For Some Midwest Beekeepers, Trying to Keep Honeybees Alive Has Proven ‘Devastating’
November 12, 2024 | Source: KSMU | by Héctor Alejandro Arzate
Beekeepers say it can be especially challenging to raise honeybees in the Midwest. Parasites, pesticides and extreme weather like drought are contributing to colony loss.
During most honey harvests, Robert Burns said he’s able to pull at least 23 gallons from the honeybee colonies he manages at Mitzvah Garden KC in Overland Park, Kansas.
But these past seasons haven’t been so sweet.
“This is the third year we’ve lost a lot of the colonies for no good reason,” said Burns, who has been beekeeping for 52 years. “And it’s devastating because we have to start completely over again.”
The garden’s five hives were doing well in the spring and summer, but that changed after its most recent honey harvest in mid-August. It was supposed to be the last of the year before leaving the bees alone through the winter.
The bees in one box started to die, according to Burns, while many others began to fly in a sort of death spiral. Days later, almost all of the remaining honeybees – which number in the tens of thousands – died.