Back Ridge Bee Farm and Supply

3 weeks ago

Have you ever wondered why bears like honey so much? More likely than not, bears are after the brood (baby bees) for it's high source of protein! In Early Spring when the bears come out of their state of torpor, they are hungry and in need of protein. There are very few food sources out then. This is when we start seeing nuisance bears getting into our bird feeders and causing havoc in our apiaries.
A good way to try to deter the bears from your bee yards and bird feeders is to put out sponges around your bee yard and under your bird feeders and soak them with ammonia daily, as it will dehydrate. This helps cover the smell and bears do not like the smell of ammonia. If it gets on their nose, it can ruin a bears senses. So please don't put ammonia in balloons and cover in peanut butter. This makes for a very dangerous bear. A bear lives by its nose, it knows what it can and shouldn't eat. If you take that away, you have a very dangerous bear, he will then come after anything or anyone, including humans.

We also use talk radio out in our bee yard along with a good electric fence, although a hungry bear will go through a hot fence!
Keeping your bees safe and your costly investment safe should be high priority when keeping bees! We live in Maine and we have lots of bears in our State, especially in our area. Learning to cohabitate and doing it safely is important! ... See MoreSee Less

Back Ridge Bee Farm and Supply

3 weeks ago

Honey on grapefruit is amazing! This is my favorite wintertime breakfast! Tart and sweet in one spoonful! If you've never tried it, you should! ... See MoreSee Less