Beekeeping for beginners

[William_Montgomery]

Just got back from the second session of a local beginners beekeeping course. It's been extremely interesting so far. The first day was very theoretical, learning about how the hive functions, anatomy and the basics of looking after the hive. Today was very practical, helping out with the inspection of a hive.

Just wondering how many on here keep bees and what the motivation is behind it? Do you sell honey/wax and run it as a business, is it purely for self sufficiency or are you just interested in bees? Etc.

Also interested to hear about any applications for propolis, it's something I'd not heard of previous to starting the course. Seems like it should have some uses for the bushcraft community.

 

[British Red]

We have kept bees but don't since Fiona became highly allergic. Propolis is great for home made varnish but sells really well because of its purported health benefits. We fid it just for self sufficient reasons, its not a viable way to make money on a small scale

 

[slowworm]

I keep bees as I love getting stung, spending a fortune on kit and wondering if they are going to die out or swarm...

Actually, the main reason was we never saw honey bees where we live and decided to get a colony.

We get quite a bit of honey, which we use and give a fair bit to friends and family, and the wax is used for candles and other useful products such as dubbin.

I've a new propolis mat to try this year as our bees collect large amounts of it, we grow balsam poplars and the bees love them. Not sure what to do with it yet.

 

[William_Montgomery]

We have kept bees but don't since Fiona became highly allergic. Propolis is great for home made varnish but sells really well because of its purported health benefits. We fid it just for self sufficient reasons, its not a viable way to make money on a small scale

That's a real shame. Am I right in thinking that you can potentially develop an allergic reaction the more you are exposed to bee venom?

 

[William_Montgomery]

I keep bees as I love getting stung, spending a fortune on kit and wondering if they are going to die out or swarm...

Actually, the main reason was we never saw honey bees where we live and decided to get a colony.

We get quite a bit of honey, which we use and give a fair bit to friends and family, and the wax is used for candles and other useful products such as dubbin.

I've a new propolis mat to try this year as our bees collect large amounts of it, we grow balsam poplars and the bees love them. Not sure what to do with it yet.

I've heard the first jar of honey is the most expensive you'll ever have.

What's a propolis mat?

 

[Bazzworx]

That's a real shame. Am I right in thinking that you can potentially develop an allergic reaction the more you are exposed to bee venom?

Some people can, I've kept bees for 25 years however 3 and a half years ago I got stung and went into anaphylactic shock and had to give it up. At the time I was managing in excess of 20 colonies. I start a three year course of desensitization on Thursday.

 

[Nice65]

@Stew will attest to the benefits of propolis, he healed a stubborn ulcer with it.

Here’s a pic, of a photo, of my early attempts at beekeeping.

 

[slowworm]

What's a propolis mat?

It's a woven mesh that you place over the top box and the bees will fill it with propolis, in theory. I have scraped propolis off boxes and frames but it is mixed with wax, bits of squished bee and earwig etc, so hopefully the mat will produce a cleaner product.

 

[British Red]

That's a real shame. Am I right in thinking that you can potentially develop an allergic reaction the more you are exposed to bee venom?

Yup. With Fiona it was a dangerous degree & I decided it was too risky. We breed chickens now. Much easier & cheaper too!

 

[Broch]

I kept bees for a few years - gave up after we lost all our broods one spring. They survived the winter and seemed to be doing well, then just died

It's a strange hobby; ask 20 beekeepers how to do something and you'll get 21 different answers. It can also be surprisingly expensive, time consuming, and frustrating.

I was recently presented with another viewpoint. Keeping bees is the insect equivalent of releasing pheasant. Millions of non-indigenous animals released to compete with our native species. It's a perspective I'd not thought about before.

 

[Broch]

Yup. With Fiona it was a dangerous degree & I decided it was too risky. We breed chickens now. Much easier & cheaper too!

They can be nasty I've still got a scar on my leg from a friends aggressive cockerel!

 

[British Red]

They can be nasty I've still got a scar on my leg from a friends aggressive cockerel!

Badger sits on her lap for snuggles . Orpingtons are as terrifying as a large warm plushie!

 

[slowworm]

It's a strange hobby; ask 20 beekeepers how to do something and you'll get 21 different answers. It can also be surprisingly expensive, time consuming, and frustrating.

