We believe that feeding our bees certain supplements helps them be as healthy as they can be, and supports their natural immune strength to repel things like foulbrood. Why should gut health not apply to honeybees?

Mann Lake sells a bee pattie that provides bees with probiotics to keep them strong and we use it at Golden Glow Gardens. Our bees love the patties and devour them within weeks.

Nature Magazine published an article recently confirming our theory. The link to the full article is https://www.nature.com/articles/s41396-019-0541-6. In part, what Nature said is that “American foulbrood (AFB) is a highly virulent disease afflicting honey bees (Apis mellifera). The causative organism, Paenibacillus larvae, attacks honey bee brood and renders entire hives dysfunctional during active disease states, but more commonly resides in hives asymptomatically as inactive spores that elude even vigilant beekeepers. The mechanism of this pathogenic transition is not fully understood, and no cure exists for AFB. …. These findings suggest the usage of a lactobacilli-containing hive supplement, which is practical and affordable for beekeepers, may be effective for reducing enzootic pathogen-related hive losses.” Read on if you’re interested in this topic!