On Thu, 13 Feb 1997 09:35:00 PST Ivan McGill <[log in to unmask]>
writes:
>>Check out today's Wall Street Journal - front page. There is an
>article about the California beekeeping/almond situation.
 
Summary of Article:
 
Focuses on a migrant beekeeper, Randy Verhoek, who trucks the
California-North
Dakota circuit, with his wife and two kids. She schools them on the road.
He trucks
about 3000 hives.
 
He and some temps truck six long haulers renting out to growers of
almonds,apples,cherries,cucumbers,sunflowers & melons. No fixed abode,
trucks about 100,000 miles per year.
 
The article addresses the shortage of feral bees and the growing need for
migrant
beekeepers. Speaks of trials/tribulations,losses and rewards. Asserts
that this is
good year with hives renting for $42 in comparison to $26 last year.
Honey
such as sweet-clover Sotuh Dakota variety now going for .95 cents per
pound
compared to last years 48 cents.
 
Also addresses weather problems this year..such as loss of 20,000 hives
washing
away in California floods..to heavy snows in the Plains States burying
thousands of hives,
which may end up with them starving to death.
 
Refers to Richard Adee, the country's largest beekeeper with only about
32,000 of his
50,000 hives able to get out from under the snow to California for almond
season.
 
Quotes Dr Shimanuki of USDA Lab in Beltsville, who says "I pollinate my
own plants by hand
with a camel-haired brush"  {Gee, maybe there's a clue for a new business
selling special
pollination brushes - my comment-Al Needham] ) The Doc figures one
quarter of the
country's beekeepers move around for part of the year. He states that one
day, migrants will
replace traditional beekeres, "all our bees are being put on wheels".
 
Spoke in detail about the tribulations/problems of migrant beekeepers,
weather,etc.
However, Verhoek says that this year is a fat year for folks like him. He
expects to
gross about $300,000 with about $150,000 going for expenses. Other years
he says
he just breaks even.
..............
 
There you go. I think that I hit most of the highlights of the article.
The rest of it went
into length about getting stung, etc.
 
Al
------
Al Needham--Scituate,MA,[log in to unmask]
"The HoneyBee"--An Educational Program About Honey
Bees With A Superb Slide Show-Version 2.0 (c) 1997
Download From: http://www.kuai.se/~beeman