Part of me really wants to try harvesting my own honey. Anyone one have luck with it? One guy I knew had a hard time keeping his alive.
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Any bee keepers?
- Thread starter MattMan81
- Start date
my father in law started a hive for the first time this spring. It was doing pretty good until he got ants. Even though his first hive wasn’t successful he had a blast and plans on starting two hives next year.
My dad has done it for over 5 years now. He can keep them fine through out the summer months, winter hits and by the next spring, GONE. He has probably gone through 5 swarms. It is pretty amazing though collecting the honey and eating it! AMAZING!
Read up on the mites and insects that can kill the swarm.
Avoid the swarms from Amazon... lol - try and find a swarm from your local area that is use to the pollen in your local area. Ordering swarms online dont always work out.
Good luck- have fun!
Read up on the mites and insects that can kill the swarm.
Avoid the swarms from Amazon... lol - try and find a swarm from your local area that is use to the pollen in your local area. Ordering swarms online dont always work out.
Good luck- have fun!
- Joined
- Oct 26, 2020
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- 504
I was into it a while back and got out of it and two buddies and my brother are both into it now so I just let them do all the work and I get a few jars from them. I will get back into it once my boy is old enough to find it interesting for something to learn all over again together. He is only 5 months old right now so probably 3 or 4 is a good age to give it another try.
It is not easy! A lot of learning and work to figure out how to keep them alive and from leaving. Your best bet is to find a bee keeper locally and ask them to show you the ropes. There are a lot of things to screw up but it can be “sweet” if you figure it all out….
It is not easy! A lot of learning and work to figure out how to keep them alive and from leaving. Your best bet is to find a bee keeper locally and ask them to show you the ropes. There are a lot of things to screw up but it can be “sweet” if you figure it all out….
Bowmanmike
Well-Known Member
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- Dec 15, 2019
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I tried a while back as well and out of 4 years the bees only survived one winter. It gets expensive when you have to replace colonies every year.
There is a pretty steep learning curve as it is hard to tell what killed your bees in the winter or early spring.
The only way I will try again is if I catch a swarm.
There is a pretty steep learning curve as it is hard to tell what killed your bees in the winter or early spring.
The only way I will try again is if I catch a swarm.
My mom tried a few times but like many of you was not able to keep her bees alive over winter. One year was mites, another we couldn't figure out. She's taking a break but I bet she will give it another go
I used to have an apiary (bee yard) with 12 hives.
Make sure it is south facing and hives are elevated off the ground, just 2 of the many things to get started.
Get the word out locally that you are keeping bees, and learn how to capture swarms, and bring them home, it is much cheaper than buying nucs.
The closer the apiary is to home the better.
You may have to "educate" neighbors, that your bees are relatively harmless, not ready to swarm and attack.
It is a hobby that requires alot of dedication if you want to be successful.
As @Jagger0502 said find a local guy and "apprentice" with him for a few years, it will pay big dividends in the end.
Make sure it is south facing and hives are elevated off the ground, just 2 of the many things to get started.
Get the word out locally that you are keeping bees, and learn how to capture swarms, and bring them home, it is much cheaper than buying nucs.
The closer the apiary is to home the better.
You may have to "educate" neighbors, that your bees are relatively harmless, not ready to swarm and attack.
It is a hobby that requires alot of dedication if you want to be successful.
As @Jagger0502 said find a local guy and "apprentice" with him for a few years, it will pay big dividends in the end.
The wife and I have talked about it. We have a huge swamp full of tupelos in the backyard, so they should be able to find plenty of stuff to convert to honey. We've got the footage, and the baby sister's boyfriend beekeeps and could help with a local starter hive.
My take on gardening is always to do what makes sense financially. I can't grow taters and maters for cheaper than I can buy them. I could probably come close with organic tupelo honey.
My take on gardening is always to do what makes sense financially. I can't grow taters and maters for cheaper than I can buy them. I could probably come close with organic tupelo honey.
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- Oct 10, 2018
- Messages
- 1,377
Almost the same story here as @Bowmanmike.
My original hive swarmed by midsummer my very first season. I can remember that day as I watched it happen without realizing what was taking place, lol. The next colony I bought made it through the first winter (NY) by me having to top feed from February to spring. I thought "what is everyone making a fuss about? This isn't hard." Well, I lost the hive the by start of the following winter because I never treated for mites. Lesson learned. I took a couple of beekeeping classes after that and felt much more confident with my new found knowledge. Had a productive summer with yet another new colony, treated for mites in late July/early August and the hive was doing great. The hive made it through the following winter but for some reason it never really recovered so I bought another nuc. Then I decided to try splitting hives so I wouldn't have to buy anymore bees. Long story short, my last hives died at the end of the fifth summer and I threw in the towel, disappointed that I had no clue why the hives died this time. That was three years ago. Only things I could come up with was either the mite treatment was too strong or that my location on a steep mountainside is not conducive to beekeeping.
I'll give it another shot when I retire and move to a more favorable location for keeping bees.
I still have about 10lbs of honey from my last hive.
Good luck if you do take on the challenge!
My original hive swarmed by midsummer my very first season. I can remember that day as I watched it happen without realizing what was taking place, lol. The next colony I bought made it through the first winter (NY) by me having to top feed from February to spring. I thought "what is everyone making a fuss about? This isn't hard." Well, I lost the hive the by start of the following winter because I never treated for mites. Lesson learned. I took a couple of beekeeping classes after that and felt much more confident with my new found knowledge. Had a productive summer with yet another new colony, treated for mites in late July/early August and the hive was doing great. The hive made it through the following winter but for some reason it never really recovered so I bought another nuc. Then I decided to try splitting hives so I wouldn't have to buy anymore bees. Long story short, my last hives died at the end of the fifth summer and I threw in the towel, disappointed that I had no clue why the hives died this time. That was three years ago. Only things I could come up with was either the mite treatment was too strong or that my location on a steep mountainside is not conducive to beekeeping.
I'll give it another shot when I retire and move to a more favorable location for keeping bees.
I still have about 10lbs of honey from my last hive.
Good luck if you do take on the challenge!
I forgot an important item: if you want to get into capturing swarms contact the local exterminator or pest control companies.
They usually get the call first, but if they know you will get there IMMEDIATELY (very important that you arrive quickly as the swarm usually is just resting when they land at first and the scout(s) are out looking for an acceptable location for the swarm and most people are freaked out about the mass of bees and think an attack is imminent).
They usually get the call first, but if they know you will get there IMMEDIATELY (very important that you arrive quickly as the swarm usually is just resting when they land at first and the scout(s) are out looking for an acceptable location for the swarm and most people are freaked out about the mass of bees and think an attack is imminent).
I'm going into my 3rd year keeping bees. My wife and I enjoy it. Started with 2 hives and now have 6 and I'm sure that will increase with some splits this spring. I have had a couple hives swarm but was able to get them to re-queen . I belong to a local club and have got some great info from some of the seasoned keepers. They preach mite treatments which I also am a firm believer in. Knock on wood, I haven't lost a hive yet. I harvested roughly 20 gallons of honey last year.
I met this guy at last years flaloozafest. Not sure if he is a member here on SH or not. U could reach out thru the utubes i guess. He knew all about it