WEBVTT 00:00:00.200 --> 00:00:03.779 May I have your attention, please? The following 00:00:03.779 --> 00:00:10.240 is not the real Jeff Fox review. If you have 00:00:10.240 --> 00:00:14.580 lost more than five hive tools and your lawnmower 00:00:14.580 --> 00:00:18.579 has found two of them, you might be a beekeeper. 00:00:21.039 --> 00:00:25.620 If once a year your kitchen becomes sticky from 00:00:25.620 --> 00:00:33.640 floor to ceiling. You might be a beekeeper. If 00:00:33.640 --> 00:00:38.380 you think that Varroa mites were created by Satan 00:00:38.380 --> 00:00:55.369 himself, you might be a beekeeper. Welcome welcome 00:00:55.369 --> 00:00:58.250 to Be Love Beekeeping presented by Man Lake. 00:00:58.950 --> 00:01:02.210 We have a really fun show today as we'll be joined 00:01:02.210 --> 00:01:06.390 by guest Jeff Horchoff or as he's affectionately 00:01:06.390 --> 00:01:10.129 known by the nickname Mr. Ed. He's a beekeeper 00:01:10.129 --> 00:01:13.250 in Louisiana, a YouTube star and someone who 00:01:13.250 --> 00:01:16.730 really loves honey bees and knows how to find 00:01:16.730 --> 00:01:20.760 the joy and fun in beekeeping. And we're excited 00:01:20.760 --> 00:01:23.260 to announce for our listeners that right now 00:01:23.260 --> 00:01:26.939 are on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, iHeart, et 00:01:26.939 --> 00:01:30.140 cetera, that this is our first episode that's 00:01:30.140 --> 00:01:33.799 also a full video episode. So if you want to 00:01:33.799 --> 00:01:37.719 see Mr. Ed as well as hear him, check out the 00:01:37.719 --> 00:01:40.239 episode on our YouTube channel, Be Love, Be Keeping. 00:01:41.219 --> 00:01:43.760 But however you prefer to consume your podcasts, 00:01:44.120 --> 00:01:47.200 hey, we are just glad you're here. Before we 00:01:47.200 --> 00:01:50.640 chat with Mr. Ed, let's check some honeybee headlines 00:01:50.640 --> 00:01:54.060 from around the world. Coming to us from the 00:01:54.060 --> 00:01:59.680 BBC, bee attack injures dozens in France. Several 00:01:59.680 --> 00:02:02.659 dozen people were injured, with three rushed 00:02:02.659 --> 00:02:06.480 to hospital in critical condition in an unusual 00:02:06.480 --> 00:02:10.139 bee attack in a French town. Local authorities 00:02:10.139 --> 00:02:14.439 said 24 passersby were hurt when hundreds of 00:02:14.439 --> 00:02:17.639 bees suddenly attacked people in the central 00:02:17.639 --> 00:02:21.919 southern town of Irelac on Sunday morning. The 00:02:21.919 --> 00:02:24.639 three that were in critical condition are now 00:02:24.639 --> 00:02:28.000 stable. According to local media, one of them 00:02:28.000 --> 00:02:31.759 was a 78 year old woman who was stung 25 times 00:02:31.759 --> 00:02:35.919 and had to be resuscitated after cardiorespiratory 00:02:35.919 --> 00:02:39.330 arrest. Police and firefighters fenced off the 00:02:39.330 --> 00:02:42.270 area and a beekeeper was called in to save the 00:02:42.270 --> 00:02:47.210 day. He came in, he got a lot of smoke going, 00:02:47.330 --> 00:02:50.990 I'm not sure what all else he did, but he saved 00:02:50.990 --> 00:02:53.969 the day. Eventually he moved the beehives completely 00:02:53.969 --> 00:02:58.110 out of that area. So the question is, what caused 00:02:58.110 --> 00:03:00.770 the bees to go crazy and be attacking people? 00:03:01.169 --> 00:03:04.620 They don't have Africanized genetics there. According 00:03:04.620 --> 00:03:08.819 to the mayor, Pierre Mathonnier, Asian hornets 00:03:08.819 --> 00:03:11.500 threatening a beehive may have been the catalyst 00:03:11.500 --> 00:03:15.650 for the attack. But Christian Carrier, the president 00:03:15.650 --> 00:03:18.750 of the regional beekeepers union, was really 00:03:18.750 --> 00:03:21.449 skeptical of that. He said that bees generally 00:03:21.449 --> 00:03:24.430 avoid leaving their colonies altogether in the 00:03:24.430 --> 00:03:27.409 presence of Asian hornets. Instead, he said that 00:03:27.409 --> 00:03:30.210 the unusual incident may have been due to the 00:03:30.210 --> 00:03:33.590 bee colony becoming too large for its beehive 00:03:33.590 --> 00:03:37.430 and becoming quote, overactive when the beekeeper 00:03:37.430 --> 00:03:40.550 handled it. It may be that the bees didn't have 00:03:40.550 --> 00:03:43.289 enough space and that their colony had no intention 00:03:43.289 --> 00:03:47.250 of swarming. This can trigger strong aggression, 00:03:47.409 --> 00:03:50.370 he said. However, he also said that bees could 00:03:50.370 --> 00:03:52.990 be stressed because of a problem with the queen, 00:03:53.650 --> 00:03:56.530 or could have been reacting to external factors 00:03:56.530 --> 00:04:01.210 such as heat waves, early blossoming in May -June, 00:04:01.629 --> 00:04:05.389 and subsequent lack of food in July, or a sharp 00:04:05.389 --> 00:04:11.259 drop in temperatures. So, it could be anything 00:04:11.259 --> 00:04:15.719 from hornets to heat waves to drop in temperature. 00:04:16.279 --> 00:04:20.279 Nobody really knows. What we do know is the causes 00:04:20.279 --> 00:04:23.500 of the incident will be analyzed and that the 00:04:23.500 --> 00:04:26.199 beehives have been moved outside of the town. 00:04:27.079 --> 00:04:30.240 This next brief story would be funny if it weren't 00:04:30.240 --> 00:04:34.129 so sad. A beekeeper and grandmother who keeps 00:04:34.129 --> 00:04:37.930 her bees in a private woodland in Dorset, England, 00:04:38.410 --> 00:04:41.250 said that her beehives were vandalized last month. 00:04:41.829 --> 00:04:45.089 She believed that it was bored teenagers who 00:04:45.089 --> 00:04:49.129 kicked over 23 of her beehives. With a lot of 00:04:49.129 --> 00:04:52.509 effort, she fixed the broken boxes, settled down 00:04:52.509 --> 00:04:55.550 her bees, and eventually got things back to normal. 00:04:55.689 --> 00:05:00.029 But then it happened again. Here's a quote from 00:05:00.029 --> 00:05:04.000 her. My hunch is that it's a fellow beekeeper. 