Bee Love Beekeeping... presented by Mann Lake

What is "RNA Interference" and why are beekeepers calling it birth control for Varroa?
In this episode of Bee Love Beekeeping, we're buzzing into two topics that every beekeeper should know about. First, we tackle the sticky subject of glyphosate (Roundup®) and what the latest research says about its surprising effects on honey bees—from disrupting their gut health to changing the way they forage.
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Then we welcome Adam Pachl of GreenLight Biosciences to talk all things Varroa mites and introduce Narroa, an innovative treatment that doesn't kill mites—it simply stops them from starting the next generation. Think of it as birth control for Varroa!
Along the way, we dive into when (and when not) to use Narroa, how it fits into a smart mite management plan, and why testing your colonies always beats guessing.
Adam also shares hilarious stories from his days as a state bee inspector, including the heart-stopping moment he found a queen bee taking a stroll across his beekeeping suit.
Whether you're a first-year beekeeper or you've been keeping bees for decades, you'll come away with practical tips, a few laughs, and maybe even a new favorite tool for keeping your colonies healthy.
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Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Mann Lake! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/
Mann Lake discount code: MLBEELOVE10 for $10 off your next order.
Follow Us: https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/
https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/
Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com
https://norroa.com/

This week's beekeeping adventure takes us to Byron Bay, Australia, where Flow Hive co-inventor Cedar Anderson gives us the buzz on life after Varroa mites invaded the continent.
After a failed containment effort that saw thousands of hives burned, Australian beekeepers battled a brutal one-two punch of Varroa weakening colonies and small hive beetles finishing the job — sound familiar, fellow beekeepers?
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The good news: things are stabilizing. But Australian beekeeping comes with its own wild twist: bee-eating cane toads that camp out at hive entrances all night, gobbling up bees like an all-you-can-eat buffet.
We also get into rainbow bee-eater birds, Africanized bees creeping into the southern U.S., and a hilarious near-miss where Cedar got chased by angry bees while a New York Times reporter had his back turned — talk about a close call.
Toss in some jaw-dropping bee-communication stories (turns out their waggle dance is way more precise than science gives them credit for) and a peek at Cedar's new book, and this episode is a must-listen for anyone who loves bees, beekeeping, and the delightfully chaotic world of managing them.

VIDEO VERSION
Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Mann Lake! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/
Mann Lake discount code: MLBEELOVE10 for $10 off your next order.
Follow Us: https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/
https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/
Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com
Cedar Anderson: https://www.honeyflow.com/

This week we're heading to Oregon to hang out with Joy and Eric McEwen, husband-and-wife beekeepers who've been at it together for 26 seasons and now tend around 650 colonies.
They coined the term "natural nest beekeeping" to describe their whole philosophy: foundationless, paint-free, plastic-free hives, protected with a homemade beeswax-linseed-pine rosin sealant, queens raised in-house by their own sister bees instead of grafted or shipped in cages, and a Warré-inspired vertical hive design that lets the bees' own body heat pre-warm their winter honey stores.
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Then we take a step sideways when Joy dives into apitherapy — she's been doing bee venom therapy for 15+ years, treating everything from arthritis and Lyme disease to Parkinson's and chronic fatigue, and now co-teaches a full certification course with Eric through their business, Diggin' Living.
Moral of the episode: it's not about the honey or the money, it's about the love (and maybe a little bit about ditching plastic hive equipment).
VIDEO VERSION
Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Mann Lake! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/
Mann Lake discount code: MLBEELOVE10 for $10 off your next order.
Follow Us: https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/
https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/
Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com
Joy & Eric: https://digginlivin.com/

2 Million Americans are allergic to bee stings. Do you know what to do for yourself, or someone else, when they have a severe reaction?
We kick things off with eight bee sting facts that'll make you the most insufferable know-it-all at your next beekeeping club meeting. Did you know only lady bees can sting, that a detached stinger keeps pumping venom like a tiny horror-movie villain, or that bee venom is basically one superstar protein wearing a trench coat? You're welcome.
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$10 off your next order! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/
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Then Eric sits down with Chicago allergist Dr. Juanita Mora — who, plot twist, once got absolutely obliterated by roughly 100 stings as a six-year-old sitting on her grandfather's hive (yes, sitting on it) and grew up to become the exact doctor who now teaches people how not to die from that.
Highlights:
The "two or more systems" rule that tells you in five seconds whether you need epinephrine or just a good sulk and a cold pack
Why "eh, I'll just pop a Benadryl" might be the worst sentence a beekeeper can say mid-emergency
A real live demo of EpiPen vs. Neffy (the no-needle option), including a hilarious confession about parents who've stabbed their own fingers instead of their thigh
The plot twist that you can become allergic to bees after years of stings — so "I've never reacted before" means nothing
Why your grandkids, neighbors, and even your laundry hamper might be quietly at risk
The honey myths, the botulism truth, and Eric's own homemade (informal, definitely-not-science) experiment eating local raw honey to fight his allergies
Bottom line from Dr. Mora: Every beekeeper, and anyone regularly around hives, should keep both adult and pediatric epinephrine on hand, know how to use it, and never hesitate to act during a severe reaction.
VIDEO VERSION
Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Mann Lake! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/
Mann Lake discount code: MLBEELOVE10 for $10 off your next order.
Follow Us: https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/
https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/
Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com
Dr. Juanita Mora: https://www.instagram.com/dr.juanitamora/?hl=en
Neffy: https://www.neffy.com/
Most commercially insured patients can pay as little as $25 per prescription for two single-use neffy devices through the company's co-pay savings program.
For eligible patients whose insurance does not yet cover neffy or who face high out-of-pocket costs, ARS Pharma offers a cash price of $199 for two doses of neffy.
For eligible uninsured or underinsured patients who meet program requirements and have exhausted other options, the Patient Assistance Program may provide neffy at no cost.

Buzzing with intrigue, this episode of Bee Love Beekeeping kicks off with spider venom playing mite assassin.
Then the real fun begins: UC Riverside's Genesis Chong and Owen Wagner dish on their scrappy "Californian" hybrid bees, tough, hybridized survivors that shrug off Varroa infestations that would tank a typical commercial colony.
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$10 off your next order! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/
• Discount Code: MLBEELOVE10
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For beekeepers tired of chemical treatments, this is the kind of hopeful buzz worth tuning in for.
Turns out the secret isn't new chemical treatments — it's happening deep in the brood chamber, where mites mysteriously struggle to reproduce on these bees' larvae.
Scent? Bad nutrition? Chemical trickery? The scientists are still chasing the answer, framing it as an evolutionary tug-of-war between bees and mites.
Toss in a hilarious military-runway bee rescue story, some reflections on falling in love with bees, and you've got a genuinely entertaining, hope-filled episode for anyone invested in the future of beekeeping.
VIDEO VERSION

Special thanks to our presenting sponsor, Mann Lake! https://www.mannlakeltd.com/
Mann Lake discount code: MLBEELOVE10 for $10 off your next order.

Follow Us: https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/follow/
https://www.beelovebeekeeping.com/
Eric@BeeLoveBeekeeping.com

Genesis & Owen: https://ciber.ucr.edu/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ciber_ucr/
Facebook: Center for Integrative Bee Research (CIBER)