Pragmatic Beekeeping with Cliff Struhl (S5, E15)

In this week’s episode, we visit with Cliff Struhl about his thoughts on better ways to keep bees than is generally done today (and the past 170 years). Cliff is owner of Bee Smart Designs and has produced several products that aim to reduce some of the stresses we apply when keeping bees in a standard wooden box.

He starts with the boxes we use and compares them to the hollow trees bees prefer. He looks further at the insulation needs on both the walls and the top, the metal covers that get really hot in the summer, the entrances and the bottom boards. Basically, we keep bees in a very artificial environment, and as a result and the bees are extremely stressed. We have to be active managers so they can thrive.

We also discuss the pragmatic approach for queen rearing, mating, purchasing queens, and overall genetics. Is pragmatic beekeeping the same as ‘natural beekeeping’? We find out where there may be differences.

He sums this all up by stating that beekeeping requires thoughtful input from the beekeeper since the bees are not able to fend for themselves when kept in the artificial environment we normally provide.

We hope you enjoy the episode. Leave comments and questions in the Comments Section of the episode's website.

Thank you for listening!

Links and websites mentioned in this podcast: 

• Bee Smart Designs - https://www.beesmartdesigns.com/
• Bee Smart Designs White Papers including Pragmatic Beekeeping - https://www.beesmartdesigns.com/white-papers
• Bee Culture October Event: Inspiring Leaders in Beekeeping - https://www.beeculture.com/beeing-diverse-inspiring-leaders-in-beekeeping/
• Honey Bee Obscura - https://www.honeybeeobscura.com

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This episode is brought to you by Global Patties! Global offers a variety of standard and custom patties. Visit them today at http://globalpatties.com and let them know you appreciate them sponsoring this episode! 

We welcome Betterbee as sponsor of today's episode. Betterbee’s mission is to support every beekeeper with excellent customer service, continued education and quality equipment. From their colorful and informative catalog to their support of beekeeper educational activities, including this podcast series, Betterbee truly is Beekeepers Serving Beekeepers. See for yourself at www.betterbee.com

Thanks to Strong Microbials for their support of Beekeeping Today Podcast. Find out more about heir line of probiotics in our Season 3, Episode 12 episode and from their website: https://www.strongmicrobials.com

Thanks for Northern Bee Books for their sponsorship of Bee Books: Old & New with Kim Flottum. Northern Bee Books is the publisher of bee books available worldwide from their website or from Amazon and bookstores everywhere. They are also the publishers of The Beekeepers Quarterly and Natural Bee Husbandry.

We want to also thank 2 Million Blossoms as a sponsor of the podcast. 2 Million Blossoms is a regular podcast featuring interviews with leading bee and insect researchers in the world of pollination, hosted by Dr. Kirsten Traynor.

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We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: [email protected]

Thanks to Bee Culture, the Magazine of American Beekeeping, for their support of The Beekeeping Today Podcast. Available in print and digital at www.beeculture.com

Thank you for listening! 

Podcast music: Be Strong by Young Presidents; Epilogue by Musicalman; Walking in Paris by Studio Le Bus; A Fresh New Start by Pete Morse; Original guitar background instrumental by Jeff Ott

Beekeeping Today Podcast is an audio production of Growing Planet Media, LLC