Only 21? One of the most important pieces of advice I would give to a beginner is to listen to advice but to think it through themselves and not rush into anything. You get plenty of helpful people but some seem to drift off into arrogance and showing off.

As for bees stealing all the food from other bees and insects I've often heard people mention this but not seen any serious research. With my own observations our honey bees are often on different flowers to the other bees and insects (different length tongues for a start). I have noticed more seed being produced and then more birds etc so benefits.

I would take some convincing that bee keeping does much damage compared to general farming practices. Where I am it's become very common for old, flower rich, old pasture to be ploughed up and reseeded with a more productive grass for silage.

 

[William_Montgomery]

I was recently presented with another viewpoint. Keeping bees is the insect equivalent of releasing pheasant. Millions of non-indigenous animals released to compete with our native species. It's a perspective I'd not thought about before.

I've come across mention of this once or twice, but not looked into it much. It's an interesting point. I do struggle with the whole native/invasive species debate, it seems like a complex topic and I don't think I'm genned up enough on it to hold any strong opinion. I suspect it's prone to being over simplified a lot, one way or the other. Would be interested to hear a bit more about it though.

 

[William_Montgomery]

As for bees stealing all the food from other bees and insects I've often heard people mention this but not seen any serious research. With my own observations our honey bees are often on different flowers to the other bees and insects (different length tongues for a start). I have noticed more seed being produced and then more birds etc so benefits.

Yeah, I did hear they are quite specialised feeders. I would expect they bring a lot of benefits to local habitats/wildlife etc.

 

[Broch]

Only 21? One of the most important pieces of advice I would give to a beginner is to listen to advice but to think it through themselves and not rush into anything. You get plenty of helpful people but some seem to drift off into arrogance and showing off.

As for bees stealing all the food from other bees and insects I've often heard people mention this but not seen any serious research. With my own observations our honey bees are often on different flowers to the other bees and insects (different length tongues for a start). I have noticed more seed being produced and then more birds etc so benefits.

I would take some convincing that bee keeping does much damage compared to general farming practices. Where I am it's become very common for old, flower rich, old pasture to be ploughed up and reseeded with a more productive grass for silage.

Yeh, those are serious issues. I have been looking into the whole 'food for insects' thing recently; I'm not going to start a discussion on it on this thread, but it's far more complex than I thought. People with larger brains than mine tell me there's a complex relationship between plants producing less flower and nectar because of the rain chemical composition. Also, moths apparently, are the greatest pollinators (I need convincing with data for that).

 

[William_Montgomery]

Some people can, I've kept bees for 25 years however 3 and a half years ago I got stung and went into anaphylactic shock and had to give it up. At the time I was managing in excess of 20 colonies. I start a three year course of desensitization on Thursday.

I guess you just never quite know. Good luck with the course on Thursday.

 

[slowworm]

Have you been stung much William? Until I did my beekeeping course I don't recall being stung by a honey bee, perhaps once before. I quickly got stung when inspecting hives out our bee group's apiary which was good as I knew I didn't get any reaction.

 

[William_Montgomery]

Have you been stung much William? Until I did my beekeeping course I don't recall being stung by a honey bee, perhaps once before. I quickly got stung when inspecting hives out our bee group's apiary which was good as I knew I didn't get any reaction.

Just the once by a honey bee. Taken a couple of bumble bee stings.
I was expecting a few yesterday at the apiary, but the hive we inspected was quite docile. I helped the guy move another hive a few feet across, they weren't too pleased but I think they seemed to be going for my face and were bouncing off the net.
Would you say it's fairly common when inspecting hives, generally?

 

[slowworm]

Would you say it's fairly common when inspecting hives, generally?

This is where you'll get all sorts of answers. It depends on the bees, some are far more docile than others. Also it depends on how gentle you are with them.

My bees can be a bit aggressive, not as bad as some but not great. I can get stung most times when inspecting my 6/7 hives. Often one will get me through the gloves when I'm not expecting it. Even with calm bees you can get the odd sting if something goes wrong such as knocking a hive, dropping a frame etc.

What is more annoying is I get an occasional suicidal bee that goes for me when I'm in the garden which is where siting of a hive needs careful thought.