History

History of Honey Bee Genetics

Steve Taber began beekeeping as a boy during summers in upstate New early_photo_of_taber_and_parisian York. He attended college at the University of Minnesota and worked with Dr. C.L. Farrar. He then started his career with the USDA, where he worked as a research scientist for thirty years. At Baton Rouge, with Dr. Otto Mackensen, he pioneered the use of Instrumental Insemination to breed queens to selected drones. His research covered all of the areas of beekeeping and bee biology. Steve has hundreds of papers to his credit and is recognized as a world authority on bees. He wrote the book, Breeding Super Bees which is an excellent source for information on queen rearing at any level. Regular contributions to his bee columns in the American Bee Journal and Gleanings are read by a large following of beekeepers in all corners of the globe. Currently, Steve is doing research on the small hive beetle near his home in South Carolina.

Honey Bee Genetics in American Bee Journal

In July of 2010, a story about Honey Bee Genetics appeared in the July issue of American Bee Journal, documenting how the company was founded and the challenges facing beekeepers and honey bees over the last twenty years.

A Legacy Blossoms in Vacaville documents the care and professional skill that staff at HBG uses in raising quality, disease-resistant queens during one of the busiest times of the year. It also reveals the philosophies of Tom Parisian and Steve Taber in their scientific approach to combatting the severe diseases that have impacted colonies over the last twenty years.

If you're thinking of raising bees, or if you're searching for a source of packages or queens, this article will help you understand why thousands of professional and hobbiest beekeepers return each year to Honey Bee Genetics.

Breeding Bees for Resistance

How do we breed our disease resistant bees?

Steve began this business in 1979, to breed a Disease Resistant stock of bees which was "hygienic" in its ability to clean up American Foulbrood. He inseminated a breeder with just one drone, from another line with the same characteristics. In this unique way, selection could be made in one generation to change the behavior of the entire resulting line. This stock was later shown to also be resistant to Chalkbrood Disease. Today from research in Germany and Minnesota, we know this behavior is also involved in resistance to Varroa mites. Our first breeding step with any new stock is to test and find this trait. The queens and their offspring will all have hygienic Disease Resistance.

Our Bees Are The Best

Located in sunny California, our temperate weather produces the highest quality of bees year round. Our queens and bees are the best in the industry, because they have the best combination of wonderful weather and beekeepers with the greatest expertise and heart! Located in the sunny Sacramento Valley of central California, our bees enjoy the ideal climate for breeding queens. The spring temperatures are warm and the rain is just enough to stimulate lots of bee forage in the numerous agricultural fields, which are fallow during this time of year.

This same good weather creates the oppurtunity for virgin queens to mate with our plentiful drones. This contributes directly to a queen's ability to lay a full compliment of eggs for one to two years. These queens in our own colonies produce large quantities of well nourished bees that can be prepared into our package bees during April and May. Our packages install easily and establish strong hives with good amounts of honey during the first season.