of a new beekeeper, his grandson Will. As a high school junior with a budding interest in bees, Will's initial steps into beekeeping offer a fresh perspective...

In this episode we delve into the concept of "supering," a term unique to beekeeping that has emerged over the past century. To those outside the beekeeping community, the term might sound like something out of a superhero comic, but for beekeepers,...

Beekeeping is not always as straightforward as hive inspections and honey extraction. When bees decide to set up shop in places beyond the traditional hive box, it requires specialized techniques and knowledge to safely and ethically relocate them....

After all of the nectar has flowed, the honey spun and you’re just waiting to put the bees to bed for the winter, you might look around at the clutter of equipment in your bee yard, bouncing in the back of your bee truck or shoved aside in the bee...

(This Archive Special first released, September 2, 2021.) Beekeepers are very often asked to help friends or neighbors that have “bee” problems…. honey bees, carpenter bees, yellow jackets, hornets, bumblebees and the like. But most of us...

In this episode, Jim invites Beekeeping Today Podcast's Jeff Ott, to sit in for Kim to help answer a couple of recent listener emails. In response to a recent episode where Jim talks about dealing with heavy 10-frame, deep supers, a listener sends in...

This week, we continue with the theme of Fall management. Kim is out so, Jim invites Jeff Ott, from Beekeeping Today Podcast to join him to talk about dealing with heavy honey supers that remain and prepping the colonies for the coming Winter. Jim...

What do you do when the honey is all harvested, but it is still warm and not quite time to button up the colonies for Winter? On today's episode of Honey Bee Obscura, Jim has invited Beekeeping Today Podcast's Jeff Ott, in to discuss what he does to...

This is honey harvest time of the year, for the majority of the beekeepers in the Northern Hemisphere. Undoubtedly, you will end your uncapping and extracting time with frames with broken end bars, bottoms or even the foundation punched through or...