And thou shalt write upon them all the words of this law, when thou art passed over, that thou mayest go in unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, a land that floweth with milk and HONEY; as the LORD God of thy fathers hath promised thee. - Deuteronomy 27:3
Although bees are not native to North America and technically therefore an invasive species, many people enjoy raising them. What other livestock can you raise 100,000 head in such a small space? Tinier than any other animal on the farm, but they are much smarter than any chicken or sheep. They exemplify teamwork, steadfastness, and personal sacrifice for the common good.
I have been attending beekeeping classes at the local university; three hours per session and a three part series. I would like to start keeping bees this year but need to watch my schedule. Beekeeping, much like chicken rearing, is a process of learning that should not be taken lightly. I learned much about my chickens just by sitting outside and watching them for hours at a time. The more time you spend with your animals, the easier it is to recognize sickness, the foods they desire, and pecking orders. I have come to recognize vitamin deficiencies by watching them eat certain plants and what I deem inedibles. Bees are no different.
When I start beekeeping, I want to sit outside and study them for hours. One of the things that amazed me during class was the rainbow colors of pollen. Bees will only gather from one species of plant every trip and pack that into its own waxy cell.
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| Different colors of pollen - Courtesy of The Vintage Bee Company |
As to what kind of beehive, Robo at Bushkill Farms has a wonderful analysis on his youtube channel and his blog. You can find him at http://robo.bushkillfarms.com. Although, I am drawn to the top bar hive due to its cheap status and hippy-ish design (it was created for the people of Africa to house bees who have no access to traditional lumber as we know it); I am also interested in the Langstroth hive for its traditionalism and ability to stack supers on top of one another. Once I get started on this project, I may just have to try both! One of the great things about the Langstroth hive is the ability to integrate a Freeman Beetle Trap which is becoming a rather big problem here in the South.
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| Langstroth Hive - Courtesy of NC State University |
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| Top Bar Hive - Courtesy of The Garden Hive |
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| Freeman Beetle Trap in Action |
A super is a box where surplus honey is stored by the hive. Boxes are added as needed and removed during the honey harvest. For those that are small-framed women, the Langstroth honey supers can prove too heavy to safely lift but there are options. Supers come in three sizes: shallow (approx. 35 lbs. full), medium or Illinois super (50 lbs.) and the traditional deep (90 lbs.). I will mostly be sticking to the shallows and mediums. It will probably not occur your first year, but during the second, you may be stacking your supers way over your head. Balancing heavy boxes full of bees and honey on a ladder may not be the best situation.
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| Courtesy of the University of Missouri |
Beekeeping links:
http://www.freemanbeetletrap.com/
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