First Manitoba Honey Bee Day spotlights province’s honey sector to the public.
Tag Archives Manitoba Beekeepers’ Association
Farm issues in spotlight at Manitoba Honey Bee Day
Inaugural event aims to raise public awareness of issues facing beekeepers
Varroa mites compound bee winter losses
Beekeepers blame parasitic varroa mites, waning treatment control for bee mortality
Varroa mite and waning treatment control cited as major causes of Manitoba beekeeper loss this spring
Funding boosts beekeeping extension
The Manitoba Beekeepers’ Association extension and research program has another $20,000 for the coming year
The Manitoba Beekeepers’ Association (MBA) hopes a jolt of funding will help bolster research and extension efforts. The Manitoba Crop Alliance (MCA), which blends commodity groups for wheat and barley, flax, sunflowers, corn and winter cereals, announced in January that it would be providing $10,000 for the MBA’s Knowledge Research Transfer Program in the coming
Weather turn bails out beekeepers
While honey yields are below average, it’s not the disaster many were expecting in July
The province’s beekeepers may well feel like they dodged a bullet, thanks to a surge of growth in August and September. Late-season rains helped bolster the 2021 honey harvest and have eased fears about the coming winter, according to Manitoba Beekeepers’ Association chair Ian Steppler. “The situation earlier in the summer seemed really dire and
Bees hit with pesky symptoms
Atypical weather this year impacted pest management for beekeepers
While an extended season has been a boon for the honey sector, experts say it may have also played into the varroa mite issues that have plagued some operations. Ian Steppler, chair of the Manitoba Beekeepers’ Association, said producers reported higher mite counts this year, requiring treatment. Infestations of the parasite are associated with weak
Honey market riding high, despite pandemic pitfalls
Pandemic pressures have helped drive local honey prices up over the last year
Manitoba’s beekeepers might be in for a really good year — assuming pandemic-driven logistical issues, labour shortages and the province’s still-dry conditions don’t keep them from cashing in. Why it matters: Financial signals are good for the honey industry, although producers still have plenty of hurdles to clear. In March, all signals initially pointed to good hive survival after a mild winter and
Province, Manitoba Beekeepers announce knowledge transfer program
Applied research and technical support will help beekeepers struggling to keep up with changing agricultural landscape
A new knowledge and research transfer program will bring Manitoban beekeepers applied research and on-the-ground support that’s badly needed said Manitoba Beekeepers Association vice-chair Ian Steppler. “It’s a direct investment into the grassroots of our industry. We’re quite excited about it,” Steppler said. The Knowledge and Research Transfer Program (KRTP), which should begin January 1,
Vegetable, honey producers still waiting on workers
Less than half of international workers expected for the season have arrived, province says
Despite efforts to bring in international workers, vegetable growers and beekeepers are still severely understaffed, according to provincial numbers. “I’m hurting not having my help,” said Mark Friesen, chair of the Manitoba Beekeepers Association. Friesen’s Canadian employee is living abroad and hasn’t been able to get back into the country, he said. As of May 11, according to numbers
Disappearing natural habitat threatens bees’ diet
Maintaining pockets of nature among cropland allows bees to thrive on a balanced diet, says beekeeper Ian Steppler
Cropland’s encroachment on nature threatens to starve bees and pollinators, beekeeper Ian Steppler told those at a Manitoba Conservation Districts Association conference on December 4. “Where we find a balance within our countryside between agriculture and nature is where we find tremendous growth and prosperity,” Steppler said. Why it matters: Bees and other pollinators are
High-tech hives
Beekeepers might get constant hive conditions at their fingertips once a student project out of Assiniboine Community College is fully developed
Kent Collins has a different idea of the ideal beehive — it involves a lot more wiring. Collins, along with his partner, Adam Lennox, are the minds behind the Bee Aware hive-monitoring system, a remote sensing system that promises real-time hive feedback to beekeepers. The project is the pinnacle, or “capstone project” of their study
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
