Description Level

Series

Creator

Aimee Benoit

Physical Description

6 digital audio recordings, 5 transcripts, 6 signed agreements

History Biographical

The interviews were created in connection with Galt Museum exhibit "Buzzworthy: Beekeeping in Southwestern Alberta." The exhibit was on display February 2021 to October 2021. Beekeeping in Lethbridge began in 1909 with the first experimental honey production by David Whitney of the Ideal Farm. This region soon became the centre of Alberta’s beekeeping industry, thanks largely to its long sunny days and irrigation agriculture. Explore more than 100 years of beekeeping history in southern Alberta, and learn about different managed and wild bee populations.

Scope and Content

Interview with Alan Graham 82 min Father, war veteran, took courses in beekeeping in Lethbridge Research Station, later started bee business from his residence in Coaldale. Assisted by his brother who struggled with health issues associated with WW1 gassing injuries to lungs. First commercial apiary in Alberta, in the 1920s. Bees ordered from Alabama and California and transported by train, hazzards of long distance shipping. Learning bee operations through hands-on training, discharged from WW2 active service as essential farm worker. Bee operations around Lethbridge, meetings of producers at the old horticultural building (Galt Gardens). Local conditions for bees - blossoming plants, importance of dandelions, production cycle and output. Branching to Red Deer area - better conditions for growing hives. Importance of weather conditions in the spring. Technology of honey and beeswax, wood frame versus plastic, bee disease (Foulbrood). Background on bee keeping and bee keeping practices, including how to create a bee hive. Bee behavior in winter, and how bee keepers need to adapt their hives in winter. First bee keepers to import bees from New Zealand. Discussion of bees from various countries, including California, Africa, Arizona. Explanation of shipping process of bees and queen bees from other countries. Changes in bee keeping industry. Process of selling the beekeeping business. Challenges as a beekeeper - diseases, board meetings, costs of beekeeping. Successes and memories - work in the Alberta Beekeepers' Association and Alberta Honey Producers' Association. Teaches his great-grandson, Jack, skills in beekeeping. Personal life of Graham - worked for three canola companies, including Bayer Aspen; a Bee Inspector, acted as a consultant to canola companies. How to behave around bees. Interview with Megan Evans 37 mins 47 seconds Megan Evans, President of the Native Bee Council, discusses the Council; it was established in 2017, a non-profit. The Native Bee Council mission is to see healthy and resilient native pollinator populations at habitats in Alberta. Council was created to monitor bees and bee health in Alberta. Discusses the Alberta Bee Act; legislation makes sure honeybee populations are sustainable and healthy. Discussion of bee education and outreach programs, including the Bumble Bee Box Presentation; a citizen science monitoring program. Work with groups like Alberta Agriculture and Forestry to monitor bee populations. Alberta Environment and Parks along with the Bee Council identified a bee species that is new to Alberta. There are 29 species of bumble bees in Alberta. There are 321 wild bee species on record, 29 of those are bumble bees. Many bees are solitary, and live in the ground. There is a large diversity of bees globally. Discussion on bee habitat; diverse landscapes allow for bee diversity. Difference between managed and wild bees; honeybees are the most abundant managed bee species in Alberta. Honeybees are not native; they were introduced to the province by European settlers. We rely on honeybees to pollinate crops. Beekeepers work hard to keep honeybees safe and healthy over the changing seasons. Honeybees were not designed to live in Alberta, with cold winters. Causes of honeybee colony losses: they froze in the winter or starved or had disease. Honeybees are a livestock species. Some species of wild bees are endangered. Native bees pollinate native plants that provide food and habitat for other species. Creation of conservation status reports monitor bee health and populations. The Western Bumblebee is one of the most rare species of bee. The public need to understand the difference between the two types of bees: native/wild bees and