A Guide To Bee Keeping

The process of becoming a bee keeper is really not all that difficult, and it can also be very financially rewarding. By becoming a bee keeper you will not only be doing what you love - if that is what you enjoy - but as well you will be doing good for the world around you because without bees, we would have a lot fewer food sources. To start off with your Bee Keeping, it is easiest to buy two established colonies from a known local beekeeper. Another way is to buy packaged bees and queens and transfer them into new equipment. A third possibility is by finding and installing swarms.

Honey Bee management is not an easy task. The management is generally based on natural nectar flows. Beekeepers want their colonies to reach maximum strength before the nectar flows begin. In this way, the bees store the honey as surplus which can be harvested by the beekeeper.

Processing honey is the result of the Bee Keeping process. The hobbyist has to invest in the honey extracting equipment, because it is specialized. Sometimes used equipment is also available. The amount of honey that is produced shows the fruits of good Bee Keeping.

The First Steps

Anyone who is interested in becoming a bee keeper should first find out if they are allergic to bee stings. You can still go ahead and learn about bee keeping if you are allergic, but of course you are going to have to take special precautions and be much more careful when you are dealing with the bees.

Suit Up - Use The ProperEquipment

Use traditional equipment for Bee Keeping,. You can buy it ready made from many Bee Keeping Equipment dealers either from shops or from websites. If you make your own bee hives, you must reproduce the dimensions exactly. There are many compartments and covers which follow a definite pattern. Use good oil base paint for exterior wooden parts.

You are also going to have to make sure that you have all the right equipment if you want to become a bee keeper, and more than anything this refers to a bee suit. There are many forms of protective clothing on the market that you can choose to use here, and a full bee suit is the ideal acquisition but the prices are fairly steep so if you are just starting off or are otherwise strapped for cash you may just want to stick to some more basic clothing.

You should be wary of any veils that slip over the head, because bees are invariably going to find a way to get around it and gain access to your neck and face, which can be very dangerous. You should always dress in light colors, and this is for a few different reasons. For one, you will be able to spot bees easier if they do manage to get through, and for another because light colors are less likely to generate static.

Gloves are also going to be very important here, and whenever you are handling bees you should be wearing proper gloves that are tucked into a long-sleeved shirt so that bees have no way to gain entry to your arm or get up your shirt sleeve.

Learn About the Bees

The next crucial step in becoming a bee keeper is to learn about the different species of bees, how they nest, what their hives are like, about their personal characteristics, and so on. There are many different types of hives available around the world, and the best idea is to select a specific hive type to learn about first, to make it easier on yourself.

The Castes Of Honey Bees

There are basically three castes of honey bees, the workers, the drones and the queen bees. The workers basically do all the work of the colony of bees, and a colony may have as many as sixty thousand workers. The drones are the male bees and they fly from the hive and mate in the air with queens from other colonies. The queen is a fully fertile female specialized for producing eggs.

The Site For Hives

It is easy to keep honey bees anywhere, where there are flowering plants which produce nectar and pollen. For Bee Keeping the site to be chosen should be sheltered from winds and it is better if it is partly shaded. It is advisable to avoid low spots in a yard, where the air is cold and damp in winter.

You have to be considerate towards your non- Bee Keeping neighbors. Your hives should not be where the bee flight paths cross sidewalks, playgrounds or other public areas. Give your bees a water source in your yard so that the bees are not attracted towards swimming pools.

There are actually quite a few different bee species out there in the world these days, and in fact there exist nearly 20,000 types of bees which can be recognized by observing the type of hive they have, the social characteristics they portray, their behavior and other key features. Not all bees produce honey, so it is worth a look at some of the bee species and know the difference before starting off on your beekeeping hobby.

Bumblebees

One of the most common and well known bee species is the bumblebee. They are large and hairy, and generally colored yellow and black. The colonies can flourish for many years if they are in the right environment, which would be tropical areas.

They typically live in deserted holes that have been made and left by rodents and other small animals, and they can thrive in temperate areas in North America.

The Carpenter Bees

Another bee species that most people are aware of is the carpenter bee. These bees have metal-like, black color and no yellow marks, which is the most distinguishing feature between these bees and bumblebees.

They are unable to prepare wax, which is another very noticeable difference, and from flower to flower they can travel quite long distances.