00:05:04.540 --> 00:05:07.120 It just smacks of jealousy and somebody with 00:05:07.120 --> 00:05:10.220 a grudge against me. The first incident we put 00:05:10.220 --> 00:05:13.319 down to mindless vandalism. Everything that was 00:05:13.319 --> 00:05:16.860 on stands was now on the ground. It was in all 00:05:16.860 --> 00:05:19.199 directions, so I know it wasn't the wind and 00:05:19.199 --> 00:05:21.740 it wasn't animals because nothing was chewed. 00:05:22.000 --> 00:05:25.990 I was gobsmacked. But if kids had done it, I 00:05:25.990 --> 00:05:28.870 don't think they would have risked or been bothered 00:05:28.870 --> 00:05:31.389 to go all the way back to the middle of nowhere 00:05:31.389 --> 00:05:34.529 to do it again. The area has never been an issue 00:05:34.529 --> 00:05:37.529 before for bored kids, and this is the first 00:05:37.529 --> 00:05:40.129 time that we've had such trouble in over 20 years 00:05:40.129 --> 00:05:43.709 of beekeeping. I believe whoever's done it had 00:05:43.709 --> 00:05:47.490 a motive for doing so. I think it's someone with 00:05:47.490 --> 00:05:50.829 a grudge. Alright, enough of that. Let's get 00:05:50.829 --> 00:05:55.879 to our guest. I'd like to welcome to the show 00:05:55.879 --> 00:05:58.839 today, one of the funnest beekeepers out there, 00:05:59.120 --> 00:06:02.839 Mr. Ed, how are you? Just doing great. Great, 00:06:02.980 --> 00:06:05.399 Eric. Thank you for inviting me on this evening. 00:06:05.519 --> 00:06:09.199 I really do appreciate it. I am a huge believer 00:06:09.199 --> 00:06:11.699 that beekeeping should be fun. And when you and 00:06:11.699 --> 00:06:14.519 I were talking the other day, I could tell you've 00:06:14.519 --> 00:06:16.899 got the same philosophy. In fact, I even wrote 00:06:16.899 --> 00:06:20.620 something down. You said beekeeping should be 00:06:20.620 --> 00:06:27.480 fun first. Yeah. Explain I make that a big point 00:06:27.480 --> 00:06:33.459 in my presentations because There's there's a 00:06:33.459 --> 00:06:36.839 lot of people who have never been beekeepers 00:06:36.839 --> 00:06:41.540 becoming beekeepers and There's some something 00:06:41.540 --> 00:06:46.160 Inspired them to want to become to keep bees 00:06:46.160 --> 00:06:51.399 to have bees something inspired them and A lot 00:06:51.399 --> 00:06:55.019 of people are very much aware of what was the 00:06:55.019 --> 00:06:59.740 impetus to begin being a beekeeper. But I think 00:06:59.740 --> 00:07:04.439 that the underlining reason that people do it 00:07:04.439 --> 00:07:08.600 is because they think it's going to be fun. That 00:07:08.600 --> 00:07:11.459 somewhere inside of them, they say this is going 00:07:11.459 --> 00:07:17.560 to be fun. Regardless of why you become a beekeeper, 00:07:18.300 --> 00:07:23.790 a particular element of that reason why is in 00:07:23.790 --> 00:07:26.970 your heart, in your mind, you said this is really 00:07:26.970 --> 00:07:33.110 going to be fun. So I stress that point of beekeeping 00:07:33.110 --> 00:07:38.129 should be fun all the time because all too often 00:07:38.129 --> 00:07:42.230 we get caught up in the particulars of keeping 00:07:42.230 --> 00:07:47.310 bees and that can be making you more aware of 00:07:47.310 --> 00:07:51.550 what has to be done instead of the fun that you 00:07:51.550 --> 00:07:55.389 should be having while you're doing it. And many 00:07:55.389 --> 00:07:59.670 beekeepers will lose that aspect of fun because 00:07:59.670 --> 00:08:04.889 they are so caught up with the particulars of 00:08:04.889 --> 00:08:08.350 being a beekeeper. People get so serious. I don't 00:08:08.350 --> 00:08:11.709 see many people having fun doing it. Oh yeah. 00:08:11.870 --> 00:08:14.170 And you know what? If you really love the bees, 00:08:14.170 --> 00:08:18.370 it really is fun. Yeah. But some people just 00:08:18.370 --> 00:08:21.230 put on their straight face and like, I'm not 00:08:21.230 --> 00:08:23.910 going to get stung no matter what today. And 00:08:23.910 --> 00:08:26.050 I've got to do this, this, this, this, and this. 00:08:26.269 --> 00:08:28.569 And the bees are going to cooperate either that, 00:08:28.569 --> 00:08:30.610 or they've got to have a PhD to do everything 00:08:30.610 --> 00:08:33.330 exactly right. And then it's easy to lose some 00:08:33.330 --> 00:08:36.330 of that fun aspect of it. So that's exactly right. 00:08:36.470 --> 00:08:39.169 That's exactly. Do you like to be called Mr. 00:08:39.190 --> 00:08:42.850 Ed? Oh yeah, that's definitely my name. Okay. 00:08:43.029 --> 00:08:45.730 By the way, for those of you listening that don't 00:08:45.730 --> 00:08:50.250 know Mr. Ed, He's like a god on YouTube. No, 00:08:50.389 --> 00:08:53.950 don't say that. 150 million subscribers or something? 00:08:54.190 --> 00:09:00.090 No, no, not 150 million. Okay, 150 plus thousand 00:09:00.090 --> 00:09:03.840 and that's really impressive. Right. but that's 00:09:03.840 --> 00:09:05.919 because you have an addictive personality and 00:09:05.919 --> 00:09:08.620 people just love you. So I appreciate you taking 00:09:08.620 --> 00:09:11.100 a few minutes to be with us today. Oh, Eric, 00:09:11.100 --> 00:09:13.399 I'm happy to be there. Like I said, I like to, 00:09:13.399 --> 00:09:16.019 I like to talk about bees. Just ask my wife. 00:09:16.299 --> 00:09:18.419 I like to talk about bees almost every chance 00:09:18.419 --> 00:09:22.659 I can because I find them so fascinating. I belong 00:09:22.659 --> 00:09:25.559 to two bee clubs and I go to the meetings every 00:09:25.559 --> 00:09:28.559 month, both, both of me. Cause I just like doing 00:09:28.559 --> 00:09:31.769 it. I like being around people. who are interested 00:09:31.769 --> 00:09:35.429 in bees, and I like hearing their stories of 00:09:35.429 --> 00:09:38.549 their experience of keeping bees, because each 00:09:38.549 --> 00:09:43.009 beekeeper's story is unique. We may follow same 00:09:43.009 --> 00:09:47.049 procedures, but the experience of that procedure 00:09:47.049 --> 00:09:50.789 is unique to the individual beekeeper. And those 00:09:50.789 --> 00:09:55.570 are what are so interesting to hear. Somebody's 00:09:55.570 --> 00:09:58.970 perspective, their perspective of the experience. 