# Make a living



## mleck (Sep 10, 2010)

How many hives does a person have to have to contract with someone to send them out for rental say to Almonds fileds? how many hives does a person have to have to be able to make a living?


----------



## PCM (Sep 18, 2007)

*Re: Male a living*

Know a fellow that has 150 hives and sells honey and queens !

His Wife has a very good, high paying job !

They do OK.

:lookout:


----------



## HarryVanderpool (Apr 11, 2005)

1) It takes one hive to make a good living.
If you are retired, no mortgage, no payments, a good pension, social security, and your insurance is covered, you are good with one hive.

2) It takes many, many thousands of hives to make a good living.
If you have a mortagage, many payments, kids in college, aspire to keep up with the Jonse's, and borrow to start your business.

There are two true statements that demonstrate that the answer to your question is really a math question. No one can give you a number of hives that provides a good living for you. Only you can set down and pencil out an annual budget and then look at potential net earnings PER HIVE . (I said "net" )

Of course, you can always get someone to say something like, "They say it takes at least 500". Which has no meaning whatsever.


----------



## suttonbeeman (Aug 22, 2003)

best quote I saw was it takes same number of bees to loose 100,000 as make 100,000.


----------



## MARBIS (Jun 10, 2010)

This maybe helps
http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=245857&highlight=minimum+number+hives


----------



## NorthernIllinoisPlumber (Aug 17, 2010)

Define "Make a living." 

I do plumbing service, and go into all kinds of homes. Some with better Tv's, appliances and cars than me. Some of these folks got it rough they tell me...

I would estimate you would have to have 100+ hives for honey, raise queens, NUCS etc.


----------



## hpm08161947 (May 16, 2009)

There are so many different type of operations in the bee business that it is meaningless to even attempt an answer to that question. Can you make a decent living with bees? My answer would be... it is possible. I know a few guys that seem to live rather well... at least by my poor man's standards. So what do you want to do.... pollinate, make honey, nucs, package bees, queens... some combination of all of the above?


----------



## bluegrass (Aug 30, 2006)

Making a living with bees is the same as any other Ag product; It is a lot of hard work for very little pay when you sit down and start calculating everything. You gotta love it to do it, often you also have to have a second job.


----------



## Bsweet (Apr 9, 2010)

Running bees as a business is like any other small business, the more you want to make the bigger you have to get and as an owner/operator you don't get to work 8 hr. days and take time from work whenever you want, the hours are long and hard and the hourly wage is seldom very high.You have to like or love what you do, some years are good some very good and then it can all go to crap REAL fast. Jim


----------



## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

The best way for you to get an answer to this question is to get into it and do it, while keeping whatever job you, and your wife if you have one, now have. After a number of years, you will want to add more and more until your day job is in the way. Then you can tell us what number of hives it takes for you to make a living and how much of a living that is.

If your wife or girlfriend isn't in this w/ you now, get her in as soon as you can. A good reason to spend time w/ each other.


----------



## Keith Jarrett (Dec 10, 2006)

bluegrass said:


> Making a living with bees is the same as any other Ag product; It is a lot of hard work for very little pay


Really, interesting view.


----------



## LSPender (Nov 16, 2004)

What I have learned is that I will make lots of money no matter what!

Its an attitude and expectation.


----------



## Honey-4-All (Dec 19, 2008)

NorthernIllinoisPlumber said:


> Define "Make a living."
> 
> 
> That depends on your standards, aspirations, and extenuating circumstances.
> ...


----------



## Kingfisher Apiaries (Jan 16, 2010)

So, so, so many variables. Can you do it also depends on what products you are selling...i.e. you need to be diverisfied, what the local flow is like, what your personal financial situation is, and many others i can not think of off the top of my head. Also, are you willing to work harder than you ever have worked before? I have been working with a medium/large sized commercial operation this week. I do lawn care also. In all the lawn care I have done (super hot, hard work) working bees all day trumps that. I am totally knocked out after about half a week. Just sayin

mike


----------



## David LaFerney (Jan 14, 2009)

Last year a friend of mine produced 300 quarts of honey with 6 hives and sold it for $14 each - and sold out. It took him about 22 years to accomplish that. 

This year? Ask in July.


----------

