Articles

This is a series of ongoing articles for contemporary beekeepers who are interested in natural beekeeping and learning how to improve their bee stewarding skills. These articles are written by some of the great purveyors of fine bee-ish information. They are free to you (and your bees) and our gift to your continued flowering.

This series is dedicated to my Grandpa, Roy Bateman, an Illinois farmer who raised soybeans and corn, cattle and pigs … and tended his land and his family. He passed in the 1980s, just as Varroa destructor and modern agricultural practices changed the face of beekeeping (and so much else). He would have enjoyed meeting these writers …

Please enjoy this bounty …

TAMING THE MIGHTY MITE: Some Thoughts on Living with Varroa
Understanding Varroa so you can select for better, less-virulent mites and better-adapted bees.
(Kefyn M. Catley, Ph.D.) Now in Dutch/Flemish thank you Luc Pintens! And Turkish thank you Füsun Ertuğ!

THE HIGH COST OF ALMONDS … FOR BEES: The Great Elephant in the Room of Modern Apiculture
Bees, almonds, and the great annual American pollination ritual. A State of the Bee Union and what we can do to support honeybees in these times. (Debra Roberts, HolyBeePress)

TRUSTING THE BEES: Thoughts on a Stronger Stock or How to Raise Queens with Just a Few Hives
Learn an easy way to make a split (nuc, daughter colony) that helps to breed a stronger bee and supports the bees’ ability to select their own best future queens. (Carl Chesick, Director of Center for Honeybee Research)

SYSTEMS APPROACH TO AGRICULTURE
Learn about an initiative begun in India called Sustainable Yogic Agriculture (SYA); how systemic thought-based meditation applied to all stages of a crop cycle, along with methods of traditional organic farming, are proving beneficial. (Tamasin Ramsay, Ph.D.) While this article is not about honeybees per se, Holy Bee Press believes that the SYA approach to agriculture is deeply relevant and applicable to good bee stewardship. A growing number of beekeepers, and women in particular, have already been incorporating meditation and other mindfulness practices into their beekeeping. We are deeply grateful to the author, Tamasin Ramsay, and also to LEISA India for kindly granting us permission to republish this article from the magazine: LEISA India (December 2012, Volume 14 no. 4). The great Tuscarora elder Ted Williams used to say that all we really have in this life is our Good Thoughts, Good Feelings, Good Words and Good Deeds. We wish you Good Thoughts (and all the rest) in your relationship with the bees … and all life. Please contact us at debra@holybeepress.com and let us hear about your practices with the bees that you are discovering to be beneficial to their well-being.

 

We hope you enjoy these articles. Please feel free to share them with anyone under the sun, moon and stars that might be interested. We are currently in the process of translating these articles into other languages (and if you, dear reader, want to translate one of these articles, please contact us). We want to be able to accommodate the growing interest expressed by the worldwide bee community; we are at your service. Stay tuned for more articles coming along from other great, bright women and men writers from around our fine bee world. And if you would like to express your appreciation to the authors, you can post a comment on this website and we will direct it to the writer.

Blessed be. Blessed bees.


{ 27 comments… read them below or add one }

Joan Slemenda Dudgeon March 23, 2012 at 1:59 pm

This strums at the core of my heart and I am there, they are here, with you.

Reply

Debra Roberts March 26, 2012 at 12:34 pm

Joan, I love being kept-by-my-bees, same time as you with yours … blessings

Reply

chiwa March 23, 2012 at 2:34 pm

Oh Debra, I’m sitting here weeping. What a beautiful testament to your grandpa and grandma. I’m sure I could sit beside you on that train and keep on going forever. You are amazing. Chi

Reply

Debra Roberts March 26, 2012 at 12:36 pm

Chiwa, So glad you “met” my grandparents (and in some fashion, they – you). I know they would have loved celebrating spring under your crab apple tree, next to your bees … blessings

Reply

Rick Aguar March 23, 2012 at 6:12 pm

What a dear,dear article!!!!
Thank you for such a jewel.
Rick

Reply

Debra Roberts March 26, 2012 at 12:34 pm

Ricky, thank you and back atcha …

Reply

Julie Parker March 23, 2012 at 9:36 pm

Debra, the work you are doing is such a wonderful contribution to the bee world!

