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Almond Pollination Contract 2015
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Have your almond pollination contract in place by the end of the summer - at the latest! In 2015, it will take 1.7M honey bee colonies to pollinate the almond crop alone. A contract template can be accessed on the PAm website. Click here.
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PAm Now Has a Satellite Office in Shafter, CA!
PAm will now have a presence in one of the richest pollinated-crop areas of the US. Beginning this month, PAm will have office space at the Shafter Research Station.The area around Shafter is home to more than 300,000 honey bee colonies each February and March. PAm's main address is still Paso Robles, CA, but Shafter will allow us to have additional resources in a key honey bee and research area.
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Beekeeping Events
2014 - 2015
It's time to plan for beekeeping club meetings and conferences. Registration is open for several events. Visit our 'Events' page for direct links.
Western Apicultural Society
September 17 - 20, 2014
Doubletree on the River
Missoula, MT
14th Annual North American Pollinator Protection Campaign International Conference - NAPPC
October 21 - 23, 2014
Washington, D.C.
The Russians Are Coming:
Migratory Beekeeping, Almond Pollination & Honey Production
October 25 - 26, 2014
Bee Culture Conference Center
Medina, OH
2014 California State Beekeepers Association - 125th Annual
November 18th - 20th, 2014
Hyatt Regency
Valencia, CA
Idaho Honey Association Meeting
December 4 - 5, 2014
Boise, ID
Almond Board Conference
December 9 - 11, 2014
Sacramento, CA
North American Beekeeping (ABF) Conference and Tradeshow
January 6 - 10, 2015
Disneyland Hotel
Anaheim, CA
American Honey Producers (AHPA) Convention & Tradeshow
January 6 - 10, 2015
Manhattan Beach Marriott
Manhattan Beach, CA
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Honey Bee Forage Plant
Great Valley Gumweed
Grindelia camporum
High drought and salt tolerance allows this plant to persist throughout the late summer months when other plants wither, making it an important late-season source of pollen and nectar for honey bees. For this reason, it is often planted in pollinator meadows and hedgerows. Source: NRCS
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PAm Supporter!
Paramount Farming
Paramount Farming, the world's largest grower and processor of almonds, has generously donated to PAm to help continue research to improve honey bee health and crop production. Thank you for your donation!
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PAm Supporter! Ruth Hargreaves PAm received a memorial donation in honor of her late husband, Hal Hargreaves. Ruth writes from Idaho "Keep up the good work!" Thank you, Ruth, for your donation and support! |
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PAm Supporter!
Scientific Ag
Joe Traynor, Scientific Ag Company manager and PAm board member has generously donated again to PAm. Based in Bakersfield, CA, Joe operates a pollination service for beekeepers and almond growers. Thank you!
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Buzz Worthy
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Articles, Books and Videos
Video 4:12 minutes
A Conversation about Bee Declines, Impacts on Our Food System and What You Can Do About It
Berkeley Food Institute
Video 1:15:13
Honey Bee Gut is a Fermenting Tank
Catch the Buzz |
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Emergency Response Kit
Bee Informed Partnership offers this service to aid beekeepers with crashing hives that require immediate attention. With ERKs, beekeepers gain a better understanding of the factors that contribute to their colony loss and what may be ruled out. To order kits call (301) 405-3799 or
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HELP HONEY BEES
Make your donation to Project Apis m. securely with PayPal or mail to:
Project Apis m.
6775 Chardonnay Road
Paso Robles, CA 93446
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BEE On Our Supporters' Page!
Make your donation today!
Help Us Help the Honey Bee!
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PAm Seeking Research Proposals
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This is what PAm does best, and other entities think so too! We are looking to fund researchers with a passion for honey bees. Blue Diamond Growers has entrusted PAm with monies to petition for research that helps almond growers improve crop production and helps improve the health and vitality of honey bees. Let's get some needed work done! We are looking for practical solutions for managed colonies with the efficient transfer of research results into field practice. Proposals are being accepted now through August 25th so don't delay! To get started, read the article block below.
West of the Rockies, everybody is still talking about the drought - so we will, too, and and it may affect you! California Border Inspection Stations will have limited water this Fall to keep your truckloads of bees cool. Plan ahead - consider pre-watering colonies before you get to the border, in case of delays, and plan on arriving during normal business hours.
Meg Ribotto, Editor |
PAm Seeks Research Proposals
Deadline August 25, 2014
- Provide practical solutions for almond growers and for managed honey bee colonies
- Yield results that can be transferred into field practice
- Provide an excellent rate-of-return for beekeepers and growers.
