# To Bee or Not



## julieandwadeshelton (Oct 10, 2014)

Hey Folks,

Our beekeeping association has a monthly meeting. In order to spread some info to people interested in beginning beekeeping, I would like to get opinions from you all on pros to beekeeping as well as cons. With some of the misconceptions about beekeeping, we would like to be upfront and clear with our potential new beeks. I thought this would be a good place to gather some input. Thanks in advance.

-Julie


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

Beekeeping is not a source of cheap honey! 

Beekeeping can be a good hobby to occupy a lot of hours if you have time on your hands!

Beekeeping can justify buying a lot of power tools that you can use for other things!

It is a good creative outlet with endless possibilities if you can get past the steep and sometimes painful learning curve.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

I don't think that wanting to keep bees to help save them is a good reason. But who am I to say that any reason anyone wants to become a beekeeper is a bad reason or a good reason. And I can't say why anyone should be a beekeeper. If someone is interested in keeping bees, go ahead.

I got serious about keeping bees because I wanted to live out in the country and I didn't want to be a carpenter or milk cows or really work for someone else. So I got into beekeeping with the intent of supporting my wife and family and live how we like to. So far it has worked out alright, with some negative aspects.

Why do you want a list of reasons to or not to? In order to convince someone else of something? If people come to your meeting, seems like that would indicate a level of interest in beekeeping. So a list of the "why not to" variety will probably fall on deaf ears.

I hope you have a good meeting.


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## charmd2 (May 25, 2008)

I tell anyone who asks about beekeeping not to get into it ever expecting honey the first year, and to not come whining to me if their hive dies and they can't answer the basic question of what was your mite count. 

If they simply want to say they own bees I offer to rent them a hive and send them pictures of it several times a year, and supply a gallon of honey each. Then they get to "save the bees" and I don't have to explain why their hives died in December.

I haven't met anyone yet who really wants to put in the effort to take care of a hive after suiting up with me once.


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## julieandwadeshelton (Oct 10, 2014)

We thought it would be a good resource to give some clarification. Some people have the misconception that you just throw some bees in a box and its gravy. Definately dont want people to think a good reason to keep bees is because they're "easy"


sqkcrk said:


> I don't think that wanting to keep bees to help save them is a good reason. But who am I to say that any reason anyone wants to become a beekeeper is a bad reason or a good reason. And I can't say why anyone should be a beekeeper. If someone is interested in keeping bees, go ahead.
> 
> I got serious about keeping bees because I wanted to live out in the country and I didn't want to be a carpenter or milk cows or really work for someone else. So I got into beekeeping with the intent of supporting my wife and family and live how we like to. So far it has worked out alright, with some negative aspects.
> 
> ...


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## julieandwadeshelton (Oct 10, 2014)

charmd2 said:


> I tell anyone who asks about beekeeping not to get into it ever expecting honey the first year, and to not come whining to me if their hive dies and they can't answer the basic question of what was your mite count.
> 
> If they simply want to say they own bees I offer to rent them a hive and send them pictures of it several times a year, and supply a gallon of honey each. Then they get to "save the bees" and I don't have to explain why their hives died in December.
> 
> I haven't met anyone yet who really wants to put in the effort to take care of a hive after suiting up with me once.


Amazing... the first time i suited up and the guy handed me his hive tool to pull a frame, I knew I wanted to keep bees.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Tell me more about what you are doing, please. Is this a talk you are giving? I'm not sure what you are doing and why. Have you had bees very long? How many seasons under your belt?


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## julieandwadeshelton (Oct 10, 2014)

sqkcrk said:


> Tell me more about what you are doing, please. Is this a talk you are giving? I'm not sure what you are doing and why. Have you had bees very long? How many seasons under your belt?


Oh not on my own in this endeavor. Our association meets once monthly. I and some others thought it would be a good idea for our Jan meeting to publicize a bit to gather some potential new beeks. Our VP is doing a PowerPoint, he is a journeyman. We will have some catalogs and magazines that have been donated to give out. We will provide info on nearby bee classes, and thought a small compiled list of reasons to or not beekeep.... maybe more appropriately pros vs cons. I have helped by posting some flyers and told the VP i would gather some info to add. I thought the input from this forum would add some ideas I hadn't yet considered. 