The Honeybees

Everyone has seen the next bee species before - the honeybee. These bees are quite small in size, and they are generally black but often other colors as well, such as a brown yellow. These bees are very social and have a queen bee who they work to protect and serve.

The job of the bees is to collect nectar from flowers and then store the honey, feed the hive, and make sure that the queen bee is safe and well protected.

The Parasitic Bees

One bee species that many people have not heard of is the parasitic bee species. These bees do not search for food or build nests on their own, but rather use the nests and food of other bees. The reasons for this are unknown, but they can definitely be a threat in that they are stealing the food and homes of other bees.

The eggs or larvae of the host female are killed by the parasitic female or her larvae, and females of parasitic bees do not have pollen brushes or pollen baskets.
Digger Bees

There are also the digger bees, which are bees that have long tongues and which fly very fast. This is one of the most distinguishable features between these and other bees, and they are considered as being part of the digger bee family.

These are just a few of different species of bee that exists, and there are quite a few more that anyone interested in learning about bees would want to be aware of.

As far as bees go, there may not be any quite as intriguing as honey bees. Many people do not realize how much we, as humans, rely on these amazing creatures. Let's dig in and take a closer look at this industrious insect.

The Little Known Facts

In the scientific world, they are known as Apis mellifera. They are made up of six legs, two eyes, two wings, a stomach, and a nectar pouch. Honey bees can be found living in hives of up to 60,000 bees. There will be worker bees, drones, and one queen. The queen does nothing but lay eggs. The drones are made up of the male population and their sole responsibility is to mate with the queen. The female bees are the worker bees that produce the honey. Their tiny buzzing wings can carry them six miles at up to fifteen miles per hour.

These female honey bees will leave the hive and collect honey from various types of flowers. In one trip, they will collect from between 50 and 100 different flowers. They will typically live between six and eight weeks, and each bee will produce only a fraction of a teaspoon of honey in their lifetime. It's easy to see why there are so many bees needed to perform this process. The queen is responsible for keeping the population up. She will lay around 2500 eggs every day. The lifespan of a queen is between two and three years.

As many of us are aware, honey bees do sting, but only the females. The drones have no stingers because they never leave the hive. The female worker bees will sting if they are provoked or are trying to protect the hive. After a female honey bee stings, it dies. The queen also has a stinger, but since they never leave the hive, they do not use it.

Honey bees use a method of dancing movements to communicate with one another. They also have a unique way of distinguishing their hive from other honey bee hives. Each one has a specific odor that is used for identification.

Another interesting fact is that honey bees are the only ones that produce something that is eaten by humans. The honey they produce is used for a number of different purposes. This is why we need to do whatever we can to protect these insects. It's also the reason that so many people are getting into bee keeping.

Within the latter half of the past century, bee pollen has become known as a miracle food, restorative in its properties and therapeutic in a variety of forms from powder to capsules. This bee pollen is rich in vitamins and minerals that are essential to a health life such as calcium, thiamin, manganese, zinc and vitamins K, A, B, E, C and D. Proteins, important amino acids, carotenoids, unsaturated fatty acids and essential oils also count in this type of pollen.

What Exactly is It Then?

Now that you know what bee pollen has in it, you should know that this pollen is not produced by the bee itself. Instead, it is the granules of pollen that are collected from the bees and become stuck on their legs and other body parts as they flit from flower to flower. Because the alternative health medicine market is the primary way people get a hold of this bee pollen, it must be manually collected by bee keepers.

Apiarists (bee keepers) install scrapers to the hive so that when the bees re-enter the hive, their legs and bodies must brush up against them. The bees collect the pollen using their bodies and legs and then store it in special pouches that are stored behind their legs. When they brush up against the scrapers, this pollen is captured and stored by the bee keepers until there is enough to harvest for medicinal purposes.

The Great Health Benefits

One of the most important benefits of bee pollen is that it works as a great re-energizer for the body and works basically by replenishing some of the vitamins and minerals your body lacks. For this rejuvenating reason, some people liken this pollen collected from bees to the Fountain of Youth. Many researchers and scientists believe that the bee pollen could be used to slow down the body's aging process, extending life by several more years and helping keep a more youthful appearance.

You could benefit greatly from bee pollen if you were seeking a boost to your weight loss goals, particularly if you have reached a plateau and need help getting over it. This pollen collected from bees helps people with a chemical imbalance that has had trouble metabolizing and burning fat. In fact, bee pollen has been known to boost metabolism and help flush fat from your body and lower your biological cravings for fatty foods.