00:09:59.269 --> 00:10:03.700 That's... It's a great feeling to be around that, 00:10:04.019 --> 00:10:08.419 because when you hear it, when I hear it, it 00:10:08.419 --> 00:10:12.240 relives my experiences. So it's kind of like 00:10:12.240 --> 00:10:15.460 a drug feeding, you know, you're feeding your 00:10:15.460 --> 00:10:18.899 addictions, in a sense. Another thing that's 00:10:18.899 --> 00:10:22.200 amazing to me, speaking of unique, is how every 00:10:22.200 --> 00:10:26.330 colony can be unique. In what sense? Well, they 00:10:26.330 --> 00:10:28.870 have different personalities, they do things 00:10:28.870 --> 00:10:32.669 at different times. You may have two colonies 00:10:32.669 --> 00:10:35.830 that you brought up side -by -side, treated them 00:10:35.830 --> 00:10:38.590 exactly the same way, and all of a sudden one 00:10:38.590 --> 00:10:42.190 is swarming and the other's not. Or one is just 00:10:42.190 --> 00:10:44.509 happy to be there and practically give you a 00:10:44.509 --> 00:10:47.330 kiss when you do a hive inspection and the other 00:10:47.330 --> 00:10:50.330 not. And they're just all unique and different. 00:10:50.909 --> 00:10:53.070 And I'm sure they have a zillion similarities, 00:10:53.149 --> 00:10:56.740 but I love the uniqueness too. Right. I agree 00:10:56.740 --> 00:11:00.860 with what you're saying. It's true. I don't try 00:11:00.860 --> 00:11:05.879 to categorize bees in particular. It's generalized 00:11:05.879 --> 00:11:10.500 with them in the sense that how they behave. 00:11:10.899 --> 00:11:16.220 But I would say that every time I open up a wall 00:11:16.220 --> 00:11:20.799 or a ceiling or a floor or whatever where I have 00:11:20.799 --> 00:11:25.370 access to this colony, There's no doubt it is 00:11:25.370 --> 00:11:29.389 unique because I see something brand new every 00:11:29.389 --> 00:11:33.409 single time I open up an area to expose a beehive. 00:11:33.909 --> 00:11:39.190 And without fail, once that hive is exposed, 00:11:39.649 --> 00:11:43.610 I always, always, always just pause, just to 00:11:43.610 --> 00:11:46.549 take it in. It'll never be that again. And so 00:11:46.549 --> 00:11:48.730 this is the moment. That's, that's one of the 00:11:48.730 --> 00:11:51.350 things I also, another thing I talk about in 00:11:51.350 --> 00:11:56.059 my talks is Beekeeping gives the beekeeper the 00:11:56.059 --> 00:12:00.340 opportunity, the chance to live in the moment 00:12:00.340 --> 00:12:03.799 that you're on. That when you open up your box, 00:12:04.200 --> 00:12:07.879 there it is, right here. Well, you know, it's 00:12:07.879 --> 00:12:10.720 not going to do you any good if you're in your 00:12:10.720 --> 00:12:13.299 mind, you're back there worried about what you 00:12:13.299 --> 00:12:15.720 ate for lunch or how are you going to pay for 00:12:15.720 --> 00:12:19.580 your car note or your house note. If you're not 00:12:19.820 --> 00:12:23.440 present in the moment, you've already lost that 00:12:23.440 --> 00:12:27.179 uniqueness that you talk about. Keeping bees 00:12:27.179 --> 00:12:32.940 affords the beekeeper the opportunity to practice 00:12:32.940 --> 00:12:38.139 a lost trait that is living in the moment. Because 00:12:38.139 --> 00:12:42.000 that's where life is lived. It's not lived in 00:12:42.000 --> 00:12:44.519 the past. It's not lived in the future. It's 00:12:44.519 --> 00:12:48.580 in the present. It gives beekeepers the chance 00:12:48.580 --> 00:12:53.480 to train themselves to be present to what's in 00:12:53.480 --> 00:12:55.779 front of them. The whole rest of the world can 00:12:55.779 --> 00:13:00.500 disappear. All that your being is, is right in 00:13:00.500 --> 00:13:02.580 front of you. And this is one of the sayings 00:13:02.580 --> 00:13:07.340 I say quite often as my experience as a beekeeper 00:13:07.340 --> 00:13:12.720 is I lose myself in the wonder of the bees. So 00:13:12.720 --> 00:13:17.840 it's not, it's not I'm no longer Jeff, Mr. Ed, 00:13:18.299 --> 00:13:21.000 I'm present with the bees. And so in the sense, 00:13:21.059 --> 00:13:24.000 there's a communal thing going on that you're 00:13:24.000 --> 00:13:27.000 there with the bees and you can take all this 00:13:27.000 --> 00:13:30.139 stuff in and it happens in a blink of an eye. 00:13:30.500 --> 00:13:32.899 It's not like this is like some prolonged half 00:13:32.899 --> 00:13:36.460 an hour experience. It's a very quick thing because 00:13:36.460 --> 00:13:41.360 there is business to do at hand, but that pause 00:13:41.360 --> 00:13:47.879 to take this in and to live in that moment, there 00:13:47.879 --> 00:13:50.700 you go, that's beekeeping right there at its 00:13:50.700 --> 00:13:53.360 fullest, right there. That's great advice. Do 00:13:53.360 --> 00:13:56.080 you think that's why it's so therapeutic? For 00:13:56.080 --> 00:13:59.320 sure. It can be. You know, if they choose that, 00:13:59.440 --> 00:14:03.200 it can be. You know, like you said, people keep 00:14:03.200 --> 00:14:06.399 bees for varied reasons. You know, some people 00:14:06.399 --> 00:14:08.899 want the science of it. Some people want the 00:14:08.899 --> 00:14:12.960 honeys. You know, whatever their reason, it still 00:14:12.960 --> 00:14:16.399 doesn't change that there is the opportunity 00:14:16.399 --> 00:14:21.139 for that beekeeper to experience what is right 00:14:21.139 --> 00:14:24.120 in front of them to the fullest. That opportunity 00:14:24.120 --> 00:14:28.100 is there. Yeah, absolutely. You and I could talk 00:14:28.100 --> 00:14:31.360 for hours about everything with beekeeping. When 00:14:31.360 --> 00:14:34.080 we were chatting the other day, we kind of narrowed 00:14:34.080 --> 00:14:36.659 it down of what our topic is going to be tonight. 00:14:37.039 --> 00:14:40.700 And that is the importance of how to keep bees 00:14:40.700 --> 00:14:45.960 where you are. And for example, You're in Louisiana, 00:14:46.919 --> 00:14:50.039 deep south, I'm north in the mountains. We're 00:14:50.039 --> 00:14:52.759 doing things completely opposite. Our experience 00:14:52.759 --> 00:14:55.460 I should say is completely opposite although 00:14:55.460 --> 00:14:58.200 the bees aren't. Right. So we do need to learn 00:14:58.200 --> 00:15:01.379 about bees but we need to learn about beekeeping 00:15:01.379 --> 00:15:05.740 where we are and bee behavior where we are. Let's 00:15:05.740 --> 00:15:08.240 start it off by please explain what it's like 00:15:08.240 --> 00:15:12.360 where you are. So I live in southeast Louisiana. 00:15:12.809 --> 00:15:16.730 And like I told you when we spoke on Monday or 00:15:16.730 --> 00:15:21.690 the other day, I always think that this particular 00:15:21.690 --> 00:15:25.090 part of the United States, the Southeastern part 00:15:25.090 --> 00:15:28.450 of the United States, in some way we are isolated. 00:15:28.490 --> 00:15:32.669 We live like in a bubble because we aren't afflicted 00:15:32.669 --> 00:15:37.629 with a lot of the issues that are prevalent in 00:15:37.629 --> 00:15:41.159 other areas of the United States. in particularly 00:15:41.159 --> 00:15:44.000 the mite count, and it may be due to that mite 00:15:44.000 --> 00:15:48.360 count being lower than in other areas. We have 00:15:48.360 --> 00:15:53.059 a tremendous feral bee population in our area. 00:15:54.059 --> 00:15:59.559 That is due to habitat. We have tremendous expanses 00:15:59.559 --> 00:16:04.460 of marsh areas, lowlands, areas that are high 00:16:04.460 --> 00:16:08.309 in food. sources, resources for the bees, as 00:16:08.309 --> 00:16:12.049 well as habitat, water, protection. And so these 00:16:12.049 --> 00:16:16.330 things facilitate the growth of the feral bees, 00:16:16.629 --> 00:16:19.470 because for us here, particularly in my area, 00:16:19.730 --> 00:16:23.549 we're prone to flooding, high waters due to just 00:16:23.549 --> 00:16:27.870 because we're so low as our elevation. New Orleans, 00:16:28.049 --> 00:16:30.860 which is 50 miles from here, is their elevation 00:16:30.860 --> 00:16:33.559 is five feet below sea level, where my house 00:16:33.559 --> 00:16:36.519 is right here in the beta springs, I'm 27 feet. 00:16:36.600 --> 00:16:41.580 So we're very low. And we're very flat. So people 00:16:41.580 --> 00:16:46.879 tend to build houses elevated. And these elevated 00:16:46.879 --> 00:16:54.360 houses are just ideal situations for bees swarms 00:16:54.360 --> 00:16:58.919 to to find and then move into. And so Consequently, 00:16:59.440 --> 00:17:03.679 I'll probably do, I'd say I'll probably do about 00:17:03.679 --> 00:17:09.019 50 or 60 removals a year. And so many of them 00:17:09.019 --> 00:17:13.660 are in elevated houses because that's a great 00:17:13.660 --> 00:17:17.789 place for bees to find a new location. Quick 00:17:17.789 --> 00:17:20.349 break here to thank our presenting sponsor, Man 00:17:20.349 --> 00:17:23.190 Lake. Whether you're a beekeeper or not, you 00:17:23.190 --> 00:17:26.269 know that nutrition is key for healthy honeybees, 00:17:26.690 --> 00:17:29.730 native bees, and other pollinators. The Man Lake 00:17:29.730 --> 00:17:33.210 app is a great resource for determining pollinator 00:17:33.210 --> 00:17:36.069 -friendly plants that thrive in your area, and 00:17:36.069 --> 00:17:38.970 its plant identification feature is super helpful 00:17:38.970 --> 00:17:41.529 and fun. When I see a plant covered in bees, 00:17:41.849 --> 00:17:44.829 I fire up the app, find out what it is, then 00:17:44.829 --> 00:17:47.210 plant them in my yard. If you haven't already 00:17:47.210 --> 00:17:49.690 downloaded the Man Lake app, give it a try today. 00:17:50.190 --> 00:17:53.190 Oh, and did I mention it's free? And if you're 00:17:53.190 --> 00:17:55.809 shopping for beekeeping supplies, don't forget 00:17:55.809 --> 00:17:58.829 your discount code MLBlove10. It's in the show 00:17:58.829 --> 00:18:04.089 notes for $10 off your first $100 purchase. And 00:18:04.089 --> 00:18:09.970 plus we have with our climate of warm weather, 00:18:11.029 --> 00:18:14.789 almost subtropical weather all year round. our 00:18:14.789 --> 00:18:19.470 bees fly. The coldest months are always January 00:18:19.470 --> 00:18:22.869 and February. Other than that, even our winters 00:18:22.869 --> 00:18:26.430 we might get four days of temperatures below 00:18:26.430 --> 00:18:31.710 20, maybe, but it's not all the time. So it's 00:18:31.710 --> 00:18:36.309 very mild temperatures and so our bees fly almost 00:18:36.309 --> 00:18:39.309 all year round. So of course you need to have 00:18:39.309 --> 00:18:43.680 a lot of stores for your bees to be able to let 00:18:43.680 --> 00:18:47.200 them do that. And with the food resources in 00:18:47.200 --> 00:18:51.180 our area, that's generally not an issue. You 00:18:51.180 --> 00:18:55.539 mentioned mite count. Do your colonies have small 00:18:55.539 --> 00:18:59.099 mite counts, just naturally? Like I told you 00:18:59.099 --> 00:19:02.319 before, I don't treat. I'm treatment -free. I've 00:19:02.319 --> 00:19:05.640 never treated. I know that the only time I really 00:19:05.640 --> 00:19:09.160 go into my hives is to when I split them and 00:19:09.160 --> 00:19:13.099 when I collect rent. So when I split them, I 00:19:13.099 --> 00:19:17.140 check the drone brood because that's in the burr 00:19:17.140 --> 00:19:19.680 comb. When I separate the hives, I look in there 00:19:19.680 --> 00:19:24.839 and I'm gonna find some