I myself am going into my second year and don't have a lot of experience.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

All good to know. Good luck with the meeting. In what part of VA is Henry Co?


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## enjambres (Jun 30, 2013)

I always try to emphasize that taking on the care of bees is like taking on the permanent care of an animal (pet ones, or livestock). It's not the sort of thing you should undertake on a whim. Nor should you do so to try and "save the bees". And bees are not accessories to your "back-to-the-land lifestyle."

OTOH, if you can get past any squeamishness about insects and stinginess, keeping bees as like having an adult-scaled ant farm that you're allowed to play in. And it is a rigorous intellectual and physical challenge.

And eventually you'll get the most expensive (counting all the money you have put into the bees) honey you've ever bought. 

Enj.


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## julieandwadeshelton (Oct 10, 2014)

Henry County is in southwest piedmont. An hour west and we are in the Blue Ridge Mountains. 20 min to the south we are in North Carolina.


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## woodsy (Mar 3, 2013)

1. Reason to keep honeybees

For pollinating crops.

Seriously, my apples were not getting pollinated so i got bees.
Now they are here when needed if they make it through the winter, LOL


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## lemmje (Feb 23, 2015)

For me, the biggest reason i keep bees (as a hobby, 9 colonies going into winter this year) is the peace i find working them. I cannot explain it, nor do i expect others to understand, but i find a lot of peace being near my bees.


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

julieandwadeshelton said:


> Henry County is in southwest piedmont. An hour west and we are in the Blue Ridge Mountains. 20 min to the south we are in North Carolina.


Near Giles Co. I have ancestors buried there.


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## waspslayer (Jan 3, 2010)

As most beekeepers can attest, there is not such thing nowadays as "set and forget". Maybe it was so 50 years ago, it is work to keep bees alive, but not all gloom and doom. I started with 2 hives about 10 years ago, pushing about 60 hives now and they are just about all I think about. I only think about my wife and kids more.

One big pro, it is fun keeping bees. One con, sometimes not so much. I will still keep bees as long as I am able.


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## Dan P (Oct 29, 2014)

I agree its a very calming thing. That is why only monks and clergy people had bees. huummm


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## beepro (Dec 31, 2012)

Agree with lemmje.
In less than 5 minutes watching the bees activity
everything seems to be calm down. Keeping the gentle
bees will give you a therapeutic effect. Better than seeing a specialist.


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## Mr.Beeman (May 19, 2012)

I really can't chime in here much as my rationale' is different than many beekeepers. Beekeeping is an end product of my bee removal company. They have to go somewhere safe so they won't be exterminated. 
They are calming though to watch. Initial investment is not a cheap affair.


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## Dan the bee guy (Jun 18, 2015)

It's amazing how people are so clueless about beekeeping. I've had people ask if there was money to be made or they would just like to keep bees just for the wax. My wife gets the flow hive video sent to her facebook all the time. I'm going to get some teaching material to set up at the farmers market next year.


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## rwlaw (May 4, 2009)

I'm thinking sqcrk is right on with the advice of don't get into bk'n to save the bees. It's something you have to want to do. 
Out of the ten or so of the people a year that show interest in keeping bees to me and spend a few hours in the yards, four want to buy equipment (generally don't) and I would consider one worth my time to mentor them thru the first year. 
Sometimes it's a royal PIA as far as working conditions, and you work with thousands of stinging insects, but it's a challenge that's well worth it IMO. Especially when you look at those booming hives staining the entrance yellow with maple and dandelion pollen in the spring.


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## Andrey Limonchenko (Mar 29, 2013)

Pros:
- Best pet(s) ever, calming effect (you can't stay angry and keep bees). Working the hives is like petting a pet. +1
- Fun and enjoyable, thrilling (the fist time you install a package), exciting (especially the spring of a second year)
- Your own local honey


Cons:
- Not cheap (hardware + tools + bees) will add up
- Challenging (bees die)
- Complicated (long learning curve)
- Not for people with back/spine issues


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## JohnBruceLeonard (Jul 7, 2015)

enjambres said:


> I always try to emphasize that taking on the care of bees is like taking on the permanent care of an animal (pet ones, or livestock). It's not the sort of thing you should undertake on a whim. Nor should you do so to try and "save the bees". And bees are not accessories to your "back-to-the-land lifestyle."


