Beekeeping Today Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Winter Storage, CO2, and Varroa with Dr. Brandon Hopkins (S5, E18) Oct 17, 2022

Show notes

Would you believe varroa mites, carbon dioxide and indoor wintering are working together to make keeping bees easier and more profitable? Well, believe it.

Today, we talk with Dr. Brandon Hopkins from Washington State University. His research has shown that if colonies are overwintered in an environmental chamber that can control the levels of the gasses the bees are exposed to, that by adjusting the level of carbon dioxide from a normal 0.04% to over 8.5%, mites in those colonies die. Really. And what's more, the bees don't, really!

Temperature was set at just about 40 degrees, the chamber was dark, and after 64 days, mite mortality was extremely high. High enough to prove that this could be a mite controlling tool to use in indoor wintering.

To show a difference, another chamber was set up with a 0.12% carbon dioxide concentration, and there was a significant difference in mite mortality was recorded between the two. High carbon dioxide equally high mortality, low concentration equals low mortality.

There is much more research underway. Stay tuned!

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:

Brandon's Research, "Elevated CO2 Increases Overwintering Mortality of Varroa destructor" - https://academic.oup.com/jee/article/115/4/1054/6590767
Bee Informed Sentinel Apiary Program - https://beeinformed.org/citizen-science/sentinel-apiaries/
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: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

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

Project Apis m - Costco USA Scholarship Winners #2 (S5, E17) Oct 10, 2022

Show notes

Join us for our second episode on the 2022 Project Apis m and CostCo Scholarship Awards. Students who receive this PhD Scholarship award bring new energy, ideas, and expertise to the scientists on the leading edge of bee health research. The award program supports outstanding graduate students pursuing research-based doctoral degrees in fields of enhancing honey bee health while improving crop production.

Today's we introduce two additional 2022 winners, plus the PAm Executive Director, Danielle Downey. First up, Angela Encerrado.

Angela's research is on the impact two commonly used chemicals used in almond orchards: a fungicide, Propiconazole and an insect growth disruptor, Pyriproxyfen, on honey bee health. Next is Rogan Tokash. Rogan's research looks into the affects pesticides have on honey bees. Danelle introduces the scholarship program as well as other research and projects spearheaded by Project Apis m.

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:

Project Apis m.-Costco Scholarship Awards - https://www.projectapism.org/pam-costco-scholars.html
Project Apis m Homepage - https://www.projectapism.org/
Honey Bee Obscura - https://www.honeybeeobscura.com

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We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

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

Minnesota Honey Producers' Ambassador Program and More (S5, E16) Oct 03, 2022

Show notes

The Minnesota Honey Producers Association has a whole bunch of good things going for them and in this episode we learn about their new Honey Ambassador Program (notice we didn't say Honey Queen Program), plus the state wide habitat program.

First off, we talk with Becky Masterman, who've we had as a guest on the podcast in the past. Rebecca is with the University of Minnesota Bee lab and is part of the Bee Squad which has been very involved in both of these programs, working to get people together to work together to work better at producing habitat.

We also talk with Josh Munoz, a Marine veteran and is the first MHPA Honey Bee Ambassador promoting honey and beekeeping in the state. Josh also runs the Minnesota Veterans Bee Program. He teaches agriculture in a St. Paul high school focusing a lot on habitat and honey bees and is working to shape high school ag curriculum.

Also on today's episode, we talk with Dan Whitney, past Minnesota Honey Producers President and a commercial honey producer, who spends a good amount of time in Texas running over 2000 colonies, and produces nucs and queens each spring. Dan was instrumental in getting the Ambassador program going and in very active in the new Minnesota Habitat Program.

All told, 3 very active people getting a lot of good work done to better Minnesota for bees, beekeepers and beekeeping. Listen today!

Also in today's episode, Ed Colby returns with a story from his book, "A Beekeeper's Life: Tales of a Beekeeper." In previous readings, Ed has talked about keeping bees on Granny's property. In this episode, Ed shares with us a remembrance of her upon her passing.

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:

Minnesota Honey Producers Assn Website - https://minnesotahoneyproducers.co m
Minnesota Honey Producers Assn Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/minnesotahoneyproducer s/
Ed Colby's Book, "A Beekeeper's Life. Tales From The Bottom Board - https://smile.amazon.com/Beekeepers-Life-Tales-Bottom-Board/dp/1912271885/
Honey Bee Obscura - https://www.honeybeeobscura.com

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We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

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

Pragmatic Beekeeping with Cliff Struhl (S5, E15) Sep 26, 2022

Show notes

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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We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

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

HBHC Varroa Management Guide Updates with Dr. Dewey Caron (S5, E14) Sep 19, 2022

Show notes

On today's episode we are joined by professor, author and noted speaker Dr. Dewey Caron. Dewey is an active member of the Honey Bee Health Coalition where he helps with the creation and maintenance of the Coalition's Hive Management program. Today he joins us to talk about the just updated, Varroa Management Guide.

