Beekeeping Essentials

There are about seven officially recognized species of honey bees out of about 20,000 species that have been discovered thus far. In truth, nearly all the bee species make honey but these are singled out for their unique characteristics that make them perfect for beekeeping and honey production. Three of the most commonly domesticated species are the Eastern species, the European (Western) honey bee and the Africanized honey bee.

The Western honey bee is probably the most domesticated species. It nests in cavities and produces multiple combs which make it perfect for beekeeping honey which it produces in excess. If you are looking to get into commercial beekeeping, these are the recommended species.

There are so much more benefits that come from bees other than just honey. Bees also produce wax and are considered the pollinators of the earth. Much more research and interest has been given to the bees than other insects because of their critical role in the human food chain.

Let us have a brief look at how these incredible insects go about making that sweet tasting food substance you cannot resist:

Worker bees are primarily responsible for making honey. They set out and visit the flowers to gather nectar. Flowers actually use nectar as bait to attract the bees which in turn transfers the pollen grains from one flower to another in the gathering process. Through the production of an enzyme called invertase, the worker bee converts the complex sugars into much simpler ones like glucose and fructose. A second enzyme, glucose oxidase, converts part of the glucose sugar into gluconic acid and hydrogen peroxide making honey into an acidic medium but with a low pH. 

This is an extremely hostile environment for bacteria, fungi, moulds, any other such micro organisms giving honey its antiseptic qualities. Personally, this is not hard to imagine as I have long given up my throat lozenges in favor of a scoop of the magical healing honey! One final process which takes place is when the bees reduce the moisture content in the nectar which gives honey a very high osmotic pressure. This is why honey can last for a couple of years without going bad - and without any artificial preservation techniques like refrigeration.

Like I earlier mentioned, there is more to bees than just honey. Bees are key pollinators of a good number of the foods that we consume. It is certainly welcoming news to learn that beekeeping is increasingly gaining popularity as a hobby and commercial venture. This will help to mitigate the disastrous effects of the recent chants about CCD (Colony Collapse Disorder) that have surfaced from many an analysts' reports. 

Kevin Hackett, national program coordinator for the USDA's bee and pollination program has been at the fore front to ensure the honey bees are not wiped out. In his own words; "... so if the collapse worsens, we could end up being stuck with grains and water".

The Beekeeping Hive: An Essential Guide

Here is a new definition for beekeeping; 'an activity or hobby that ensures earthlings shall have a varied diet of foods.'

If recent reports are anything to go by, I would like to promptly inform you that your recent interest in beekeeping is a hallelujah moment! You have definitely signed up for a major cause to ensure these amazing insects remain with us, and in large numbers to ensure the human food chain is sustained and balanced. You see, bees are responsible for about 80% of pollination in plants and a little over 30% of our meals are comprised of insect pollinated plants.

Beekeeping is the practice of keeping bees either for the dough (sale of honey) or just as a hobby. One of the most important tools in this culture, actually called apiculture, is the beehive. Bees exist as a single unit called a colony. Naturally, they would occupy hollow tree trunks and hang on tree tops or against the bark of the trees. Hollow tree trunks were actually a hot spot for the bees and have influenced the design of the modern beehive.

Beehives are an important breakthrough, I'll tell you that. Many winters ago, harvesting the honey meant a total destruction of the beehives and sometimes extermination of the bees. Thanks to developments in the design and structure of the beehives, this has changed a great deal. Modern beehives have gone even further to ensure accessibility and maintenance is the basis of any such designs. There are in fact some designs that are intellectual properties, as in patents.

As a seasoned or an aspiring (or a Johnny-come-lately) beekeeper, you should really devote some time and effort to understanding the beehive. A beehive is basically a mostly wooden structure that is used for rearing bees and designed to simulate their natural dwelling. The bees then make the small hexagon-like structures that they use for breeding and storing pollen and honey. 

