A good friend of mine, who is not hooked into the net, has requested that I ask about
honeybee strains adapted to a climate like ours.
 
We are at @latitude 61 degrees north, but with a marine influence.  We can not count
of flying days between October 1st and April 1st.  We may get some but bees flying
are normally lost to disorientation (caused presumably by snow cover combined with a
sun VERY low on the horizon.  Temperatures normally range from about 20 degrees
Farenheit (about -6 Celsius) to -10 F (about -20 C).  One big factor is the length of
darkness we 'enjoy' during the winter months.  If you live at the same latitude you
know what I mean.
 
We do have some minor success wintering over bees, but nothing reliable.  (Successful
wintering to me means that a wintered colony would be at least as strong on June 1st,
as a new package started on April 1st.)  There has been a lot of talk of good wintering
up here, but little concrete evidence of large scale "success".
 
Is there anyone out there with similar conditions who has bees adapted to the region?
I would love to hear from you if you do.
 
Of course our bees handle the temperatures with out any problems.  It is the duration
of the conditions which is the problem.
 
Thanks
 
--
"Test everything.  Hold on to the good."  (1 Thessalonians 5:21)
 
Tom Elliott
Eagle River, Alaska
U.S.A.
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