Reply

Debra Roberts March 26, 2012 at 12:33 pm

Thank you so much, Julie. I thank you, the bees thank you …

Reply

Julie Hundley, Sally's youngest March 24, 2012 at 12:55 am

beautiful! would love to learn more about Great Grandpa Roy and Grandma Ruth and your remembrances. this may or may not be the space. particularly curious about his reference to civil rights

Reply

Debra Roberts March 26, 2012 at 12:07 pm

Julie, it is so wonderful to hear from you. I’ll respond to your email shortly. Looking forward to communing … blessings, Debra

Reply

Tammy Horn March 24, 2012 at 8:36 pm

Hi there, Debra! What a beautiful letter and an innovative way to begin a blog! I think Roy and Ruth would be proud.

Warmly,
t

Reply

Debra Roberts March 26, 2012 at 12:28 pm

Tammy, thank you so much. It is always lovely to hear from your bee-ish self.

Reply

shiner March 30, 2012 at 7:43 pm

That was a heartwarming love letter.
Thanks for sharing your memories as well as your eloquent style of writing.

Reply

Debra Roberts March 30, 2012 at 8:51 pm

Shiner, thanks so much. I appreciate you so much. How are your bees?

Reply

Linda McLean April 6, 2012 at 12:59 am

I’ve read this twice now, spaced apart, and I love it more & more! What a bee-you-ti-full testament to your deep heart, your beloved bees and your beloved grandparents, Debra!

Reply

Debra Roberts April 6, 2012 at 12:26 pm

Thank you so much, Linda-ji … I wish Roy and Ruth could have met you (and vica versa) … you are all cut from the same cloth. xox

Reply

Natalie Parker April 24, 2012 at 5:59 pm

Debra,
Thank you so much for your beautiful writing, as well as your lovely spirit. I think I’m falling in love with beekeeping more and more each day. Sadly, I lost the hive this January that was from the Minnesota Hygienic queen that I won at the Spartanburg meeting this past fall. Still unsure of the reason. But I’m up to nine hives now – one from a swarm that I caught.
Thank you for all the work that you do for the honeybee and for being such an inspiration to so many.
Blessings!

Reply

Debra Roberts April 24, 2012 at 6:13 pm

Thank you so very much, Natalie. I appreciate it. I completely understand your love journey with these precious winged souls. And I am so sorry about the hive you lost. It is like a death in the family. And I am glad you have nine other hives … wow. And isn’t catching a swarm one of the great miracles? (And really, not that hard at all.) So happy to be on this path-of-bee with you … blessings!

Reply

?????????? June 10, 2014 at 8:46 am

My brother suggested I might like this website. He was entirely right.
This post truly made my day. You can not imagine
simply how much time I had spent for this info! Thanks!

Reply

Debra Roberts June 10, 2014 at 6:32 pm

Hello and thank you so much for your kind words. Your message made my day. I hope you and your bees (you have bees? or they, you?) are having a wonderful spring. Many blessings, Debra (debra@holybeepress.com)

Reply

slideshare.Net August 15, 2014 at 9:42 am

Highly energetic post, I loved that bit. Will ther be a part 2?

Reply

Debra Roberts November 17, 2014 at 8:59 pm

Hi, sorry to be so tardy in response. Somehow we missed your message. Hello to you. Which post are you referring to and we can tell you if there will be Part 2. Thanks and blessings

Reply

Johne986 September 12, 2014 at 12:05 am

Attractive section of content. I just stumbled upon your website and in accession capital to assert that I get in fact enjoyed account your blog posts. Any way Ill be subscribing to your feeds and even I achievement you access consistently rapidly. bkceeabadgdg

Reply

Debra Roberts November 17, 2014 at 9:02 pm

Thank you so much.

Reply

Johna718 September 12, 2014 at 12:05 am

Regards for helping out, superb information. ebdeebdddefa

Reply

Debra Roberts November 17, 2014 at 9:02 pm

Thank you so much John.

Reply

campervans for hire December 2, 2014 at 8:25 pm

It’s actually a nice and useful piece off information. I’m satisfied that you just shsred this useful infotmation with
us. Please sstay us up to date like this. Thank you for sharing.

Reply

Leave a Comment