Jenni Grover
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By now everybody knows how important it is to help the honey bees. Whether you are planting honey bee friendly plants or supporting your local backyard beekeeper, you are doing a vital service to our planet, and to our own well-being. Without bees, our diet would be pretty darned boring—from almonds to apples to squashes, we rely on bee pollination for a huge amount of our food. But what if you want to get really active in supporting bees? Why not consider becoming a backyard beekeeper yourself?
I recently took the plunge — installing two bee hives at my home in North Carolina. And really, the process has been way easier than I ever imagined. In an occasional series, I'm going to be going over the various steps involved in becoming a beekeeper. As with most things, the first and probably most important thing is to prepare. It makes sense to start these preparations well in advance—start reading up and learning now, and you'll be able to hit the ground running come next spring.
How to Start Out as a Beekeeper: Mental Preparation
- Read all you can: There are tons of books out there for the amateur beekeeper. Check out the very informative and simple Beekeeping for Dummies as a good place to start.
- Find a local beekeeping course: Your local beekeepers' association is as good a place as any to start.
- Get some experience with bees: Everyone is nervous when they start out. After all, we've been warned from a young age to be careful of bees. But bees are really very docile and rarely sting unless provoked. Try finding a friend with bees, or again looking through your local association, and asking if you can watch them tend their hives—it might even be worth helping them out for a whole season before you take the plunge yourself. You'll be surprised how gentle bees are—I often sit and watch my bees right next to the hive with no veil or protective clothing, and have never been stung.
- Visualize success: Bees don't like nerves. So if you really are afraid of bees, try visualizing a calm, successful visit to a beehive. The more you get used to the idea before you do it for real, the less likely you are to get panicky.
- Check out the law: Make sure there are no laws or covenants in your area banning beekeeping. Inflated scare stories about 'killer bees' have lead to some pretty draconian legislation in some regions.
- Talk to your neighbors: Just as you probably have nerves, your neighbors may be worried too. Get to know them and warn them in advance that you are going to be keeping bees. Tell them there will be free honey coming their way, and point them to some resources about how safe bees really are.
That's a long list to be starting with—but it is important to know what you are getting into. Next time around I'll take a look at some of the equipment you will need if you want to become an amateur beekeeper.
Related Posts:
White House Garden to Feature Bee Hives
Blogger Writes About Colony Collapse Disorder in his Own Backyard
Save the Bees! Grow Garden Plants Honey Bees Love
How Backyard Beekeeping Benefits Everyone
Need proof that it's possible to balance being green and still be a supportive partner and parent? See how Ed Begley, Jr. does it on Planet Green TV's Living with Ed.
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