Varroa management is a very serious problem for beekeepers around the world. Sadly, varroa was just found in Australia this year with devastating consequences as hundreds, if not thousands of colonies, have been destroyed in an attempt to eradicate the mite before it establishes a foothold on the last, varroa-free continent.

The HBHC has published several useful tools for beekeepers to help them manage varroa to a level where the negative effects of varroa, such as the varroa associated viruses and diseases can be limited. This is includes varroa management videos, the Varroa Management Decision Tool, Commercial Beekeeper Case Studies, the Varroa Resistance and Testing Team and today's topic the Varroa Management Guide.

The Management Guide explains the tested, practical, and effective methods to manage the mites in your colonies. Dewey talks with us about the updates, varroa and also talks about the latest edition of his book, "Honey Bee Biology and Beekeeping."

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:

Honey Bee Health Coalition Varroa Management Webpage - https://honeybeehealthcoalition.org/resources/varroa-management/
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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We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

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

Bee Time with Mark Winston (S5, E13) Sep 12, 2022

Show notes

Mark Winston joins us on today's episode. Mark just retired from Simon Frazer University in British Columbia. For many years his research focused on honey bees, beekeeping and agriculture. For about a decade he was a regular contributor to Bee Culture magazine, where he explored the biology of honey bees, and the sociality of beekeepers.

His writings include the books The Biology of The Honey Bee, Killer Bees, Nature Wars (his observations on agricultural pesticides), From Where I Sit: Essays on Bees, Beekeeping and Science, Travels in Genetically Modified Crops (his perspectives on genetically modified plants) and his two thoughtful observations of the relations of bees and man in Bee Time, Lessons From The Hive, and his last bee book, Listening To The Bees (how bees, people and society and people are alike).

He took that level of thought from bees and applied it to people where he began working in his university's new Center For Dialogue. There he achieved wide recognition as a distinguished educator, consultant and communicator.

Our talk with Mark looks back on his time in honey bee research, his books on bees and beekeepers and some of his newer work on communications.

** Correction: In the opening, Jeff mistakenly refers to the product "Apistan". Apistan is the product name of the acaricide fluvalinate. The Amitraz product he should have referenced is Apivar. We apologize for any confusion and misdirection.

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:

Mark Winston's Website - http://winstonhive.com
Honey Bee Health Coalition Varroa Management Webpage - https://honeybeehealthcoalition.org/resources/varroa-management/
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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We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

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

Dr. Tracy Farone - Veternarian To The Bees (S5, E12) Sep 05, 2022

Show notes

Dr. Tracy Farone, joins us in this episode. Tracy is a veterinarian, a professor of biology at Grove City College in Grove City, Pennsylvania, a board member of the Honey Bee Veterinary Consortium, a beekeeper and a regular contributor to Bee Culture magazine. Veterinarians, you will hear her say, were brought into the beekeeping world because of the diseases bees face and the potential for antimicrobial resistance.

It's been a change the industry has had to face. It was not all that long ago, products such as Terramycin™ (oxcytetracycline) was found on farm store shelves and beekeepers were directed to use it in the treatment of American Foulbrood. It was also occasionally suggested to use it as a dusting on the top bars of brood frames to prophylactically prevent AFB. With the rise of antibiotic resistant varieties of diseases, the unprescribed use these medications has been stopped and now available for use on animals and livestock only under the prescription of a veterinarian.

"I understand why beekeepers want to do what they've always been doing, but they're facing more and more bee health problems. It would be good to get veterinarians on board." she said. "We can contribute here. We can provide so much more than a prescription or VFD to the industry. If we can blend veterinary medical expertise within the beekeeping industry, it's not just an arranged marriage, but a marriage where we can help each other."

This is a fascinating discussion and one you will not want to miss.

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:

Honey Bee Veternarian Consortium - https://www.hbvc.org
Grove City College Bees - https://www.gccbeeproject.com/
HBVC Talk with Beekeeping Today Podcast - https://www.beekeepingtodaypodcast.com/the-honey-bee-veterinary-consortium-with-allie-and-britteny-s3-e15/
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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We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

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

Project Apis m - Costco Scholarship Awards (S5, E11) Aug 29, 2022

Show notes

When we started this podcast back in 2018, not only did we want to bring you the known and established voices in beekeeping and honey bee research, we also set out to highlight the new voices. Today's episode we introduce two new researchers.