I second this, enjambres.

John


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## gjt (Jul 24, 2014)

I worked with a couple where the husband was in wheelchair. A horizontal hive with counter weight on the lid worked well for him. The most he ever had to lift was a single Dadant deep frame.



Andrey Limonchenko said:


> [...]
> 
> Cons:
> [...]
> - Not for people with back/spine issues


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## B52EW (Jun 3, 2013)

crofter said:


> Beekeeping can justify buying a lot of power tools that you can use for other things!
> 
> AMEN!


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## dudelt (Mar 18, 2013)

beepro said:


> Agree with lemmje.
> In less than 5 minutes watching the bees activity
> everything seems to be calm down. Keeping the gentle
> bees will give you a therapeutic effect. Better than seeing a specialist.


+1. There is nothing else that compares to seeing them doing their work. I just love sitting in the grass and watching them fly in and out of the hives. Pure meditation.


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## Riskybizz (Mar 12, 2010)

"I would like to get opinions from you all on pros to beekeeping as well as cons"..

At the risk of sounding overly negative regarding the "cons"

Watch out for the "charlatan" instructor. For quite a few years there was a self appointed top bar guru in my area who taught lessons to those that wished to plunk down $75.00 for this and then another $75.00 for that. This list could extend far greater than what you can imagine. I would often get calls from some of his former students who knew I kept bees. Most of the time their questions were quite trivial, but one thing rang clear: they had very little knowledge concerning how best to keep their bees alive. Their instructor it seemed had very little interest in answering their questions on the phone but wait; he was scheduling another class on that very subject in a week or two so make sure you sign up for the latest class. Apparently when almost all of his top bar colonies perished a couple of years ago he flew the coop to greener pastures. There will always be good honest hard working and knowledgeable beekeepers out there willing to share their expertise. Be wary of the ones that know everything there is to know, (for a fee).


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## billabell (Apr 19, 2010)

julieandwadeshelton said:


> Hey Folks,
> 
> I would like to get opinions from you all on pros to beekeeping as well as cons.
> -Julie


All of the above and more. Warn them if they find they enjoy beekeeping it can become an obsession - not necessarily a bad thing..


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## Smokin' Joe (Feb 9, 2015)

I started bee keeping this past spring because my 76 year old neighbor said having bees was on his bucket list. He asked if I would help him check that off and I agreed. It has been a great first year and I have made another person very happy. I do all the work and he just enjoys having the bees in his yard.

So the pros for me have been helping out a neighbor and learning so much about the bees (and him) along the way...Win win for everyone involved.

Cons: none for me so far...hope that helps!


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## julieandwadeshelton (Oct 10, 2014)

So regarding my intention for the OP,

We had our meeting Tuesday night. We had 10 new faces to show up! A couple had no prior experience, and others had dabbled in the past. Our VP did some basic youtube videos, I went over my list of pros and cons, had a drawing for prizes, opened up for Q and A, then we got a chance to mingle and check out some equipment components. I think it was a success!


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Excellent. Congratulations.

Any plans going forward? Regular meetings? Open format? Or a specific agenda? etc., etc.


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## phyber (Apr 14, 2015)

come down to Pittsylvania County and attend one of our meetings!


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## julieandwadeshelton (Oct 10, 2014)

sqkcrk said:


> Excellent. Congratulations.
> 
> Any plans going forward? Regular meetings? Open format? Or a specific agenda? etc., etc.


We already have monthly meetings first Tuesdays.. It's a relatively small group but we advertised this month's with intentions of spreading the word. Half the attending members have been beeks for many years. We are hoping to have a field day in April at the Pres's beeyard, and a lunch to raise some money. We will see how it all turns out


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## julieandwadeshelton (Oct 10, 2014)

phyber said:


> come down to Pittsylvania County and attend one of our meetings!


I'm going to Bee School at Dadant starting February


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