Beekeeping Today Podcast

The coming year, 2019, marks the 150th anniversary of the (AI) Root Company. On this episode, Brad Root - the great, great grandson of Amos Ives Root, joins Jeff & Kim on the podcast to discuss the first 50 years of the AI Root Company. When AI first came to Medina, Ohio, the home of the Root Company, he was a jeweler in a building on the west side of the town square. This is the first of three episodes we will present in this 150th year covering the Root Company history.

Marina Marchese is a beekeeper and honey sommelier. She is the founder of the American Honey Tasting Society and is a frequent speaker and author on the topic of honey tasting and pairing. In this podcast, Marina relates to tasting honey as a total sensory experience and one that must be learned and developed. Marina discusses how to discern the unique flavors and attributes of different honey varietals and pairing them with cheeses and other foods.

Dr. Samuel Ramsey is a life long entomologist. His interests in all things insects started in his youth and with his parent's encouragement and his siblings displeasure! He continued his studies in college (Cornell) and just recently completed his PhD this year at The University of Maryland under Dr. Dennis vanEngelsdorp. Dr. Ramsey made headlines earlier this year with the publication of his doctoral research on the feeding behaviors of the varroa destructor mite on the honey bee.

Shane Gebauer is the President and Partner at Brushy Mountain Bee Farm, the catalog and online bee supply company based in Moravian Falls, NC.  Shane has been keeping bees for many years and speaks nationally on beekeeping.  You can also see Shane on several YouTube videos on various topics.  In this Beekeeping Today Podcast, Shane, Kim and Jeff discuss the concept of 'treatment free' beekeeping, its challenges and applicability. This episode is brought to you by Wicwas Press. 

Dan is the president of the Russian Honey Bee Breeders Association. In this episode, Dan opens the door on the Russian strain, its varroa mite resistance, honey production, aggressiveness, swarming and more. The Russian strain has some great traits and perhaps some traits that will force beekeepers into different management practices. If you are looking to explore a new strain of honey bee, this episode will wet your appetite!

Bill Hesbach is a long time Connecticut beekeeper, an EAS Master Beekeeper and an University of Montana Master Beekeeper. In this episode, Jeff and Kim talk with Bill about the Connecticut Backyard Beekeepers Organization, the CBA "Bee Talks" informative gatherings and finally the Connecticut Queen Breeders Cooperative. We want to thank Bill for sharing his ideas on promoting beekeeping and education of beekeepers on this episode and hope you will find something that you can use locally.

Dr. Warwick Kerr passed on 15-Sept, leaving behind a legacy that haunted him and changed beekeeping in the America's for years to come. In this episode, the podcast visits Dr. Jim Tew in his shop in Wooster, Ohio to discuss his work with the USDA Extension Service to learn about the Africanized honey bee and help prepare US beekeepers for their eventual arrival into the States near Hildago, Texas in 1990. Kim wraps up the show with his Inner Covered.

Dr. Dewey Caron has been working to help educate beekeepers for years starting with his work with Dr. Roger Morse (Cornell) and Eastern Apiculture Society (EAS). He helped to establish the EAS Master Beekeeper Certification program and has worked with other regional beekeeper groups to set up their own. Now that he lives on the West Coast in Portland, Oregon, he is learning the trials and tribulations of the beekeeping in the Pacific Northwest.

In this episode, Jerry Hayes and Barb Bloetscher escape the rain in Medina Ohio and join Jeff and Kim.  Jerry (former FLA State Apiarist) provides an update on what he learned while at Monsanto regarding the challenges faced by those researching fighting varroa with RNAi technology. Barb, the current State of Ohio Apiarist discuss the status of the honey bee in Ohio. What she reports may surprise you! Questions/Comments: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com Thanks for listening!

Tom Theobald beekeeper who lives in Colorado. Tom has been sounding the alarm about the over use and accumulation of neonicotinoids (neonics) in the environment since before his July, 2010 article in Bee Culture. Jeff and Kim talk with Tom about his personal research and the concerns he has on neonicotinoid use. It is a discussion that has raised passions on all sides of the debate.   You can read Tom's original article on the neonic problem here: https://www.beeculture.com/toms-podcast-special/

Dr. James Wilkes is a co-founder and CEO of HiveTracks. When he is not working, James manages over 150 colonies producing sourwood honey. Jeff and Kim discuss with James how computers are improving beekeeper operations, helping researchers and how all this data can help the industry going forward. Kim wraps up the show with his Inner Covered. Questions/Comments: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com Thanks to Bee Culture for their support! Available in print and digital at www.beeculture.com

We've invited regular Bee Culture contributor, Toni Burnham to the podcast to talk about the DC Beekeeper's Alliance and urban beekeeping. Urban beekeeping is popular and growing. Join Jeff and Kim as they discuss with Toni the various activities of DC Beekeepers. Whether you are a beekeeper in the city or country, Toni's interview will give you plenty to think about in how you can promote bees in your community. Questions/Comments: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com Thanks for listening! 

We invited Dr. James Tew to the podcast to share with us some of his beekeeping experiences and observations. Jim brings an insightful and sometimes humorous perspective from how he got into bees... and how a bee once got into him!   Jim has retired from the Ohio State University Ag Extension in Wooster, Ohio and still lives and cares for his own bees in the area. Jim has several books on beekeeping available on Amazon, can be seen regularly on Bee Culture's Kim and Jim Show, and monthly in Bee Culture.

Joe Traynor is a bee broker in the almond orchards of California. Joe smoothes the business interactions between the beekeeper/pollinator and the almond grower. He has been in the pollination business since the early '70s and has seen it all. Later in the episode, Kim provides his perspective on the value a broker provides the beekeeper.

Matthew Shepherd is the Director of Communications and Outreach for the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. Jeff and Kim invited Matthew to Beekeeping Today Podcast to discuss the Xerces Society's various programs including Protecting Pollinators, Monarch and Bumble Bee Conservation, and finally Xerces' various Citizen Science undertakings. Afterwards, Kim provides his perspective on invertebrate conservation programs and their importance to beekeepers, in his Inner Covered.