Start Raising Bees for Business
If you are thinking of keeping bees as a hobby or as a sideline business, below is a quick guide to raising bees because there are things you should know before making a start.
You will have to spend some money in the start-up of beekeeping, but before you start investing money, you might want contact beekeepers in your area, who will be happy in helping you out and in most cases point you in the right direction for local beekeeping equipment.
Clothing and Equipment Needed For Beekeeping
One of the most important pieces of clothing a beekeeper wears is the veil. Bee stings on the face can be very painful and can damage the eyes and ears.
Wear white or light colored coveralls. When using boots, don’t wear dark socks. Boots that fasten over the coveralls or in the coveralls should be worn. To avoid being stung, wind breakers should be worn. Pants, veil, sleeves should be fasten securely to prevent bees from getting into your clothes.
You first need one bee hive, and a good place to get one is your local store or beekeeping society’s from your area.
You can buy this equipment new or used. If it is used you will want to make sure it is in good condition, also have it examined by the Apiary Inspection Service for any possibility of disease. The normal price for beekeeping equipment is $250-$450.
You could build your own hives, which is not difficult at all, if you have the time, but make sure your dimensions are correct because bees will build combs where you least want them.
Getting the Bees
There are several ways to acquire bees, no matter which method you choose the right time to buy bees is spring, established colonies will cost you more, but they can be worth the extra money.
Package bees
The package of bees consists of 2 or 3 pounds of bees, and a queen in a separate cage (Beginners should be able to handle them easily)
Introducing a New Queen
The most common practice of introducing a new queen requires an introductory period of about three days, the queen is placed in a cage and is fed by the colony bees though the wire gauze covering the cage. The only way she is let go is by the worker bees eating a candy entrance or the beekeeper can decide to release the queen into the colony manually.
The success of the colony depends largely on the quality of the queen. As a beekeeper you may notice a difference in the production of honey from one colony to the next. The difference in production can depend on several factors, and one being the queen.
Obviously this beekeeping guide for beginners touches just a little at what’s required, make sure you research before you start buying equipment, get all the information so you can make a good decision as to whether bee-keeping might be for you.
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