Pete>I find "beekeeping lore" to be fascinating, even if at times comical. 



Yes, beekeeping lore is fascinating and before biology, it was mythology that ruled the day.  But even though science has enlightened us, the mythological tread is not completely broken.  

" When the bees of Aristaeus died suddenly, he went to consult his mother in Tempe. She referred him to the seer Proteus, for an explanation for the death of his bees...  Aristaeus was told that the illness of his bees came as a punishment for his attempt to rape Eurydice, the wife of Orpheus. We believe that this represents an ancient testimony of a very old rule imposed on beekeepers, that of sexual abstention for one or more days before the opening of beehives in spring or before the vintage of honey in summer."

"This rule of sexual abstention exists today among the traditional apiarists in Greece but also in primitive tribes and undoubtedly, it is connected with the natural repulsion that the bees feel for certain odours, a fact that many ancient writers testify.  Before the honey harvest, the beekeeper had to abstain from strong smelling foods and salves, must not get drunk, and had to cleanse himself thoroughly. The apiarists of Egypt, in 3rd c. BCE, shaved their forehead so that they do not smell of grease, an odour that the bees dislike most.  Even modern apiarists recommend particular assiduity in odours when they open the beehives. It has been scientifically proven that worker bees are 10 to 100 times more sensitive than a man to wax, flower and other odors biologically significant to them. This highly developed olfactory system is used by the bees for various functions of vital importance as foraging and communication. It is thus possible that alien odors can perturb their functions and lead to hostility, disorientation and swarming. Aristaeus by not respecting the rule of sexual abstention, involuntary provoked the escaping of his bees."

Bill Hesbach
Cheshire CT

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