Improved mental clarity, a better sex life, fewer allergies, lower stress and an improved immune system have all been attributed to the consumption of bee pollen. Because of its many medicinal, healing properties, bee pollen has become a popular staple in the organic and alternate health medicine scene.

A bee hive is a complex home generally used by honey bees. This article is going to take a look at both artificial and natural bee hives so you can better understand their purpose and structure.

The Contents of a Bee Hive

In the natural world bees inhabit many different areas. This can include caves, rock cavities and hollow trees. Some bees will make exposed aerial combs as well, but the most common kind are bee hives inside other structures.

These nests are composed of honeycombs lade out parallel to each in a uniform pattern. In addition the nest usually well contain only one single entrance, however in times of stress this can be changed. Bee hives are created for the purpose of the hive is to produce honey, birth the young, and be the basic home base of the bees.

In the wild the nest architecture is always the same. Honey is stored in the upper part of the comb, beneath that are rows of pollen storage cells, worker brood cells, and drone brood cells. Below that are the peanut shaped queen cells.

Artificial bee hives go back to at least 900 B.C. and probably before that. There does exist physical evidence supporting the fact that bee hives were present at that time. These hives provided and enclosure for the bee colony and little else. Harvest from this type of hive generally destroyed it, although there were some adaptations with extra top baskets which could be removed when bees filled them with honey.

The modern bee hive frame still holds to its traditional roots but has been significantly upgraded. The Langstroth hive is a good example of this. His designed was presented in 1860 and today has become the standard style hive for 75% of beekeepers. His hive makes clever use of the normal tendencies of the bee so that the honey can be easily extracted and the hives easily moved.

There are six main parts to the modern bee hive. The first is the bottom board. This part forms the bottom of the hive and has an entrance for the bees to get in and out. Next is the brood box. This is the very bottom of the hive and is the part where the queen lays her larva. Above that is the honey super which is very similar to the brood box except that honey is stored here. The next important part is the frames and foundation which is a wooden frame and plastic sheet where bees put wax honey combs. The last part is the inner and outer cover, which are exactly what the name implies. This should now allow you to further understand how a bee hive structure works and help you with your hobby.

There is a lot of beekeeping equipment available on various websites. These include beehives, beeswax sheets, protective clothing for beekeepers, honey extractors, bee smokers and many other apiary accessories.

The Bee Hives

For bee keeping, the most important beekeeping equipment is the bee hive. It should be made of good quality wood, and Western Red Cedar is often used to make them. Some others use pine, which is relatively cheaper, but not as stable.

Cedar is the best choice for making bee hives, because it smells good and is beautiful to look at. Cedar has many natural oils and they make the wood stable. That is the reason why it does not warp even it is subjected to the worst weather.

Besides bee hives there is a lot of other beekeeping equipment which has to be acquired by the beekeeper. Honey jars, hive tools and accessories, jar labels and good beekeeping books are some of them.

Sometimes a fence may be necessary for your apiary if you want to keep your equipment safe from cattle and other animals. Let us therefore look at some of the most important things required in a list of beekeeping equipment. A basic set of equipment is required to run a unit and some objects are absolutely mandatory.

The Equipment

The most important beekeeping equipment is the smoker. If you make proper use of the smoker, it is possible to manage the hives, since the bees remain docile when you have the hive open. If you don't use a smoker, there is every chance of stings for the beekeeper as well as others nearby. It will also cause the colony to be more aggressive in the future.

The bee suits also helps you from not getting stung as you work with the hives. It keeps the honeybees from crawling into your clothes and masking your body odor. It also helps you to keep cooler if you are working in the direct sun. If your bee suit does not include a bee hat and a veil, you should acquire them too. They are critical in keeping bees away from your head and neck.

Hive Tools and gloves are handy gadgets to have as your beekeeping equipment. The tools come in various styles. The gloves prevent the bees from stinging your hands and keep them from crawling up inside your sleeves. A bee brush could also come in handy whenever you want to brush bees off things or off yourself.
Ankle and wrist straps are totally optional, but are nice to have if your bee suit or clothing does not provide them already. With these straps you can seal up your pant legs and sleeve cuffs to avoid bees from crawling in.