mites in there, but two, 00:19:24.839 --> 00:19:28.539 three, it's not overrun by mites. And I don't 00:19:28.539 --> 00:19:31.900 do mite washes. I don't check. I allow the bees 00:19:31.900 --> 00:19:35.900 to take care of themselves. I lose hives, but 00:19:35.900 --> 00:19:40.890 our losses, this last year we had about it wasn't 00:19:40.890 --> 00:19:45.250 bad last year about 20 21 percent uh hive loss 00:19:45.250 --> 00:19:48.549 you have so many swarms and do so much splitting 00:19:48.549 --> 00:19:53.369 it's easy to make that up oh yeah i i always 00:19:53.369 --> 00:19:56.450 whatever my losses are i make up with splits 00:19:56.450 --> 00:20:00.609 over what i lost you called yourself to me a 00:20:00.609 --> 00:20:04.990 hands -off beekeeper oh yeah i am and i have 00:20:04.990 --> 00:20:08.440 to get this out there okay And even though I 00:20:08.440 --> 00:20:12.220 totally respect everybody's different beekeeping 00:20:12.220 --> 00:20:16.380 style or approach or philosophy, what you do, 00:20:16.619 --> 00:20:19.799 hands off, doesn't work everywhere. I just want 00:20:19.799 --> 00:20:22.460 people to know that. If you try that where I 00:20:22.460 --> 00:20:25.339 am, your bees are dead. That's just his life. 00:20:25.839 --> 00:20:29.940 Okay? I've tried, it doesn't work. It is hard 00:20:29.940 --> 00:20:33.240 enough when we're really keeping track of Varroa 00:20:33.240 --> 00:20:36.339 to get your bees through winter when they can't 00:20:36.339 --> 00:20:39.119 fly for a few months and the temperatures are 00:20:39.119 --> 00:20:42.279 below zero every night and there's two or three 00:20:42.279 --> 00:20:46.180 feet of snow on the ground. Okay but I'm jealous. 00:20:46.400 --> 00:20:48.839 I wish I could be more of a hands -free beekeeper 00:20:48.839 --> 00:20:51.059 because I could do a lot more of it that way 00:20:51.059 --> 00:20:54.200 and it just I don't know just sounds a little 00:20:54.200 --> 00:20:56.759 more fun and carefree versus some of the worries 00:20:56.759 --> 00:21:01.980 we have here. I think it is just the area that 00:21:01.980 --> 00:21:06.420 I'm in allows me that freedom. And I also add 00:21:06.420 --> 00:21:09.000 on to every time I say, you know, I'm a hands 00:21:09.000 --> 00:21:11.960 -off beekeeper, that I don't recommend you doing 00:21:11.960 --> 00:21:15.279 that. You know, that's the way it works for me 00:21:15.279 --> 00:21:18.599 here. I'm not gonna say it's gonna work for anybody 00:21:18.599 --> 00:21:21.559 else where they live. It works for me. And that's 00:21:21.559 --> 00:21:24.539 really, like you said, just when we started, 00:21:24.960 --> 00:21:28.680 you have to learn how to keep bees. where you 00:21:28.680 --> 00:21:32.279 live. It's that simple. You can't expect to have 00:21:32.279 --> 00:21:35.339 your bees survive keeping your bees if you live 00:21:35.339 --> 00:21:38.279 in Minnesota the way that I keep them here in 00:21:38.279 --> 00:21:41.700 Louisiana. It's not going to work. It's not going 00:21:41.700 --> 00:21:45.160 to work. I'm blessed. I don't have to do all 00:21:45.160 --> 00:21:48.259 the things most beekeepers have to do to keep 00:21:48.259 --> 00:21:51.819 our hives going. They just do it by themselves. 00:21:52.259 --> 00:21:54.880 Let's address newer beekeepers for a minute. 00:21:55.259 --> 00:21:58.309 How do they learn? I mean, you're saying you 00:21:58.309 --> 00:22:00.690 got to learn how to do it in your area. What 00:22:00.690 --> 00:22:02.990 is your recommendation on how they learn to do 00:22:02.990 --> 00:22:08.450 that? I think that basic tools that every beekeeper 00:22:08.450 --> 00:22:12.809 needs to be aware of to have particular successes 00:22:12.809 --> 00:22:17.650 doing bees. The first one is they have to know 00:22:17.650 --> 00:22:21.170 bee biology. They have to have an understanding 00:22:21.170 --> 00:22:27.490 of bees and how they operate, how they grow, 00:22:27.609 --> 00:22:32.950 how their life cycles are, the particular aspects. 00:22:33.190 --> 00:22:36.829 Because of all the different ways of keeping 00:22:36.829 --> 00:22:40.130 bees, of all the varied ways of keeping them, 00:22:40.589 --> 00:22:45.150 bee biology does not change. It's the one constant 00:22:45.150 --> 00:22:50.329 of everything, bee biology. So as a new beekeeper, 00:22:50.670 --> 00:22:55.950 that would be paramount in becoming successful. 00:22:56.200 --> 00:23:01.920 learning bee biology, followed closely by learning 00:23:01.920 --> 00:23:06.200 what is the nectar sources, what is blooms in 00:23:06.200 --> 00:23:10.700 nature, at what time, so that you can coordinate 00:23:10.700 --> 00:23:13.920 what you need to get done in your bee hives, 00:23:14.039 --> 00:23:17.680 so that they can stay in pace with what's going 00:23:17.680 --> 00:23:20.960 on in nature. Because it's all in all of beekeeping, 00:23:21.259 --> 00:23:24.789 particularly with raising nukes to sell or honey 00:23:24.789 --> 00:23:28.109 processing, building up a honey production, it's 00:23:28.109 --> 00:23:34.630 all about timing. If you're not aware of a time 00:23:34.630 --> 00:23:37.809 pattern in your beekeeping, you're not going 00:23:37.809 --> 00:23:40.470 to ever really go beyond a certain point. You 00:23:40.470 --> 00:23:43.210 may always have bees and they may always be in 00:23:43.210 --> 00:23:46.470 a yard, but you're not going to get the growth, 00:23:46.970 --> 00:23:50.250 the potential of doing it. So you have to... 00:23:49.920 --> 00:23:52.299 You have to be aware of biology. You have to 00:23:52.299 --> 00:23:55.359 be aware of the growing on what's in nature. 00:23:55.559 --> 00:23:59.420 And you have to be aware that it's all in timing. 