Please enjoy the recordings from Kindred Bees 2022 below
The Kindred Bees lecture series took place in 2022 and involves 7 recorded 90 minute lectures on various bee tending topics regarding Apis mellifera, or the “Honey-Gathering Bee”. The series explores everything from bees in folklore, to parasitic varroa mites, to communicating with the hive.
This series is for bee people and beekeepers alike. You do not need to be a beekeeper to benefit from the information provided. However, I will be giving some pragmatic and philosophical beekeeping tips, advice, and approaches.
You can access recordings of the series below.
Bees as a bridge:
Restoring our relationship to honeybees
February - Free Session - watch below
Bees are not just in need of saving, they are in need of a shift in human interspecies relating. We have incredible scientists and beekeepers tackling the big questions of how to keep bees in the modern era, however, we also need to ask the questions of why and who. Why keep bees and who are they? Honey bees sit at the confluence of the wild and the domestic. They are a bridge species, helping connect us to the land, the elements, and our own internal rhythms.
Through the lens of European folklore and religion, we will examine the kinship and magic felt by many people toward honey bees, and the way intuition and ancient folk wisdom can inform how we relate to bees.
Watch the first here:
Single LECTURES
veil-winged:
Biology and Behavior of the Honey-Bee
In this talk we will explore who lives inside the hive, and how the colony functions as a whole. We will pay particular attention to the sensory organs of the bee and the hive: sight, sound, olfaction, drones, touch, and more.
Mistress of Parthenogenesis:
Reproductive Swarming, Birth, and the Womb
A look at the nature of how bees reproduce. We will approach the swarm as a birth, and seek to understand the moment of creative energy present. I will discuss why I don’t believe in swarm suppression, how swarming can create stronger hives, and how bees choose a new home. We will also visit the concept of the beehive as womb-like, both biologically, and in connection to the metaphor of parthenogenesis found in many ancient greek myths associated with the divine feminine.
Communicating with Bees::
At the hive
We will explore ways to approach the hive, connect with the bees, open the hive, handle the bees, and more. This will include both practical and heart driven ways to open a hive.
Communicating with Bees::
Away from the hive
This lecture discusses ways to connect with bees away from the hive and hive inspections. This will include such methods as dreamwork, talking to the hives, and meditations with the hive. We will also learn about the folk tradition of Telling the Bees.
Hive alchemy:
the honey offering
An in-depth exploration of honey: what it is, how it’s made, and the bees’ relationship to it. We will also explore how honey has been used in folk customs and religious practices. The lecture will conclude with some brief discussion on honey harvesting and why I prefer the crush and strain method over saving and reusing old comb.
Melissae:
The bee women, nymphs, and priestesses of Ancient Greece
We will explore the connection between bees and women’s mystery traditions, myths, and bee themes of Ancient Greece. You will learn about the Oracle of Delphi, the bee nymphs, and the priestesses known as the “Bees”.
