so you think you wanna be a beekeeper
DESCRIPTION
The whys and wherefores of bee keeping as a hobby. This presentation covers the basics of cost, timing, benefits and whether you have what it takes to love insects.TRANSCRIPT
So You Think You MIGHT Want to
be a Beekeeper?
Investment vs. Benefits
2010
Agenda
• Falling in love with a bug
• Starting the adventure
• Beekeeping calendar
• Sweet rewards
• 2010 Philadelphia Honey Festival
• Resources; next steps
• Western Honey Bee (Apis mellifera), an insect
• Superorganism: one individual bee cannot survive by itself– Labor is divided within
the superorganism– Multiple generations live
together– Young are cared for
cooperatively
Falling in Love with a Bug?
Resistance is Futile!
The Amazing Language of Bees
• Pheromones – “glue” that holds it together– Queen Substance – Workers’ pheromones– Brood pheromones
• Dance Language– Waggle Dance – distant location & type of food– Round Dance – near location & type of food
• Piping
Starting the Adventure
• Determine your potential– Fear, allergy, location, laws,
money, time– Basic protective equipment &
tools (approx. $100)– Basic hive “woodenware”
(approx. $170/hive)– Package of bees
(approx. $85)– Total startup cost ~ $355
Woodenware from the Bottom Up
• Cinder block
• Bottom board & entrance reducer
• Brood chambers with frames of foundation
• Queen excluder
• “Supers” (boxes above the queen excluder)
• Inner cover
• Outer cover
• Rock
Demonstration of Parts
City hive on front lawn, PhiladelphiaCountry hives on Saul High School
farm, Philadelphia
Thanks to the Good Rev. LLL
• The moveable frame hive allows for manipulation of individual frames of bees
• Intense observation & experimentation opportunities
• Ability to monitor the health of the hive throughout the beekeeping year
• Flexibility in managing the colony & apiary
• Sustainable economic industry: apiculture
Which is more complex? Which takes more time?
Beekeeping Calendar
• Jan, Feb – buy equipment & reserve bees• Mar – assemble & paint your hives • April – package bees arrive/ install & feed• May – swarm watch & management• June – add chambers, excluder, super• July – harvest honey• Aug, Sep – feed as needed; make candles• Oct, Nov – make mead, prep hive for winter• Dec – relax, read back issues of bee mags
City hive on front lawn, PhiladelphiaCountry hives on Saul High School
farm, Philadelphia
Sweet Rewards
• Honey Harvest
• Wax, Pollen, Propolis
• Stress Relief
• Bees as Pollinators
• Being part of the big picture: Save the Bees
• Getting an education & passing it on
• Meeting some interesting people
• Philadelphia Honey Festival
Resources
• PhillyBeekeepers.org
• Montcobeekeepers.org
• Chescobees.org
• Beekeeping equipment suppliers– Dadant– Brushy Mountain Bee Farm
• Bee-related courses, lectures and events– Check the county-specific websites
BACK UP SLIDES
2010 Philadelphia Honey Fest
• Celebrating Langstroth’s 200th Birthday
• Sept. 10-12 and year-around
• Volunteers needed
2010 Philadelphia Honey Fest
• Arts/Culture: Hive art, “The Bee Man”, candle-making, bee-bearding(!)
• Food/Beverage: Honey tasting, mead & honey brews, cooking with honey contest
• Hive and the Bee: Extracting honey, colony collapse disorder, alt. hive types
• Science/History: Langstroth’s hive, the importance of pollinators to our survival
How & Why Bees Make Honey
• The colony requires about 80# of stored honey going into the winter
• Honey is the fuel used by the bees to maintain a temperature of 57ºF inside hive
• Temperature increased to 95ºF mid-Feb as brood rearing begins
• Shivering action of wing muscles, without beating the wings, converts the food into heat
Nectar Enzymes - Water = Honey
• Nectar collected from blossoms by the field bees is transported in the honey stomach
• House bees accept the nectar from the field bees (mouth to mouth transfer)
• Sucrose is broken down to glucose & fructose
• “Fanning bees” evaporate the moisture• “Builder bees” cap the cured honey with wax
when moisture is down to 20%