These small structures are interconnected to form larger ones called combs which are commonly referred to as honey combs. The number and size of the combs will determine the amount of honey you will harvest. Some beehive designs even mimic the space that the bees would leave in between combs in their natural habitations and incorporate it in their overall design.

The citizens in any beehive are comprised of the worker bees, the drones and the queen. The worker bees (the busy bees) perform most, if not all of the housekeeping and basic chores that keep the hive running. They do clean up, feed the little ones and the queen, make the honey, and guard the hive from predators. They are sterile females and are the most abundant in any colony. 

The drones are the male bees and are far less abundant in the hive and their only role is to mate with the queen. After that, no one wants them around anymore and are sent out - to die. The queen is the center of the hive. Her primary role is to ensure continuity of the colony and therefore lays nearly 2000 eggs per day.

Beehives also assist in transporting the bees around when say, you want a certain area pollinated. There are actually some farmers who charge for pollination services.

Essential Beekeeping Guide

Back in 1995, Rockne S. O'Bannon's thriller movie, 'Deadly Invasion: the killer bee nightmare' had a less than average rating and perhaps considered a flop. Why? The bees never actually killed or seriously injured anyone!

"They can't even kill an allergic little girl!" one critic mused. "Usually when you put killer bees in your movie, you actually let them kill someone and not just fly around!" went another review. Rockne was certainly on the receiving end as one of the top movie critics concluded that "... so all you got to do to be safe when you are surrounded by these bees is... wave your arms around like a moron and you'll be safe". 

Now, for anyone whom that last piece of 'advice' has actually worked, please get in touch with me.

Posthaste! For all I know, bees are one of the most dangerous insects. If you flip that fact around you might have something like; bees are the only insects that produce the sweetest know naturally occurring food substance. But don't be fooled, these little stingers won't give up their honey that easy and they will ferociously attack their predators and any kind of intruder.

With this in mind, beekeeper clothing should be your number one item on the list of requirements if you are intending to embark on beekeeping. Bees can seriously injure you and even kill you through their stings and venom. You have probably seen some documentaries of seasoned beekeepers working around the bees without protective clothing. Don't attempt it!

I cannot emphasize enough the importance of having protective gear if you are a beekeeper. Luckily, there have been some breakthrough inventions and designs of beekeeper clothing that have recently been developed. This has helped to strike the elusive balance between maneuverability and safety. Earlier on, the beekeeper protective gears had been a little cumbersome but modern day versions are extremely flexible and light improving efficiency when executing regular tasks around the beehives.

The beekeeper jumpsuit offers perhaps the best protection. It is basically a full or complete overall with an attached hood and hat. It is made of such materials like canvas or plastic that offers protection from the stings. Other suits are made of a combination of cotton and polyester which is a very light material but still offers optimal protection from the stings. The hood, which is the most important part of the suit, can either be attached or may come as a separate component.

Bees will tend to attack the head region, that is your face and neck region, because they are attracted to your breath. That is not to say that your nether regions do not need to be protected, a sting is just as lethal and painful anywhere on your body. The hood is made up of a hat and a veil that keeps the bees from coming into contact with your skin. The beekeeper suit is not complete without a set of hand gloves and boots. White is the preferred color of the beekeeper clothing as it tends to be a distraction to the bees and make s them less hostile.

Rockne is still my man!

The Essential Beekeeping Guide

You may already be familiar, through research or some other means, about the requirements of beekeeping. The tools and equipment needed, a little about the bees and their nature, where to get them, etc. Perhaps you are excited and off with the cockatoo to set things rolling and get your first colony. One of the critical things that you must have, keep and constantly use is the beekeeper guide. Beekeeping is certainly not something that you could just learn on the job.

Really, is a beekeeping guide necessary? You bet your life it is! Especially if you are a newbie.

What is the difference between the successful beekeeper and the less than successful one? Simply, the successful beekeeper works within the guidelines and best practices while still opening up for learning opportunities and efforts. All the harvesting seasons are not the same in beekeeping and therefore a beekeeping guide will always come in handy to ensure you cover the basics in the wake of any changes or new developments.

