Knowledge Hub
Everything you need
to know about bees
Evidence-based guides, in-depth articles and practical advice — from first-time beginner to seasoned beekeeper.
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Starting Beekeeping in Sweden: What to Do, in Order
A complete checklist with links — the course you book in winter, the association that gets you your first bees, the Länsstyrelsen notification that is a legal requirement, and what a first year actually costs and looks like.
Carniolan or Buckfast: Choosing a Bee for a Swedish Season
One of them is a natural subspecies and the other was built by a monk — and that difference, not temperament or yield, is what decides your second season. Spring behaviour, swarming, wintering above 59° N, and the honest answer on mite resistance.
Crystallised Honey: What It Tells You, and How to Turn It Back
A grainy jar is not a spoiled jar. Why glucose is always the sugar that goes first, what crystallisation really proves (processing, not authenticity), and the two-minute water-bath method that does not cost you the enzymes.
Honey in Hot Tea: What the Heat Actually Does
No, hot honey is not toxic — that part of the internet is wrong. What heat really costs you, degree by degree, and the dull method that rescues a crystallised jar without destroying it.
Wax Moth in Stored Comb: What Actually Works
Wax moth rarely beats a colony — it beats the frames you took out of one. What the larvae are really eating, why August and September are the whole risk window in Sweden, and the four methods worth using.
The July Honey Harvest: Knowing When It's Ripe in a Nordic Summer
A practical Nordic guide to the summer honey harvest — how to tell when honey is truly ripe, why water content decides everything, how to extract and keep it raw, and how much to leave the bees for winter.
Summer Varroa Monitoring: Your July Mite Check Decides the Winter
A practical Nordic guide to July varroa monitoring — why mites peak late summer and damage winter bees, how to test with alcohol wash, sugar roll and natural drop, what thresholds mean, and how the count sets up your August treatment.
Honey for Coughs & Sore Throats: What the Research Says
Honey is an evidence-backed soother for cough and sore throat, performing comparably to OTC syrups — but never give it to infants under one year. Here is how to use it safely.
Spring Build-Up: Feeding & Boosting Colonies After a Nordic Winter
A practical Nordic guide to spring build-up — when to start feeding, why early brood needs pollen protein, giving room without chilling, and checking varroa before colonies explode.
The Demaree Method: My Favourite Way to Prevent Swarms and Triple Your Honey Yield
Developed by George Demaree in 1892, this elegant two-box manipulation tricks the colony into thinking it has already swarmed — keeping every forager working the nectar flow while you harvest up to three times more honey. Essential reading for anyone managing around 10 hives in Sweden's short but intense summer.
Top 10 Bee-Friendly Plants for Swedish Gardens
The right plants can make the difference between a thriving apiary and a struggling one. Here are the best nectar and pollen sources for the Swedish season.
Understanding Swarms: Prevention, Capture and Rehousing
A swarm is a natural sign of a healthy, thriving colony. Learn how to read the signs early, prevent unwanted swarms and safely capture them.
Varroa Mite Control: Approved Methods in Sweden
Varroa destructor remains the biggest threat to honeybee colonies worldwide. This guide covers all approved treatment methods under Swedish regulations.
The Waggle Dance: How Bees Communicate Food Sources
Karl von Frisch's Nobel Prize-winning discovery — the waggle dance encodes distance, direction and quality of food sources into a remarkable bee language.
Queen Rearing Basics: From Cell to Colony
Raising your own queens is one of the most rewarding skills in beekeeping. Start with the fundamentals of cell grafting, timing and queen introduction.
Bee Nutrition: When and How to Feed Your Colony
Proper nutrition underpins every healthy colony. Learn the difference between emergency feeding, winter stores and stimulative feeding in early spring.
Winterising Your Hives in the Nordic Climate
Swedish winters are long and dark. This guide walks through the specific challenges of overwintering bees in Scandinavia — insulation, ventilation and food stores.