00:23:59.480 --> 00:24:03.460 You have a very, very, very, very small window 00:24:03.460 --> 00:24:06.960 to get your bees up and going. And then then 00:24:06.960 --> 00:24:10.720 you can kind of like slack off. But it's very 00:24:10.720 --> 00:24:16.019 intense in those that early spring time. And 00:24:16.019 --> 00:24:18.859 you better be ready for it if you want to have 00:24:18.859 --> 00:24:22.579 success. Give me an example. For example, you 00:24:22.579 --> 00:24:26.339 do splits at what time and why? What's the nectar 00:24:26.339 --> 00:24:30.319 flow going on? I start our splits. So for us 00:24:30.319 --> 00:24:34.079 in Louisiana, and again, it's very unique, our 00:24:34.079 --> 00:24:37.920 red maples and willows are blooming and it can 00:24:37.920 --> 00:24:41.519 be as early as early December to mid December. 00:24:41.799 --> 00:24:46.940 Our first food sources for the bees are in December, 00:24:47.259 --> 00:24:50.920 December, January, right? So And I talk about 00:24:50.920 --> 00:24:55.380 this in my talks. And again, this aspect of what 00:24:55.380 --> 00:24:58.980 beginning beekeepers should be aware of, it all 00:24:58.980 --> 00:25:03.779 starts with the winter solstice. So the moment, 00:25:04.059 --> 00:25:08.460 December 22nd, which is the shortest day, the 00:25:08.460 --> 00:25:11.680 shortest amount of daylight hours in a day, after 00:25:11.680 --> 00:25:15.519 December 22nd, it incrementally gets longer. 00:25:15.839 --> 00:25:19.589 Daylight becomes longer. So as the daylight becomes 00:25:19.589 --> 00:25:23.930 longer, then nature starts coming alive at that 00:25:23.930 --> 00:25:29.009 point. So if you, as a beekeeper, can understand 00:25:29.009 --> 00:25:33.690 this concept that what's going on in nature is 00:25:33.690 --> 00:25:37.529 going on, it's going on in your beehive as well. 00:25:37.809 --> 00:25:43.349 So as this daylight hour is increasing, photosynthesis, 00:25:43.549 --> 00:25:46.779 the trees are making leaves. photosynthesis getting 00:25:46.779 --> 00:25:51.420 ready to happen, the bees are now starting to 00:25:51.420 --> 00:25:55.319 build up. Our queen is laying in December. In 00:25:55.319 --> 00:25:58.099 early December, she's already laying because 00:25:58.099 --> 00:26:01.799 once that willow pollen starts coming in, boom, 00:26:01.859 --> 00:26:05.440 she's going to start up again. So with the start 00:26:05.440 --> 00:26:09.539 of the daylight hours increasing, then the start 00:26:09.539 --> 00:26:13.859 of the whole process of splitting our hives begins 00:26:13.859 --> 00:26:17.650 because I'm already mid -February, I'm going 00:26:17.650 --> 00:26:21.029 into my hives, inspecting them to see if I've 00:26:21.029 --> 00:26:24.109 got swarm cells in there. So it's interesting. 00:26:25.009 --> 00:26:28.309 There's a few things that I go into a hive to 00:26:28.309 --> 00:26:31.990 tell me what's going on outside of the hive. 00:26:32.369 --> 00:26:35.250 And so I go in that hive and I can see, yeah, 00:26:35.250 --> 00:26:37.170 well, we're starting to get brood production. 00:26:37.910 --> 00:26:39.890 We're getting a little bit of pollen, a little 00:26:39.890 --> 00:26:45.420 bit of nectars coming in. But it's just a buildup. 00:26:45.519 --> 00:26:49.440 It's a very, very gradual, slow buildup. And 00:26:49.440 --> 00:26:52.940 I don't even start worrying about anything until 00:26:52.940 --> 00:26:57.279 I see drone brood being produced in the hive. 00:26:57.619 --> 00:27:01.819 Because once you see drone brood production starting, 00:27:02.759 --> 00:27:07.640 it's getting ready to start. You're still two 00:27:07.640 --> 00:27:10.960 weeks, three weeks away from it happening, but 00:27:10.960 --> 00:27:14.319 it's getting ready to happen. So, this is the 00:27:14.319 --> 00:27:17.220 time as beginner beekeepers, you need to have 00:27:17.220 --> 00:27:22.039 everything set up in preparation for what's coming. 00:27:22.119 --> 00:27:25.980 Now, for me, it's February, but where you are, 00:27:26.140 --> 00:27:29.440 that's probably not until April probably, right? 00:27:29.980 --> 00:27:33.059 Yeah. Yeah, we're lucky if we see bees flying 00:27:33.059 --> 00:27:35.740 if they have a few warm days in March. Otherwise, 00:27:35.940 --> 00:27:39.329 it's April before they can even get out. Yeah, 00:27:39.329 --> 00:27:42.650 so again like what you said before you have to 00:27:42.650 --> 00:27:48.690 know keep bees specific to your area and And 00:27:48.690 --> 00:27:51.910 I preach this all the time at our clubs that 00:27:51.910 --> 00:27:56.109 you know if you want honey if you're not Haven't 00:27:56.109 --> 00:28:00.029 made your splits by the middle of March You ain't 00:28:00.029 --> 00:28:03.509 gonna get no money you get some but if you want 00:28:03.509 --> 00:28:07.160 honey production you had better have your hives 00:28:07.160 --> 00:28:11.039 split before March 15th, because if you're not 00:28:11.039 --> 00:28:13.579 split before March 15th, well, at least the ones 00:28:13.579 --> 00:28:18.380 that can be split, then more than likely, your 00:28:18.380 --> 00:28:21.400 hives are gonna swarm on you. You gotta be ahead 00:28:21.400 --> 00:28:23.900 of them so they don't swarm on you, because if 00:28:23.900 --> 00:28:26.839 they swarm on you, there goes your honey. That's 00:28:26.839 --> 00:28:30.640 the biggest fear for me is losing that primary 00:28:30.640 --> 00:28:34.180 swarm, because that's my old queen, and that's 00:28:34.180 --> 00:28:37.470 where my honey is. with my old queen. Yeah. And 00:28:37.470 --> 00:28:39.930 where beekeeper A is, maybe a couple of weeks 00:28:39.930 --> 00:28:42.390 behind you or maybe a couple of months behind 00:28:42.390 --> 00:28:45.710 you. I have found that it's also really interesting. 00:28:46.329 --> 00:28:50.789 It's made me a lot more observant of things like 00:28:50.789 --> 00:28:54.789 nectar flows because when I first got into beekeeping 00:28:54.789 --> 00:28:58.069 many years ago, I read all this stuff about the 00:28:58.069 --> 00:29:00.829 dandelions are going to be the first thing that 00:29:00.829 --> 00:29:03.390 they're going to be able to forage on. Right. 