livestock/non-native bees. Discussion on differences between bees and wasps. Interview with Norma Jean Wolf Child 46 mins 38 seconds Norma Jean Wolf Child was born in Fort Macleod, a member of the Blood Reserve. Went to school in Glenwood, Cardston, and Idaho. Became interested in beekeeping while working in her garden. Family member with diabetes caused a shift in eating habits, including eating more honey. Was introduced to a beekeeping course on the Tsuut'ina Nation. Discusses difficulties in the initial stages of beekeeping; getting the bees to her home, keeping the bees in different weather, etc. Better nutrition was initial interest in beekeeping. Started with two hives, explanation of the equipment; including breed box, keeping an extra breed box for honey storage, screens, etc. Explanation of honey supers, where honey is extracted from. Discussion of weather and how it impacts hives; uses winter wraps to insulate bee boxes in winter. Discussion of beekeeping process; including inspection of hives and bee health. Bees and bee hives need to be registered in Alberta. Sells extra honey made from hives. Name of Wolf Child's apiary is Blackfoot Hills Honey. Bees can travel 5 miles to forage for food. Pollen patties and sugar water for purchase to feed bees. Husband has joined in beekeeping practices and has become certified. Want to expand their apiary, be self-sustaining with their food and have less processed foods and sugars. Beekeeping has inspired Wolf Child to study more about the land and taking care of the land. Interview with Reece Chandler 1 hour 20 mins 20 seconds Reece Chandler was born in Calgary, met his wife while at school. The couple bought a beekeeping business in Scandia, Alberta, in 1996. It was the largest beekeeping operation in Canada, with approximately eight thousand hives. In 2020, there were 15,000 beehives. Chandler's dream - to keep working at the beekeeping business and celebrate Scandia Honey's 100th anniversary in 2037. Scandia Honey was founded in 1937, started out as a family business by the Romer's family. Chandler's are third owners of the company. The Romer's family kept 300 beehives, and grew to approximately one thousand hives. They sold the business in 1972, to the Willms, and the Chandler's bought the beekeeping business from the Willms in 1996. Business got it's name because it is a part of the Scandia community. Worked with Seneca Seeds and Plant Genetic Systems to pollinate crops in the area; learning how to move bees. Discussion of buying and selling bees across Canada. Discussion of various staff workers on the beekeeping business. Discussion of beekeeping programs, and the Colony Collapse Disorder in the U.S., where bees were dying at rapid rates. Colony Collapse Disorder caused people to realize the importance of bees. Keep bees in climate controlled buildings in the winter. Scandia Honey sells to the U.S. and Japan. Varroa mites kill bees; discusses process of treating varroa mites in bee hives. Interview with Weldon Hobbs 1 hour 20 mins 35 seconds Discussion of drilled boards; a type of habitat for bees. Leaf cutter bees were introduced into Canada in the 1960s, known as a soda straw bee. A device was invented called the loose cell method to manage bees. Dr. Gordon Hobbs, Weldon Hobbs' father, came to southern Alberta area in 1945, and was assigned as a Forage Crop Insect Specialist. Dr. Hobbs worked to find pollinators, and identify crop pests and find solutions. Dr. Hobbs was first leaf cutter bee researcher in Canada. Dr. Hobbs was an entomologist and involved in pest identification. Leaf cutter bees have long tongues to get nectar and gather pollen on hairs of the body. Leaf cutter bees are part of solitary bee pollinator; meaning both male and female pollinate. These bees live in large colonies, but their activities are independent of each other. Explanation of the drilled boards. The Alfalfa Leaf Cutter Bee management in Western Canada was an update on the research done by Dr. Hobbs; southern Alberta created one of the first production manuals on crops. Explanation of a bee cell line. Leaf cutter bees brought to Canada to pollinate alfalfa. Brief history on the introduction of leaf cutter bees into Canada and Dr. Hobbs' role in the introduction. Brief history of habitats for leaf cutter bees. Southern Alberta is one place where there is reliable canola seed production.

Accession No.

20211092001

Collection

Archive

Less detail