A beekeeping guide will answer nearly all of the questions for any beginning beekeeper. Questions like; what and where to get beekeeper supplies. The guide should contain not only a list of the basic requirements for starting out, but also a list of suppliers and manufacturers who stock the recommended tools and equipment. This will save you the headache of trying to figure out which brand to settle on to get the best deal.

The guide should also have a how-to section which will include how to set up your beehive, settling the bees in, and a how-to guide on performing some of the routine maintenance tasks. This indeed should form the bulk of the guide as you will then be digging your hands into the job after all is said and read. It contains clear step by step illustrations and tips on how to get everything done.

A beekeeping guide will contain tips on how to detect diseases and pests infestations. As a novice, it may be very difficult to see these signs. The guide contains information on the all the diseases, how to detect their signs, and how to deal with them. It also contains a list of pests like the mites and how to keep them away. This includes the bee predators as well. Some diseases and pests can wipe out the entire colony and all your beekeeping efforts could thus be brought to naught even before your first harvest.

The guide will also cover a lot about your safety. Bees are instinctively protective of their territory and always react through a swarm attack and stinging. This could injure you severely and even lead to death. A good beekeeping guide will cover all the basics on how you can keep yourself safe for the rest of your beekeeping run.

I know there are a lot of beekeeping guides out there that are extremely technical and the jargon will send you reaching for your science dictionary after every sentence. A good guide should cover the basics you need to get started.

The Vital Beekeeper Supplies List

Beekeeping is a delicate hobby or activity and you need to get it right. If you are just starting out and have probably not put a lot of thought into the requirements yet, you are headed for a dull show. Your beekeeping experience is going to be a robust and exciting (and stinging) one as you work the bees and wait for that sweet substance at the end of the show. You got to have a perfect blueprint.

An important part of that blueprint is the beekeeper supplies. You need to have the right equipment and also know where to get it for the best deal. It is not uncommon to see folks who are just too excited with their new found hobbies and get into a frenzy of sorts buying all the equipment that is even remotely related to it. You don't have to buy the whole store to get a good output.

Here are the (important) basics:

Get a bee hive. There are several types of beehives each with its advantages and disadvantages. You may also construct one for yourself so that you can have the dimensions customized for instance. You may also want to consider a used bee hive which is actually a favorite for the bees. 

The two most common types are the range of Top Bar hive and the Langstroth hives. These are extremely popular because of their simple designs that ensure easy access to those hard to reach areas during maintenance and harvesting. They are also relatively kind of easy on your wallet.

Next up are the stingers. There are about a dozen species that are considered true honey bees. The European honey bee and the Africanized honey bee are good examples. There are however some 20,000 species of bees known today. All the species of the bees will produce honey but these particular species are the crème de la crème of the stingers. 

These are the kind that you should insist on when purchasing a colony. If you are out in the wild or the countryside, you may be able to attract your own colony but if not, you can make a purchase. They'll pack up about 10, 000 bees for you and a queen. There will only be one queen at any given time in a colony.

Protective gear should be acquired simultaneously with your colony if not before. Before the stingers make themselves home, you will need to work a little bit here and there. Ensure you have your beekeeper jumpsuit on ad you perform all these tasks. This suit is one of the most important beekeeper supplies you will need as beekeeping is a dangerous activity in itself. Bees are extremely protective of their territory and any attempt to access the hive will almost always stir up a fight. Get a proper and full beekeeper suit that is white in color and complete with hand gloves and boots.

All your beekeeper supplies are not complete without the extra hand tools like the hive tools, excluder cleaning tools, bee brush, and frame patches. Finally, a beekeeper guide is absolutely critical for anyone starting out.

The Beekeeper Hat

It's a good thing you are (or thinking of) beekeeping. No 'hats off' though for now.

As a beekeeper, you will have to (forever) bear with the fact that your bee colonies will attack you almost always whenever you try to access the beehive. That's why you must always have protective clothing at all times - a beekeeping jumper suit. One of the most critical components of that suit is the hat and veil.