Awards are between $5,000 and $35,000. Funding at a higher level will be considered but not to exceed $75K. DEADLINE For FULL PROPOSALS is Monday, August 25th. Proposal format can be found here.
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Attention Beekeepers: LIMITED Water Supply at California Border Inspection Stations
Migratory beekeepers transporting colonies to California for pollination services may have to find alternative ways to keep their honey bees cool. The statewide drought has impacted some water hose bibs that were recently installed with funding from CSBA, the Almond Board and PAm to help beekeepers. CDFA contacted PAm in a collaborative effort to alert apiary shipments that will begin in October. To date, the CA Border Inspection Stations impacted by the drought are:
- Tulelake (SR 139) - Well is operating but having intermittent problems with air bleeding into the well. Early indication signs that the well may be running dry.
- Needles (I-40) - Well is operating but is having intermittent problems with sand in the uptake.
- Yermo (I-15) - Well is non-operational and is not repairable. This is likely due to a collapse of the well from water table running dry.
Project Apis m. will continue to update beekeepers.
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PAm Establishes Partnership with Pheasants Forever
Folks who work on behalf of pheasants, and those who work on behalf of honey bees, have a lot in common. PAm and Pheasants Forever have combined efforts and expertise to build honey bee, pheasant and monarch butterfly habitat opportunities in the Upper Midwest. In the pic above, Zac Browning, beekeeper and PAm Board Member, along with Pete Berthelsen, Pheasants Forever, inspect a habitat demonstration plot in North Dakota. You will hear much more about this partnership in the coming months! |
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Multiple Benefits of Planting Cover Crops
Watch this 4 minute video on the benefits of planting a cover crop. A Sacramento Valley grower shows how legumes, such as clover and vetch that PAm offers to almond growers, planted in the orchard rows provide numerous advantages. Benefits not just for orchardists but for honey bees and other pollinators! This video was produced by USDA-NRCS to encourage and educate landowners.
- Improved soil fertility
- Improved water infiltration and aeration
- Improved soil structure and porosity
- Improved organic matter
- More beneficial insects - including honey bees
- More rainfall absorbed
- Soil sealing reduced from rain's impact
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Now Enrolling CA Almond Growers in Honey Bee Forage Project
PAm is once again providing free seed to almond growers in California. The 'Seeds for Bees' honey bee forage project is now enrolling cooperators. Working with land managers and owners, PAm has established acreage, seed mixes, seed suppliers, and planting regimes.
By educating growers about the value of providing honey bee forage, many acres of potential honey bee habitat can be made available to sustain nutrition-starved honey bees. Mustard for pre-almond bloom and clover/vetch for post-almond. If you are an almond grower, contact Meg@ProjectApism.org. Visit our forage page to learn more on cover cropping. |
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Providing Honey Bees Needed Nutrition
Western Farm Press has published an article, Planting Bee Forage Crops in San Joaquin Valley, written by NRCS Soil Conservationist, Priscilla Baker. PAm visited Priscilla at her Madera County office this past Spring where we had opportunity to talk about the 'Seeds for Bees' honey bee forage project. NRCS has been supportive of PAm's cover cropping program and has directed almond growers to the free seed offered by Project Apis m.
Priscilla interviewed Meg Ribotto (PAm Pollination Director), Grewal Brothers Farming and Bellach Farm Management (two almond growers and PAm forage project cooperators), Bret Adee (a migratory commercial beekeeper), Dr. Gordon Wardell, Paramount Farming's bee biologist, and David Doll (UCCE farm advisor). Both USDA-NRCS and Project Apis m. are helping to promote pollinator health through planting cover crops. Click above to read.
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PAm & CDFA: Grant Update
Christi Heintz (PAm) & Anna Shkrabak (CDFA) visit the bee-friendly garden at UCDavis. Project Apis m. and Kimiora Ward, Research Associate, Dept. of Entomology, UCDavis, provided CDFA a grant update on building CA bees for CA Specialty Crops.
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August Bee Husbandry
- Inspect and monitor for Varroa - check often
- Be aware that strong colonies in mid-summer can be highly infested with mites and can crash in late-summer and fall
- Inspect and monitor for Nosema - check often
- Be aware that Nosema in the presence of high mite levels can compromise colony health
- Nutrition in the form of natural forage can be limited in late summer
- When floral resources are inadequate, feed bees sugar syrup and pollen substitutes to improve colony survival and performance.
- Project Apis m. has e-learning modules and YouTube videos on Varroa, Nosema and Nutrition - Just click on the word!
Project Apis m. has developed Best Management Practices (BMPs) for beekeepers and almond growers, including hive, colony and business management. All can be accessed here.
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