00:29:04.269 --> 00:29:06.940 Well, We have lots of dandelions around here. 00:29:07.099 --> 00:29:11.000 I never see bees on them. Well, why is that? 00:29:11.920 --> 00:29:14.079 Because they found something they like better. 00:29:14.579 --> 00:29:17.039 That's exactly right. Something easier for them 00:29:17.039 --> 00:29:20.720 to get than dandelions. So then I'm like, okay, 00:29:20.779 --> 00:29:22.960 well, there's nothing else down at ground level. 00:29:23.240 --> 00:29:26.779 It's got to be these trees or those trees. Even 00:29:26.779 --> 00:29:29.200 though they don't have flowers, bright flowers 00:29:29.200 --> 00:29:32.859 like an apple tree or something, they have flowers 00:29:32.859 --> 00:29:36.170 and that's where those bees are going or some 00:29:36.170 --> 00:29:39.069 shrub or something which is what i said earlier 00:29:39.069 --> 00:29:42.809 about learning what's in your area and when it 00:29:42.809 --> 00:29:45.230 blooms because you're going to be a better beekeeper 00:29:45.230 --> 00:29:49.470 if you know those things absolutely hey i don't 00:29:49.470 --> 00:29:53.990 think i warned you about this uh ed but everybody 00:29:53.990 --> 00:29:56.710 that comes on the show gets to tell their favorite 00:29:56.710 --> 00:30:01.089 wild and crazy beekeeping story Now this can 00:30:01.089 --> 00:30:03.509 be something that happened to you that is painful 00:30:03.509 --> 00:30:07.509 or embarrassing or just super, super unusual. 00:30:07.630 --> 00:30:10.369 Can you think of anything like that? Well, you 00:30:10.369 --> 00:30:11.809 should have told me that before where I could 00:30:11.809 --> 00:30:15.329 have thought of it. I'm guessing you have a thousand 00:30:15.329 --> 00:30:17.450 of them and the hard part is narrowing it down. 00:30:17.650 --> 00:30:22.589 There's not a lot of real things that man, it's 00:30:22.589 --> 00:30:25.970 like a well actually like catching that Mark 00:30:25.970 --> 00:30:29.839 Queen. That was a big deal. That was. Tell everybody 00:30:29.839 --> 00:30:32.200 about that. That was before we were recording. 00:30:32.700 --> 00:30:35.640 It is it's a great story. So I have been keeping 00:30:35.640 --> 00:30:40.859 bees since 1978 and As I said, I'm a hands -off 00:30:40.859 --> 00:30:43.920 beekeeper. So I don't mark Queens. I mean, I 00:30:43.920 --> 00:30:46.579 know what they are I've seen them in other people's 00:30:46.579 --> 00:30:51.960 hives my theory on Mark Queens is if you mark 00:30:51.960 --> 00:30:54.519 you Queen if a beekeeper marks their Queen particularly 00:30:54.519 --> 00:30:59.809 a new beekeeper Gets a mark Queen The only thing 00:30:59.809 --> 00:31:03.529 that Mark Queen does for that beekeeper is say, 00:31:03.789 --> 00:31:05.509 I'm going to go into my hive and see if I can 00:31:05.509 --> 00:31:07.710 find my queen. And I think that's the worst thing 00:31:07.710 --> 00:31:10.410 you can do is to open up your hive just to go 00:31:10.410 --> 00:31:13.589 find your queen. It's terrible. So it's like 00:31:13.589 --> 00:31:16.009 she's got this mark on it and you can find her. 00:31:16.230 --> 00:31:19.769 Well, it makes it easier. Well, I don't agree 00:31:19.769 --> 00:31:23.890 with that philosophy. So I don't mark my queens. 00:31:24.309 --> 00:31:28.269 And I've been doing removals For 15 years, I've 00:31:28.269 --> 00:31:30.670 been doing removals, going to people's houses, 00:31:30.869 --> 00:31:35.250 taking them out, catching swarms. I've been doing 00:31:35.250 --> 00:31:41.170 that 2011. So it's 14 years. 2009 is when I started 00:31:41.170 --> 00:31:45.250 doing that. And two weeks ago, we did a removal 00:31:45.250 --> 00:31:50.210 across the lake about 40 miles away. And it was 00:31:50.210 --> 00:31:54.490 a apartment complex in a big metropolitan area. 00:31:55.599 --> 00:31:58.980 removing the comb. And I take a lot of care when 00:31:58.980 --> 00:32:01.640 I'm removing the comb to locate the queen because 00:32:01.640 --> 00:32:04.519 I think it's very important to make sure she 00:32:04.519 --> 00:32:07.460 is safe when I do removal. So I take a lot of 00:32:07.460 --> 00:32:11.880 care to locate her. And I probably find her 85 00:32:11.880 --> 00:32:14.500 % of the time when I do a removal, I'll locate 00:32:14.500 --> 00:32:18.640 the queen and cage her. So I'm doing the removal, 00:32:19.339 --> 00:32:22.279 open up the wall, start cutting out the comb. 00:32:22.539 --> 00:32:26.079 I cut out a huge piece of comb. and I start vacuuming 00:32:26.079 --> 00:32:29.160 the bees off of it and there's the queen running 00:32:29.160 --> 00:32:32.019 around and she's got a big blue dot on her and 00:32:32.019 --> 00:32:35.480 so I was I said look at this I got a marked queen 00:32:35.480 --> 00:32:40.000 I've never ever seen that and I know that 2025 00:32:40.000 --> 00:32:44.559 is is blue supposed to be blue so there's no 00:32:44.559 --> 00:32:49.579 way that this was a 2025 queen that swarmed and 00:32:49.579 --> 00:32:52.480 then was developing so it was just somebody had 00:32:52.480 --> 00:32:56.390 marked the queen With that color cuz that those 00:32:56.390 --> 00:32:59.670 bees had probably been in the wall since probably 00:32:59.670 --> 00:33:03.109 February or March they've been in that wall based 00:33:03.109 --> 00:33:07.730 on the comb age of the comb. So It was not a 00:33:07.730 --> 00:33:11.869 2025 queen, but it was a marked queen and that 00:33:11.869 --> 00:33:17.369 was very very unique That absolutely is. All 00:33:17.369 --> 00:33:20.250 right before I let you go if anybody's wondering 00:33:20.619 --> 00:33:23.480 Hey, where is the fun in beekeeping? Where has 00:33:23.480 --> 00:33:26.559 it gone? Hey, give us some advice. Where is it? 00:33:26.720 --> 00:33:32.500 And with that, why do you love bees? So, I keep 00:33:32.500 --> 00:33:36.079 the bees for a group of Benedictine