See, the bees will always attack your head and face region and therefore this should be well protected. 

A beekeeper hat is basically a hat with a wide and round brim running the entire circumference around your head. This hat is then attached to a veil which will keep the stingers away from your face. Without the veil, the beekeeper hat will just be like any other hat that will perform any other functions other than protection. 

The veil is also attached to the jump suit or to the collar tight enough to not allow the bees to slip under. Some experienced beekeepers utilize this as the only protective gear, but it is extremely dangerous as the stingers are able to deliver their stings anywhere else on your body. It is always advisable to don the full jumpsuit when working around your hive. 

  

The beekeeper hat is designed together with the veil to keep the stingers off of your face as they will always head there. It is made up of a brim that should stick far out a minimum of six inches or more to always ensure the bees are kept a safe distance from your face. The brim should be made of some tough material to hold the veil tight enough. Bees are attracted to your breath and the dark regions on your face. During an attack or when beekeepers are working around the beehive, you will always see a large number of bees on the head regions. This means you must always ensure that the veil never get in contact with the face.

Some beekeeping suits come complete with a hat and veil, but you can make one for yourself and save the money. Ensure that the veil is firmly attached to the hat and the suit collar so that it is tight enough. The veil should also be closely knitted to prevent the smaller stingers (the rookie worker bees) to go through. The veil should also not be too closely knitted as it might reduce visibility and give you a tough time working with the bees. The veil should also have at least a 180 degree view which also improves the circulation of air.

As with the rest of the protective gear, the hat should also be white in color or any of the lighter colors. The stingers will be less aggressive when you are wearing white colored gear because darker colors represent most of their enemies like the bears and raccoons.

Remember, the beekeeper hat is not complete protection in itself. It is best used in combination with the full jumpsuit, boots and hand gloves.

Used Beekeeping Equipment

If you are looking at diving into beekeeping and are a little tight on the dough, used beekeeping equipment is a good option. Don't you start improvising or leaving out some critical equipment because of a crunch. If you are just starting out, it's not such a good idea, but workable nonetheless. Some experts will tell you that bees actually prefer the old and used beehives to the brand new ones.

Once you know exactly what you need (by making a real list), the next question is where to get the get the best equipment and the best deal. Here are a few considerations to keep in mind as you set out:

The internet almost always is the default place to start for many people - no wonder it is a fave for the swindlers and cons. They will take every opportunity to throw at you a raw deal if you so much as show the slightest sign of vulnerability. That said, visit the sites or apiary if you are uncertain and check out the equipment for yourself.

Personally, I recommend starting out by checking the local directories for suppliers who are selling used beekeeping equipment. Ensure that they are registered by the local apiary authorities. The local beekeeping clubs could also give you some important recommendations and contacts. 

These folks can certainly let you in on some beekeepers that might be downsizing or looking to upgrade their equipment. That means their newsletters and publications might be a perfect place to scan for any ads of members selling off their equipment. A friend recently told me he had got information on some used hives from a bee exterminator. He had told him about some old hives that were in good condition after doing his thing for a customer who was throwing in the towel.

Equipment such as the hives can be sensitive. It may be infested with disease previously and not properly sterilized. Always try to find out why they are selling it and though this may be difficult, at least ask for some sort of inspection certification and later, a guarantee. 

Disease in the hive can be quite frustrating as it usually ends up killing the bees. Some of the diseases that are hard to detect include the acute paralysis virus, Kashmir bee virus, and the fatal Black queen cell virus which kills the queen. As for the pests, it might be possible to see the signs of such pests as the varroa mites. This might be too technical for a novice at the moment, but it is information that can save you a great deal (didn't I tell you to get brand new equipment?)

Be on the look-out for faulty or damaged equipment. Some folks could easily try to sell you their equipment that is either not as effective anymore, or totally doesn't work. Lastly, keep your eyes on the money. Compare the costs of the used equipment to the brand new ones to ensure you don't pay less but have to replace or repair the equipment after a short period.