Bee Keeping

Getting started with bees is an exciting, and somewhat daunting, experience. Jumping right in without being prepared can result in failure and expensive mistakes. Making the experience something less than enjoyable. Here are some tips to avoid these pitfalls when get started.

1. Be a beekeeper not a bee haver. Many start off thinking the bees take care of themselves. If you’re talking about bees in the wild, a population of colonies spread out over hundreds or thousands of acres can survive just fine without our intrusions. But keeping hives going in an artificially managed system requires management. Bee keeping is a form of husbandry. Expect to spend time keeping them.

2. Educate yourself before jumping in. There are lots of introductory books out there. Buy a couple of them or try to get them from the library. Next, find a local beekeeper to learn from. Offer to help them with their bees. They can not only teach you about the bees but can help you save money by showing you the things you do need for equipment. Local bee supply shops can be a good source for free classes or connections to learning opportunities. Lastly, join a local bee club. Helping new bees is usually their primary mission.

3. Be prepared to get two hives to start. While two hives cost more than one (cost saving tips are below), you will learn faster and have a backup hive to help you out if one gets in trouble. Keeping two hives is easier than keeping one.

4. Have realistic expectations. While it is possible for an experienced beekeeper to get honey off a new package of bees in the first year. As a new beekeeper, a more realistic goal is to get your bees to survive the coming winter. Focusing on this will teach you more about the basics. The basics will eventually lead to a honey crop.

5. Save money by catching a swarm or making a split. If you’re frugal minded and patient, you can catch a swarm. Look up how to build a swarm trap or just use a deep hive box. Do some reading on studies

GETTING STARTED WITH BEES

bees look for in a cavity. In general, apply a few drops of lemon grass oil on the inside and get some propolis from a beekeeper friend to rub around the entrance, and hang the box in a tree in a fence row or forest edge at least eight ft high. Or buy one hive, feed it heavily in the spring and make a split in the early summer. You can let the hive requeen itself or buy a queen for it.

6. Be prepared to feed the bees. There are schools of beekeeping that are opposed to feeding bees. However as a new beekeeper, there is so much to learn and get comfortable with to start. Feeding them can help develop some insurance to smooth over the learning curve. If you think your leaning toward purely naturalist beekeeping you can move that way after you gained some experience.

7. Be prepared to deal with mites. Like the advice on feeding, you may be inclined to go “all natural” but until you get experience, plan to treat your bees for mites. There are two options using organic acids that are highly effective at treating the mites. Once you are more experienced and have done the research, you can always switch to try to managing mites without chemical treatments.

While following these steps will not guarantee success, it will increase your odds. Lastly, I’ll add to be prepared to be amazed at the industry and mystery of the honey bee. No matter how long you keep them, they are always ready to impress you and perplex you, sometimes in the same day!

Brad Smith, President of the Beekeepers of Southwest Indiana