Probably a full body suit is ideal to provide excellent protection, comfort, convenience and durability. If it is properly sized and worn, the full body suit provides total sting protection when you are working the hives or dealing with other stinging insects like wasps and hornets.

Beekeeping supplies include hive essentials, beekeeping tools, processing equipment, honey containers and labels. Many people run commercial apiaries today and keep a stock of all the beekeeping supplies that you need for beekeeping. There are several new products, both for people who are doing beekeeping as a hobby or as a business.

The Hive Essentials

Hive Essentials are the first things that you need, when you are starting off with beekeeping. The bees and the queens are the most important beekeeping supplies along with the Beginner's and Hive Increase Kits. There are small hive frames and big ones, as well as polystyrene hives.

Bee feed and feeders and comb honey supplies belong to the beekeeping supplies too. Bee medications are essential and you need books to keep you informed about the bees. Hive wraps, gadgets and tools are some of the beekeeping tools along with galvanized hardware cloth and pollen traps. For the beekeeper, protective clothing is essential, and so are smokers.

On To Processing Honey And Wax

In order to process beeswax and honey it is necessary to include them in the beekeeping supplies. You can also have bee escapes and harvesting extractors and extracting tools as processing equipment. For the honey containers it is important to have bulk, glass and plastic containers for the liquid honey. Closures are vital and there should be labels for the various types of honey.

Honey Handling Equipment is also sold in various sizes in the stores which supply beekeeping supplies. Honey tanks and strainers which are suitable for various size buckets and honey warming cabinets are also available. A honey creaming machine and a hive clamp with strap is used for transportation.

Equipment for beeswax and foundation wax is some of the latest products of beekeeping supplies. There are many wood products, medications and treatment for bees and lots of beekeeping books and educational aids can be bought on websites.

The Kits

Several kits are available as beekeeping supplies like the Bee-Ginners Kit or the Hive Starter Kit. The Bee-Ginners Kit provides the beginner with the basics of beekeeping supplies and it is only sold as a unit. The Hive Starter Kit is an assembled English Garden Hive which has eight frames. It includes a copper top, and two medium blocks with frames.

Tips on Buying Supplies

Most beekeeping supplies can be bought online, by choosing from huge catalogues and comparing price lists. You can even order on the phone. The products can be shipped to you, if it is within the country; delivery is within two to three days and about seven to ten days for delivery overseas.

A nest of bees is a natural way to pollinate garden plants. Bees are very useful insects to have in the garden and providing them with a simple homemade bee house can be beneficial for you and your garden. If you are committed to an organic style of gardening then a homemade bee house is the perfect tool to make your gardening more eco friendly.

You can of course buy the same thing at a home gardening store but it costs more. Depending on the type of bee you want to attract there are different types of houses you can create. You will probably find the materials around your house quite readily.

Orchard Mason Bees

If you want to make a bee house for orchard mason bees then the process is very simple. You will need untreated softwood such as cedar, fir or redwood. Take a piece that is maybe about four by four inches large and drill holes in the wood.

You want to drill holes that are about 3 and half inches deep and maybe a half-inch wide. The holes shouldn't go all the way through the wood. If you feel birds might be a threat to your bee house then cover the wood with chicken wire. Now fix your bee house to your house in southerly direction. You can also fix it to trees or fence posts.

Bumblebee Houses

A bee house for bumblebee is completely different but similarly easy to make. All you need is a large coffee can with a plastic snap on lid. Take a piece of corrugated cardboard and cut it so that it fits snugly around the sides of the coffee can. As long as you cut it so that it fits nicely in the can there is no need to glue it to the can.

You will also need cardboard pieces to fit the top and bottom of the bee house. Cut a hole that's about three quarters of an inch wide in the piece of cardboard at the mouth of the can. Cut a piece of window screen or chicken mesh to cover the mouth and cut a hole in the wire to correspond with the hole in the cardboard.

Before placing the top on you want to drill holes about an eight of an inch wide in the back of the can and on the side of the can that will be the bottom (the can will be mounted so that it lies horizontally). This gives the bee house good ventilation.

You also need to fill the bee house with some type of fibrous material until it is a third of half full. Wool, an old bird's nest, animal hair or fiberglass insulation are good to use. Avoid using cotton wool or surgical wool as it is too fine and the bees will become trapped in it. Now mount your bee house in a place sheltered from rain and you're good to go.