Honeybees make fun beesness

The golden age of beekeeping may be over.

But for some, pollinator appreciation will never die.

Timm Ott is one such apiarist and pollinator advocate. Although busy with his day job as a bug farmer working with wastewater management, and side hobbies like coaching, Ott also owns Post Falls Honey Co.

Although Ott does not consider himself an “old timer” in the beekeeping world, he has been at it for a while – starting over 30 years ago as a teenager 28 miles up the St. Joe River.

After taking a hiatus in his youth, he picked up again several years ago – to spend quality time with his daughter Evelyn. That’s got to be a new one for summer vacation essays.

“I think when you become a beekeeper you're kind of always a beekeeper. The love for it is always there and so it was about six years ago now, five or six seasons ago, I got back into it with my little girl.”

“So we just started raising bees together.”

Beekeeping in North Idaho has changed since then, Ott says. It’s harder for bees to survive, which means apiarists like Ott have to take more measures to protect their bees, and there’s more uncertainty involved.

That’s the hard part for new beekeeper, Kate Thomas, a nurse who also has a side business of natural tonics, cosmetics, and skin care products.

“You can work and work and do all the right things, or to the best of your ability all the right things, and you might have your hive swarm… That coupled with disease and pest management, overwintering - all those aspects that are super uncertain,” she said.

For one thing, the varroa mite has moved into the area since the late ‘90s and early 2000s. These parasitic creatures are known to decimate hives.

Once local beekeepers caught on to their presence, Ott says, they learned to medicate against them.

“We never used to treat our bees in the old days, but we have to now because of all of the pests that are introduced to our bees,” he said.

There’s also maintaining hives to be sure they have enough room to grow, among other factors, says Ott. A lack of proper space to expand can cause them to swarm – which means abandoning the hive as well.

It takes a lot of work in spring to prevent swarming and make sure colonies are well taken care of.

And when the last of the honey is pulled (or harvested) in early September, there’s making sure to replace the “deeps” – or frame inserts used in the Langstroth beekeeping method common in the area – that are removed with honey, so the colony can continue expanding later.

Beekeepers also have to gauge how much honey to leave with the hive for their winter survival. The hive does not shut down for winter. Instead, “winter bees,” which queens are laying now, will keep the hive, brood, and queen warm.

Some apiarists provide insulation or take other measures to help colonies survive winters before cold weather hits.

“You're investing a lot of time and money and emotional energy into something that does not come with a guarantee,” said Thomas.

Thomas just started keeping bees this spring, though she said she’s spent about two years studying and preparing.

“It's a big, huge – very, very huge – learning curve for sure and everyone has a different opinion about the right and wrong way to do things.”

She hopes one day to source the honey and beeswax she uses in her products from her own backyard. But for now, she’s working on establishing her hive, and managing the small business during COVID-19.

At least the beekeeping is fun, she says.

“It was intimidating… and now it's just kind of fun and this window into a whole other planet,” said Thomas.

“You're looking at this little village of bees that are working together for the greater good so to speak. It's a very fun window into a world that we don't see every day.”

But such passion and drive isn’t necessarily the rule nowadays.

Coming back to beekeeping, Ott has noticed that for some, their heart isn’t in it the way it used to be. Some newer beekeepers don’t put the effort into nurturing their colonies or their genetics.

“It used to be in the old days you really had a passion for it… and you try to do the best for your colonies,” he said. “[Now some] don’t treat their bees like they should.”

“Instead of trying to make the best genetics that they can, they'll just kill their queens. They'll pinch them.... It's super expendable and it's unfortunate.”

Another big change – which is reportedly affecting bees across the country – is the growing use of pesticides.

“The pesticides are called the neonics – (or) neonicatoids - tha'ts a big one that's harming our bees,” he said.

That’s why Ott is grateful for good neighbors, like the farmer who shares the border of his north yard, who gives him a heads-up before spraying pesticides on nearby crops.

“It's huge, especially when farmers do that for you,” said Ott. “So I have to work with him and those are the days I have to cage my bees in for a day.”

Although he may lose a few bees who get upset and desperate to leave, the apiarist says it’s worth it to protect most of the hive from dragging poison in – and losing the whole colony.

Still, you never know where a bee’s been, which is why Ott says you can’t guarantee even when untreated that honey like his is truly pesticide-free.

“So when I drive by a giant field of knapweed and it's in full bloom I think, ‘Huh, I wonder how many of my bees are out there?’”

“Unfortunately, I also have to think, ‘I wonder if anyone’s sprayed that.’”

“That's why I can’t say my bees are pesticide free, and nor will I.”

It isn’t always the treated fields that get bees, either. Common weedkillers like roundup are toxic to the little pollinators.

“A lot of people don’t really realize the detriment of using roundup and pesticides on their lawn and how it's killing off the bee population,” Thomas said.

“So everybody is dumping round-up on all of their dandelions because they don’t want these dandelions that are ‘awful' in their yard,” Ott added.

“But the dandelion is the first flower and the first bit of nectar up and it's the first thing that the bees can bring in for them to start raising their babies.”

Ott says he golden age of beekeeping is over because of such loss of habitat, pesticides, and other things killing honeybees so necessary to the food chain.

On the bright side, local homeowners and gardeners do lend the bees a hand with their seasonal plantings, although perhaps without realizing it.

Ott has noticed that when people plant their gardens around here, they tend to plant “for the season,” often providing blooms that will pop up or stick around later in the pollinating season – meaning a later food source for honeybees.

“One of the beautiful things about keeping bees in the city – Coeur d’Alene, Hayden, Post Falls – in our little tri-metro area here, everyone plants for the season. And because they plant for the season, there's typically forage for the bees later in the year, [those] that need it.”

That’s a win-win for people and bees alike, as without these buzzing creatures our food supply would be in trouble. Same goes for knapweed.

Ott also says the knapweed “that everybody hates” and often tries to kill with chemicals, has one of the best flowers around here for bees.

It also makes a hearty, full-flavored honey perfect for autumn.