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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

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Subject:
From:
Jerry Bromenshenk <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Wed, 16 Dec 2015 21:27:01 -0500
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Przemek said:

One thing about the EAS certificate is that it evaluates one's ability to  
be a honeybee evangelist: that is, be able to intelligently talk about  
bees to non-professionals. I think that this is an extremely valuable  
skill given what's going on right now and sorely needed.


 
I agree, but I'd caution that the word informed is key.  We've far too many evangelists who either don't know about bees or who choose to ignore established practices and research.  

One example is the group who proclaims all feed is bad for bees.  On Facebook one of their members Friended my page.  Then when she has a problem with her package  dwindling due to lack of food resources, she asked what to do.  I responded to her question about 'what to do' offering feed honey or sugar until the colony was established.  I got angry, rude, cursing replies from several of the true believers who proclaimed that I was the problem - telling people to feed starving colonies sugar.  

I'd be the first to say, natural resource are best in terms of food  supply.  Better, lots of good  quality diverse forage.  But ask the colony whether death from starvation is better than some supplemental feeding.  I'm reasonably sure that the let them starve approach is not likely to rapidly produce food free colonies.  It's the old story of the farmer who bragged in the hardware store about training his horse not to eat by cutting back the amount of food a small amount each day.  Got folks excited - a horse that didn't need food.  When asked how the experiment was going, the farmer said - that's the sorry part of the story.  Just as I got him totally freed from eating, he died on me.
 
Now you understand why I don't do standup comedy. 


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