Are honeybee boxes self-sustaining?

[Inchworm]

I'm just curious if anyone has dabbled with them. I remember as a kid farmers having them for their fields, but thats as far as it gets. I don't remember if they did anything with them.

:shrug:

[ThomWV]

1. No

We used to keep bees. There is a good bit to it. They are not demanding but there are things that need to be done and when they need to be done, well, that's it. Its not much trouble though and of course they are interesting. I was lucky in that back when I was in college I was able to take a course in bee keeping and have it count (I have a degree in Agricultural economics) toward something.

As you probably know bees are dieing off for no known reason so if you want to add to their numbers you will certainly be doing something good for the neighborhood as well as yourself. I should tell you the reason that we quit them was because I was having increasingly serious reactions to stings. Anyway, there are some very good books on bee keeping. It is not terribly expensive to set up a hive, and you get to assemble and paint all the new boxes which is as sort of labor of love if you buy new. Honey time is sticky-fun time, you don't really need an extractor for just a single hive.

I'd definitly recommend it if you have an interest. I'm sure you'll be able to find beekeepers in your area and I'm equally sure they will be more than happy to introduce you to bee keeping, probably set you up with a nice used hive and get you established with a box of bees too.

[Inchworm]

2. I'm aware of the population loss

That is why I pondered the idea. I doubt I could maintain it though. I sometimes forget to feed myself :P

Thanks Thom.

:hi:

[bvar22]

3. We keep bees.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=280x34941

Keeping healthy bees requires some maintenance.
They are not difficult, but there are some things you need to know.

Neither Starkraven nor myself had any previous experience with bees.
We just blundered in and managed to do OK (part luck, part good research).
We used the InterNet for research, and eventually ordered our equipment and bees online.
There are "packages" online that included everything you will need.

We ordered the hives and assembled them during the Winter, and ordered the bees in the Spring.
They came through the mail (!).
We now have two healthy hives (2nd year) and will get a Spring honey harvest in a few weeks. Our vegetable garden and fruit trees are amazingly productive, almost every blossom produces fruit.

The bees themselves are fascinating. The more we learn about them the more fascinating they become. Unless they feel threatened, they are gentle and not aggressive.
They are very hearty creatures, but there are times they need our help.

If you are serious, I have one TWO recommendation.

1)Join your local BeeKeepers organization. There is one near you.
Beekeepers are some of the nicest, relaxed people you will ever meet.
You can get some hands-on experience working around hives through your local organization.
PLUS, you will have access to the local information about pests, flows,Africanized bees, and disreputable operators.
We joined our local BeeKeepers club and it has proven invaluable.

2) Touch base with your local County Extension.
There are certain requirements concerning registration and inspections.
We generally don't do government regulations, but in the case of our bees, we decided to register our hives and have them inspected. Since we have registered our hives, no one else can put a colony within a certain distance of our registered location.

We LOVE our bees!

[Inchworm]

4. Thanks!

That about covers it. I'd do better to dabble first than to jump in feet first :D

I'm sure I know someone around here with hives. I think it was a big thing among the tobacco farmers here back before they stopped doing tobacco.

:thumbsup:

[ThomWV]

6. This is an outstanding response

You have been given the best of advice here. That tip about contacting your County Extension Agent's office, that is probably the best advice you could get. They will tell you about local clubs, local problems, local laws (if any), probably local suppliers too, if any exist. First stop, no doubt about it, the Extension Agent's office - found in the blue pages under State offices. If there is a local Ag-school give them a call too and find the Professor who lives for bees - trust me, they have one.

On that top picture of the bee and the plant, do you see that little white blob on the bee's hind leg? That is pollen that is intended to be taken back to the hive but some of it will find its way to the next plant that bee visits too. That's what its all about from the plant's point of view.

In the second picture the hive entrance is to the bottom left of the box, down there near that upside down bottle that is probably a feeder (sugar water) of some sort. The lowest box is called the hive body, it is where the queen will make brood, which are baby bees in various stages of maturation. That part of the hive stays where it is no matter what you do with the boxes that will be stacked on top of it. Notice that it, the lower box, is the same height as the top box. The middle box is either where the bees will store food (honey) for current and later use or in a strong hive might be just a continuation of the hive body. Either way it will probably stay right where it is too. Notice that it is not as tall as the bottom or top boxes. It would be referred to as a 'shallow super' in beekeeper terms. The top and bottom boxes are called 'deep supers' and can be used for honey production, as is the case with the top box in that picture, or can be used as a hive body, as in the lower box in the picture.

At any rate bees will make bees in the bottom boxes and make honey in upper boxes. Actually they do all this on parts called frames that hang in the boxes. There is another part that is about an inch thick that is called a Queen Excluder that you can put on the top of the last hive body box. Its just a frame with narrow slots in it that the worker bees (females) can get through but the larger queen can not. It keeps her in the lower boxes to lay eggs but lets the workers to up to make honey.

Your task as bee keeper is to add boxes when necessary, to take off full ones and extract the honey once they fill up, to leave enough honey for your bees to overwinter, and to generally watch their health and well being. That takes maybe a half hour a week of your time and during mid summer even less than that. It is not a demanding hobby but it sure is a rewarding one.

By the way, our son was young when we kept bees. He fancied himself quite a hero at 10 or so when he knew he could walk up to an open hive with thousands of bees all about and feed them honey off his fingertip and let them crawl all over if they wanted too without much danger at all of being stung. It taught him a lot about "scary" things not being a real threat at all - that knowledge disarms fear, even for a kid.

[Inchworm]

7. Thank you for taking it another level

I like learning about stuff like this. I may or may not actually do it, but by the time I decide I'll know a lot about it. hehe

:applause:

[Quantess]

5. My dad kept bees when I was growing up.

He acquired a local reputation of being the brave man who captured wild swarms of bees, yellow-jackets, even wasps and hornets. He was macho about it, and he bragged about being stung 8 or 9 times even through the protective suit. Keep in mind, they stung him because he was invading their home.

I went around barefoot all summer, and I got stung 2 or 3 times every summer, but only because I accidentally stepped on a bee. We kept the friendly Italian kind who only stung in self-defense.

Our beehives looked exactly like the photo in the above posts, like white dressers. A couple of times my parents harvested the honey, but I think they lost interest because it was so messy in the kitchen afterward.

My dad really enjoyed beekeeping. I really miss the bees.

[Inchworm]

8. That would be a tough job

I've seen some big nests. I think the biggest and most intimidating was in Florida on the side of a little strip mall. It had to have been at least 8 foot up and down and about 3 foot in the middle. I was told they "swarmed" there and noone stopped them.

You made me remember something from my youth. I did summer work often clearing banks, yards, lots. We worked as a small crew and worked all summer. I was the one called over when a nest was hit. Yellowjackets were the common trouble.

And in comes Inchworm with the flame thrower. I ain't skeert. :P

:hi: