As beekeeping legend Randy Oliver puts it,"[t]here is no biological reason to expect bees bred for early queen production in subtropical areas to perform well during northern winters (or vice versa).  And there is plenty of evidence that locally-adapted breeds fare better on the local flora, and deal better with local pathogens.  [F]or non-migratory beekeepers, locally-adapted stock generally performs best[, and thus, i]deally, we would have queen breeders producing mite-resistant stock for every ecoregion in the map above."  We agree.

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Our bees live here -- year round.  The core of our stock has spent many winters here in the Ridge and Valley Appalachians (EPA ecoregion 67), tucked between the generally higher, more rugged Allegheny Mountains to the west and Blue Ridge Mountains to the east.  Forests cover about 50% of the land, and there is great diversity of aquatic habitats.  Just south of the 40th parallel north, we are barely far enough south to overwinter bees outdoors, according to the common wisdom of a century ago.

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Cities in our ecoregion include Harrisburg, Carlisle, Chambersburg, Altoona and State College, PA to the north;  Winchester, Front Royal and Harrisonburg, VA to the south;  and many in between, from Hagerstown to Cumberland, MD, and Martinsburg, Charles Town and Romney, WV.