Discovering the Benefits of Beekeeping
Why has mankind been so interested in beekeeping over the centuries? You can bet that the first motivator was honey.After all, for many years and long before cane sugar, honey was the primary sweetener [more…]
Spring Beekeeping Inspection
Spring is a busy time for bees and beekeepers. Your spring beekeeping inspection is the first of the season. It’s time to start bee colonies or bring your colonies “back to life.” Here’s your spring inspection [more…]
Winter Beekeeping Inspection
The beekeeping cycle slows in the winter. After you’ve prepared your bee colony for the cold weather in your area, do these things in your winter beehive inspection: [more…]
Beekeeping For Dummies Cheat Sheet
Your spring, winter, and routine beekeeping inspections vary. The spring inspection starts or revives your bee colony, the winter inspection prepares your beehive for the cold weather, and your routine [more…]
How to Plan Your First Beehive Inspection
The weekend has rolled around, and the weather’s great (mild, sunny, and not much wind), so you’ve decided that you’re going to inspect your beehive. But you can’t just dash out and tear the top off the [more…]
How to Open Your Beehive
When opening your beehive for inspection, approach your hive from the side or rear. Avoid walking right in front of it, because the bees shooting out the entrance will collide with you. [more…]
The Benefits of Beekeeping
Honey is by no means the only reason folks are attracted to beekeeping. For a long time, agriculture has recognized the value of pollination by bees. Without the bees’ help, many commercial crops would [more…]
How to Know if You’d Make a Good Beekeeper
How do you know whether you’d make a good beekeeper? Is beekeeping the right hobby for you? Here are a few things worth considering as you consider beekeeping as a honey-producing pastime. [more…]
How to Identify the Basic Body Parts of Honey Bees
Everyone knows about at least one part of the honey bee’s anatomy: its stinger. But you’ll get more out of beekeeping if you understand a little bit about the other various body parts that make up the [more…]
How Honey Bees Communicate
Honey bees make use of five senses throughout their daily lives; however, honey bees have additional communication aids at their disposal. Two of the methods by which honey bees communicate are of particular [more…]
How to Identify the Three Castes of Bees
Three different castes (worker, queen, and drone) make up the total population of a bee hive. Each has its own characteristics, roles, and responsibilities. Upon closer examination, the three types of [more…]
Understanding the Role of the Queen Bee in a Hive
The queen bee is the heart and soul of the honey bee colony. She is the reason for nearly everything the rest of the colony does. The queen is the only bee without which the rest of the colony cannot survive [more…]
Understanding the Role of the Worker Bee in a Hive
The majority of the bee hive’s population consists of worker bees. Like the queen, worker bees are all female. They are smaller, their abdomens are shorter, and on their hind legs they possess [more…]
Understanding the Role of the Drone Bee in a Hive
The drone is the only male bee in the colony. Drones make up a relatively small percentage of the hive’s total population. At the peak of the season, their numbers may be in the hundreds. You rarely find [more…]
Tracking the Life Cycle of a Honey Bee
Honey bees develop in four distinct life cycle phases: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. The total development time varies a bit among the three castes of bees, but the basic miraculous process is the same: [more…]
How to Identify Stinging Insects
Honey bees usually are gentle in nature, and it’s rare for someone to be stung by a honey bee. Away from their hives, honey bees are nonaggressive. More aggressive insects are the more likely culprits [more…]
How to Overcome the Fear of Being Stung When Beekeeping
Perhaps the best-known part of the bee’s anatomy is its stinger. It may be your biggest apprehension about taking up beekeeping. Even if you’ve never been stung by a honey bee, you may have felt the wrath [more…]
Knowing What to Do If You’re Stung While Beekeeping
An occasional sting is a fact of life for a beekeeper. Following the rules of the road, however, keeps stings to a minimum, or perhaps you’ll get none at all. Yet, if a bee stings you or your clothing, [more…]
How to Ease the Minds of Family and Neighbors When Beekeeping
Many people among the general public are ignorant about honey bees. Having been stung by hornets and yellow jackets, they assume having any kind of bee nearby spells trouble. Not true. It’s up to you to [more…]
Where to Keep Your Hives When Beekeeping
You can keep honey bees just about anywhere: in the countryside, in the city, in a corner of the garden, by the back door, in a field, on the terrace, or even on an urban rooftop. You don’t need a great [more…]
Comparing Honey Flavor and Geographical Area
The type of honey you eat usually is classified by the primary floral sources from which the bees gathered the nectar. A colony hived in the midst of a huge orange grove collects nectar from the orange [more…]
How to Identify the Basic Woodenware Parts of a Beehive
Woodenware refers to the various components that collectively result in the beehive. Traditionally these components are made of wood, but some manufacturers offer synthetic versions of these same components [more…]
How to Order Beehive Kits and Parts
Beekeepers use all kinds of fantastic tools, gadgets, and equipment. Quite frankly, part of the fun of beekeeping is putting your hive together and using the paraphernalia that goes with it. The makings [more…]
How to Add Feeders to Your Beehive
Feeders are used to offer sugar syrup to your bees when the nectar flow is minimal or nonexistent. They also provide a convenient way to medicate your bees [more…]
Choosing Tools and Accessories for Your Beehive
All kinds of gadgets, gizmos, and doodads are available to the beekeeper. Many different mail order establishments offer beekeeping supplies, and a number of excellent ones are now on the Internet. Some [more…]
