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Beekeeping Today Podcast

Beekeeping Today Podcast

Di: Jeff Ott Becky Masterman
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The weekly podcast bringing beekeepers the latest news, research, and insights on honey bees. Hosted by Jeff Ott and Dr. Becky Masterman, each episode features conversations with beekeepers, scientists, authors, and industry leaders. Whether you're just starting your first hive or managing hundreds, you'll find practical tips, fresh perspectives, and engaging stories to inspire your beekeeping journey.2026 by Growing Planet Media, LLC All Rights Reserved Scienza Scienze biologiche
Episodi
  • AI in the Bee Yard: Getting Started with AI for Beekeepers

    AI in the Bee Yard: Getting Started with AI for Beekeepers
    Sep 23 2026

    Artificial intelligence is rapidly finding its way into everyday tools—but where does it fit in the bee yard? In this Beekeeping Today Podcast Short, Jeff Ott and Becky Masterman begin exploring how beekeepers can put AI to practical use without treating it as an unquestioned authority.

    Jeff and Becky discuss using AI to organize colony inspection notes, create spreadsheets for mite monitoring, analyze data, help locate research and extension resources, and assist with projects such as grant applications. They also address the other side of the equation: AI can sound convincing while providing inaccurate information, invent sources, misinterpret images, or claim capabilities it does not actually have.

    Jeff shares his own experiment asking AI to identify and count Varroa mites from photographs of IPM boards—with decidedly mixed results.

    Their takeaway is straightforward: use AI as an assistant, much like a student or intern. Ask questions, challenge the answers, request sources, and verify important information yourself.

    And this is only the beginning.

    Websites from the episode and others we recommend:

    • Honey Bee Health Coalition: https://honeybeehealthcoalition.org
    • Project Apis m. (PAm): https://www.projectapism.org
    • The National Honey Board: https://honey.com
    • Honey Bee Obscura Podcast: https://honeybeeobscura.com

    Copyright © 2026 by Growing Planet Media, LLC

    ______________

    Betterbee is the presenting sponsor of Beekeeping Today Podcast. Betterbee's mission is to support every beekeeper with excellent customer service, continued education and quality equipment. From their colorful and informative catalog to their support of beekeeper educational activities, including this podcast series, Betterbee truly is Beekeepers Serving Beekeepers. See for yourself at www.betterbee.com

    _______________

    We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

    Thank you for listening!

    Podcast music: Be Strong by Young Presidents; Epilogue by Musicalman; Faraday by BeGun; Walking in Paris by Studio Le Bus; A Fresh New Start by Pete Morse; Wedding Day by Boomer; Christmas Avenue by Immersive Music; Red Jack Blues by Daniel Hart; Bolero de la Fontero by Rimsky Music; Perfect Sky by Graceful Movement; I'm Not Running Away This Time by Max Brodie; Original guitar background instrumental by Jeff Ott.

    Beekeeping Today Podcast is an audio production of Growing Planet Media, LLC

    ** As an Amazon Associate, we may earn a commission from qualifying purchases

    Copyright © 2026 by Growing Planet Media, LLC
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    19 min
  • The U.S. Beekeeping Survey: Colony Losses, Varroa, and Better Data (403)

    The U.S. Beekeeping Survey: Colony Losses, Varroa, and Better Data (403)
    Sep 21 2026
    What can nearly two decades of beekeeper-reported data tell us about colony health—and what can it not tell us? In this episode, Jeff Ott and Becky Masterman welcome Dr. Geoff Williams, Dr. Nathalie Steinhauer, and Dr. Agostina Giacobino to discuss the 2026 U.S. Beekeeping Survey and its continuity after the closure of the Bee Informed Partnership. The team explains why annual colony-loss rates function much like a mortality or turnover measure rather than a direct count of the nation's living colonies. Preliminary 2025–26 results suggest losses improved from the exceptionally difficult previous two years, yet the national annual estimate remained near 40 percent. One in three responding commercial beekeepers reported losing more than half their colonies—sobering numbers even in a comparatively better year. Nathalie and Agostina describe how consistent questions make long-term comparisons possible, while new dashboards help beekeepers, researchers, inspectors, and extension professionals explore management trends. The conversation highlights increased adoption of Varroa monitoring and treatment, growing commercial use of oxalic acid amid concerns about amitraz resistance, and a central lesson: successful Varroa control is a season-long system of prevention, monitoring, timing, and multiple tools—not a search for one magic product. The guests also walk through the survey calendar, state participation, rapid preliminary reporting, and why both summer and winter losses matter. More than 2,300 respondents represented roughly 10 to 13 percent of U.S. colonies in the latest survey, but stronger state-level participation remains an important goal. Before the interview, Becky answers a HiveIQ listener question about how quickly pulled honey supers should be extracted. Websites from the episode and others we recommend: Preliminary Results from the 2025-2026 US Beekeeping Survey: Honey Bee Loss and Management: https://apiaryinspectors.org/US-beekeeping-survey-25-26 Honey Bee Health Coalition: https://honeybeehealthcoalition.orgProject Apis m. (PAm): https://www.projectapism.orgThe National Honey Board: https://honey.comHoney Bee Obscura Podcast: https://honeybeeobscura.com Copyright © 2026 by Growing Planet Media, LLC ______________ Betterbee is the presenting sponsor of Beekeeping Today Podcast. Betterbee's mission is to support every beekeeper with excellent customer service, continued education and quality equipment. From their colorful and informative catalog to their support of beekeeper educational activities, including this podcast series, Betterbee truly is Beekeepers Serving Beekeepers. See for yourself at www.betterbee.com This episode is brought to you by Global Patties! Global offers a variety of standard and custom patties. Visit them today at http://globalpatties.com and let them know you appreciate them sponsoring this episode! As a beekeeper, you want products that benefit you and your bees. When you choose Premier Bee Products, you choose hive components that are healthier for bees and more productive for you. Because we believe that in beekeeping, details make all the difference. Premier Bee Products: Better for bees. Better for beekeepers. Use promo code PODCAST for 10% off your next online order. Thanks to Strong Microbials for their support of Beekeeping Today Podcast. Find out more about their line of probiotics in our Season 3, Episode 12 episode and from their website: https://www.strongmicrobials.com HiveIQ is revolutionizing the way beekeepers manage their colonies with innovative, insulated hive systems designed for maximum colony health and efficiency. Their hives maintain stable temperatures year-round, reduce stress on the bees, and are built to last using durable, lightweight materials. Whether you're managing two hives or two hundred, HiveIQ's smart design helps your bees thrive while saving you time and effort. Learn more at HiveIQ.com. We'd like to thank Vita Bee Health for supporting the podcast. Vita provides proven tools for controlling Varroa—from Apistan and Apiguard to the new VarroxSan extended-release oxalic acid strips—helping beekeepers keep stronger, healthier colonies. Thanks for Northern Bee Books for their support. Northern Bee Books is the publisher of bee books available worldwide from their website or from Amazon and bookstores everywhere. They are also the publishers of The Beekeepers Quarterly and Natural Bee Husbandry. Thanks to Bee Culture, the Magazine of American Beekeeping, for their support of Honey Bee Obscura. Available in print and digital at www.beeculture.com _______________ We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com Thank you for listening! Podcast music: Be Strong by Young Presidents; Epilogue by Musicalman; Faraday by BeGun; Walking in Paris by Studio Le Bus; A Fresh New Start by Pete Morse; Wedding...
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    56 min
  • Bee Science with Dewey Caron: Honey Bees and Smoke

    Bee Science with Dewey Caron: Honey Bees and Smoke
    Sep 16 2026
    Why do we smoke honey bees—and how much smoke do they really need? In this installment of his Bee Science mini-series on Beekeeping Today, Dr. Dewey Caron sends an audio postcard from Portland, Oregon, during a wildfire smoke advisory. He uses the smoky skies as a starting point for a discussion of the beekeeper's smoker, the behavior of honey bees, and the challenges wildfire brings to the bee yard. Dewey's central message about smoker use is simple: use it sparingly. He walks through lighting a smoker, choosing fuel that produces cool, white smoke, keeping it working throughout an inspection, and directing smoke where it helps move bees away from fingers and hive equipment. He also describes ways to reduce unnecessary disturbance as frames are removed and the colony is closed. The conversation then turns to what smoke actually does. Dewey explains why he describes smoke as changing bee behavior rather than simply calming bees. He discusses alarm odor, bees retreating from smoke, and honey-stomach filling, while identifying the proposed wildfire escape response as a theory. Liquid smoke, water, sugar water, and inspections without a smoker each get a look, along with their limitations. Wildfire smoke raises a different set of questions. Dewey reflects on Oregon's 2020 fires, threats to apiaries, and the difficulties of caring for surviving colonies. He discusses native bee nesting habitat, changes in post-fire forage, and how smoky skies can interfere with the polarized-light patterns honey bees use to navigate. He also considers research on ash exposure and emphasizes how much remains unknown about its effects on flower visitors. To close, Dewey offers ten points covering smoker safety, inspection decisions, evacuation preparedness, defensible space, supplemental feeding, clean water, documentation, and habitat recovery. Throughout, the emphasis is on thoughtful smoker use and avoiding additional stress on colonies during smoke events. Notes and references: Reynolds, Kamon. What is best bee smoker fuel? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_vqphnp04w Garvey, K.K. 2020. The Bee People, The Bees, and The Fires. UCANR Bug Squad. https://ucanr.edu/blog/bug-squad/article/bee-people-bees-and-fires Andony Melathopoulos, Brooke Edmunds and Jim Rivers. Reviewed 2024. How do Wildfires affect bees? https://extension.oregonstate.edu/forests/fire/how-do-wildfires-affect-bee Tan, Y.Q., Dion, E. and Monteiro, A., 2018. Haze smoke impacts survival and development of butterflies. Scientific Reports, 8(1), pp.1-10. Detweiler, A.J. and Fitzgerald, S.A., 2006. Fire-resistant plants for home landscapes: Selecting plants that may reduce your risk from wildfire. OSU Extension Catalog PNW 590 Evangelista, C., Kraft, P., Dacke, M., Labhart, T. and Srinivasan, M.V., 2014. Honeybee navigation: critically examining the role of the polarization compass. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 369(1636), p.20130037. ______________ Brought to you by Betterbee – your partners in better beekeeping. Betterbee is the presenting sponsor of Beekeeping Today Podcast. Betterbee's mission is to support every beekeeper with excellent customer service, continued education and quality equipment. From their colorful and informative catalog to their support of beekeeper educational activities, including this podcast series, Betterbee truly is Beekeepers Serving Beekeepers. See for yourself at www.betterbee.com _______________ We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com Thank you for listening! Podcast music: Be Strong by Young Presidents; Epilogue by Musicalman; Faraday by BeGun; Walking in Paris by Studio Le Bus; A Fresh New Start by Pete Morse; Wedding Day by Boomer; Christmas Avenue by Immersive Music; Red Jack Blues by Daniel Hart; Bolero de la Fontero by Rimsky Music; Perfect Sky by Graceful Movement; Original guitar background instrumental by Jeff Ott. Beekeeping Today Podcast is an audio production of Growing Planet Media, LLC ** As an Amazon Associate, we may earn a commission from qualifying purchases Copyright © 2026 by Growing Planet Media, LLC
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    25 min
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