monks here 00:33:36.079 --> 00:33:38.779 in Covington. I'm their beekeeper, right? Before 00:33:38.779 --> 00:33:41.980 we even had bees at the Abbey, I was discerning 00:33:41.980 --> 00:33:46.359 to become a monk myself. So, I was going to be 00:33:46.359 --> 00:33:51.109 a monk. Part of the... the work of monks is, 00:33:51.190 --> 00:33:53.890 you know, you, you have jobs and I've always 00:33:53.890 --> 00:33:56.430 been a woodworker. So I was already involved 00:33:56.430 --> 00:34:00.529 in their, in their casket building and the bees 00:34:00.529 --> 00:34:03.829 would then be a further job that I would be assigned 00:34:03.829 --> 00:34:08.409 to as a monk. So I developed the bee program 00:34:08.409 --> 00:34:13.289 over there. And with the aim of that being my 00:34:13.289 --> 00:34:17.480 job when I was a monk and So one of the things 00:34:17.480 --> 00:34:20.159 that happened, and the question is, so you have 00:34:20.159 --> 00:34:23.400 to know that part about me, that I had aspirations 00:34:23.400 --> 00:34:27.800 and desires of becoming a monk. In that monastic 00:34:27.800 --> 00:34:32.380 life, prayer is a very, very, it's like half 00:34:32.380 --> 00:34:37.159 of being a monk is a prayer life. And what I 00:34:37.159 --> 00:34:41.059 learned through the prayer life of the monks 00:34:41.059 --> 00:34:44.880 is a spiritual relation with bees. In other words, 00:34:45.230 --> 00:34:49.230 The bees were no longer just these bugs in a 00:34:49.230 --> 00:34:53.210 box, but rather they were the creation, the work 00:34:53.210 --> 00:34:58.610 of God. And in bees, I see the hand of God. And 00:34:58.610 --> 00:35:02.269 for me, because you asked me what it is, this 00:35:02.269 --> 00:35:07.269 is the fun of beekeeping, because when I work 00:35:07.269 --> 00:35:12.650 bees, I'm not doing work, I'm doing prayer. Because 00:35:12.650 --> 00:35:18.440 for me, it's a very spiritual experience, not 00:35:18.440 --> 00:35:24.360 just a physical act that's going on. It's a twofold 00:35:24.360 --> 00:35:29.079 part and it becomes, beekeeping becomes more 00:35:29.079 --> 00:35:32.940 meaningful through this act of offering of, it 00:35:32.940 --> 00:35:36.179 becomes prayer. Your work becomes the prayer. 00:35:36.579 --> 00:35:41.139 So why would I want to make my prayer anything 00:35:41.139 --> 00:35:44.960 but the best it can be? So I want it a good offering 00:35:44.960 --> 00:35:48.760 so when I work bees this is the best I'm at my 00:35:48.760 --> 00:35:52.179 best I want to do my best because this is how 00:35:52.179 --> 00:35:55.960 I praise God through this work so that for me 00:35:55.960 --> 00:36:01.380 is the fun part and that that is what keeps my 00:36:01.380 --> 00:36:04.460 aspect of why I'm a beekeeper for so many years 00:36:04.460 --> 00:36:08.619 alive because every time I'm doing it it's new 00:36:08.619 --> 00:36:13.309 every time I open it up it's new I don't see 00:36:13.309 --> 00:36:16.849 the same oh, same oh, even though it is, because 00:36:16.849 --> 00:36:21.769 I see it as a prayer, as offering, and as such, 00:36:21.909 --> 00:36:25.190 it's a beautiful thing, and I'm part of that. 00:36:25.710 --> 00:36:30.769 And therein lies also my joy, my happiness, my 00:36:30.769 --> 00:36:33.730 fulfillment, because I am fulfilled in doing 00:36:33.730 --> 00:36:37.769 this. Each beekeeper has their own philosophies 00:36:37.769 --> 00:36:42.380 on why they keep bees, but It is the individual 00:36:42.380 --> 00:36:48.199 philosophy that also gives the beekeepers longevity 00:36:48.199 --> 00:36:52.420 of being a beekeeper, purpose, and direction. 00:36:52.920 --> 00:36:58.199 It goes way beyond just bees. Many, many, many, 00:36:58.480 --> 00:37:02.440 many of my friends, fellow beekeepers, it is 00:37:02.440 --> 00:37:06.420 an experience of prayer, of seeing God in the 00:37:06.420 --> 00:37:10.380 bees. I don't talk about it a lot, but it's just 00:37:10.380 --> 00:37:16.360 a very, I think, unspoken thing in Beekeepers, 00:37:16.519 --> 00:37:19.760 because we have a hard time putting the exact 00:37:19.760 --> 00:37:23.679 words to why we do it. But for me, it's very 00:37:23.679 --> 00:37:28.460 specific why. And I try to portray that, even 00:37:28.460 --> 00:37:31.500 though I don't talk about it in my videos, that's 00:37:31.500 --> 00:37:34.940 what I try to portray, that if you can see the 00:37:34.940 --> 00:37:38.280 joy that's inside of me when I'm doing this, 00:37:38.639 --> 00:37:41.599 the reason behind that joy is because it's an 00:37:41.599 --> 00:37:44.280 offering, and I'm praising God by what my work 00:37:44.280 --> 00:37:48.420 is. That is so beautiful. Wow, best answer I've 00:37:48.420 --> 00:37:51.159 ever had to that question by a mile. You'll get 00:37:51.159 --> 00:37:53.860 better. They'll get better ones. Mr. Ed, Jeff 00:37:53.860 --> 00:37:56.440 Horchoff, thank you so much for being with me 00:37:56.440 --> 00:37:58.800 today. Oh, thank you so much for inviting me, 00:37:58.840 --> 00:38:03.469 Eric. Thank you. God bless you, brother. Thanks 00:38:03.469 --> 00:38:05.650 again for joining us here on Be Love, Be Keep 00:38:05.650 --> 00:38:09.469 being presented by Man Lake. Remember right now 00:38:09.469 --> 00:38:12.530 to follow or subscribe and share this podcast. 00:38:13.090 --> 00:38:16.090 Also a shout out to Vita B Health for their support 00:38:16.090 --> 00:38:19.750 of the show. Vita's Varroa Control range of products 00:38:19.750 --> 00:38:24.510 includes Apistan, Apigard, and now Varroxan Extended 00:38:24.510 --> 00:38:27.690 Release Oxalic Acids Trips. Hey, thanks guys. 00:38:27.809 --> 00:38:30.809 We really appreciate it. Enjoy this beautiful 00:38:30.809 --> 00:38:33.829 summer, enjoy your bees and remember, if you're 00:38:33.829 --> 00:38:36.710 not just in it for the honey or the money, you're 00:38:36.710 --> 00:38:38.710 in it for the love. See you next week.