Project Apis m and CostCo established the PAm-Costco Scholarship Awards, in 2013. The students who receive this PhD Scholarship award bring new energy, ideas, and expertise to the scientists on the leading edge of bee health research. The award program supports outstanding graduate students pursuing research-based doctoral degrees in fields of enhancing honey bee health while improving crop production.

Today's guests are two of the 2022 winners. In fact, they are Co-Awardees, Audrey Parish and Chris Robinson. Audrey is a PhD candidate in Irene Newton's lab at Indiana University. As you will soon hear, Audrey studies how the honey bee larval microbiome helps protect larvae from various stressors.

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:

Project Apis m.-Costco Scholarship Awards - https://www.projectapism.org/pam-costco-scholars.html
Bee Culture's BEEing Diverse October Event - https://www.beeculture.com/beeing-diverse-inspiring-leaders-in-beekeeping/
Honey Bee Obscura - https://www.honeybeeobscura.com

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We welcome HiveAlive back as an episode sponsor. HiveAlive is the #1 liquid feed supplement for honeybees worldwide. It contains a unique blend of seaweed extracts, thyme and lemongrass. HiveAlive has been proven to increase bee strength, produce more honey, improved bee gut health and improved overwinter survival. Ask about HiveAlive and new HiveAlive Fondant & Pollen Patty at your local beekeeping store or visit the website www.usa.hivealivebees.com for more information. Listeners of the podcast can claim a special discount online using the code "BTP" at the checkout!

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We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

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

Archive Special: Katarina Davitt - Bananas and Bees (S5, E10) Aug 22, 2022

Show notes

In this archive special episode from November, 2020, Master Beekeeper, Katharina Davitt reveals the nutritional benefits honey bees derive from bananas. Yes, you read that correctly, bananas!

We all know that bananas are good for people. They are full of carbs, minerals, vitamins, are good for digestion and just taste good. But the one thing all beekeepers learn when they start out is that when bees are threatened, they release alarm pheromone and that smells like bananas. So up to now, wise beekeepers didn't bring bananas to the bee yard.

But it turns out feeding bananas to honey bees is actually a good way to get good food into a hive. Really. Katharina Davitt tell us why and how. Her University of Montana Master Beekeeper research project explored the nutritional requirements of honey bees and the properties of bananas. Katharina shares data behind this! The conclusions reached from this study found that colonies cannot live on bananas alone, but bananas will help in the spring, during a summer dearth and in the fall.

But who would have thought – bananas for bees?!

Before the talk with Katharina, Kirsten, Kim and Jeff discuss the ongoing debate pitting the honey bee against native bees and pollinators. Why the debate? What's the issue and what's the real problem? Kim, Kirsten and Kim explore it all.

Links and websites mentioned in this podcast:

Klamath Bees - https://www.klamathbees.com
Davitt Apiaries - http://davitt.com
Cavendish Bananas and their Nutritional Benefit to Honey Bees - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1j3TdyD1Nb7FTBECcuBoRwSzh6Y_CfAnT/view?usp=drivesdk
Cavendish Bananas Increase Brood Rearing in Apis Mellifera - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1p1fK3BxWjpq98sIHuXSe3XU7nGCteg1h/view?usp=drivesdk
Kirsten's referenced Gordian knot paper - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S016953472030207X
Historical reference to beekeepers advocating for environmental protection - https://academic.oup.com/envhis/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/envhis/emaa059/5921133

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

Thank you for listening!

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We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

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

Bee Culture October Event with Jerry Hayes (S5, E9) Aug 15, 2022

Show notes

Bee Culture's Annual October Event is back. After two years of dealing with Covid delays, Editor Jerry Hayes has put together a two day event in Medina, Ohio that you will not want to miss.

On today's episode, we talk with Jerry about the thirteen fantastic and inspiring leaders scheduled to talk of their journeys to get to where they are today, and a close look at the projects they are involved in now.

The list is long and diverse, including researchers, business leaders, industry professionals, commercial beekeepers, state bee inspectors, bee breeders, professors and more. You can (and really you should) attend in person, or tune in for live Zoom presentations, or tune in later for recorded zoom presentations.

Listen today and find out the speakers and all the rest of the information you will need to be apart of this fantastic event. And check out even more info at https://www.beeculture.com/beeing-diverse-inspiring-leaders-in-beekeeping/.

In this week's Bee Books Old And New, Kim reviews the reissued book by Lesley Goodman, "Form and Function In The Honey Bee", available directly from Northern Bee Books or Amazon.

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 Culture's BEEing Diverse October Event - https://www.beeculture.com/beeing-diverse-inspiring-leaders-in-beekeeping/
Honey Bee Obscura - https://www.honeybeeobscura.com

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We hope you enjoy this podcast and welcome your questions and comments in the show notes of this episode or: questions@beekeepingtodaypodcast.com

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

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