Bee Farming Basics
Bee farming in it's current form has been around since 1851 when Langstroth invented the first movable hive to take into account "bee space", which is the amount of space (about 1 cm) that bees will not build combs in. This development created bee hives that are not only movable, but that you can harvest honey from without damaging the bee colony. These hives are called Langstroth Hives.
Why people have bee farms.
The reasons people keep bees are as varied as the people themselves. Some people keep bees strictly as a for profit business and harvest the honey and beeswax as well as hire their bees out for pollination. Others engage in bee farming as a hobby or to make some extra side income. Beekeeping is ideal as a small supplemental business, because bees mostly take care of themselves.
Still others keep bees strictly because they are interesting. Many people find honey bees to be fascinating.
Time involved in bee farming.
A lot of aspiring bee farmers get discouraged because they think that keeping bees is difficult. But the reality is that unless you are allergic to bee stings, beekeeping is actually pretty easy. Once you learn about the bees life cycle and have the proper bee farming equipment, it only takes about 2 to 4 hours a month to maintain several hives. This is where I recommend that you start.
Of course, if you want to make a full time living keeping bees, you can expect the time commitment to be much greater, but by starting small and building your way up to a large bee farm, you will not only know what to expect, but you will also be prepared for the amount of work involved.
You will need these bee farming supplies.
Of course like any new venture, when you start raising bees you will need some specialty supplies. You may want to get more, but this is what you must have to start out with.
Bee hives: To avoid spreading disease from an old hive you will want to either build these yourself or buy them new. Most modern beekeepers use Langstroth type hives with removable frames. These are great if you want to harvest honey and wax from the bees. If you are more interested in learning about bees first hand, then you will want an observation hive instead.
Bee keeping suit and veil: Many experienced beekeepers only wear a veil, but if you are just starting out I would recommend getting the entire bee keeping suit if you want to minimize bee stings.
Bee smoker: Inexpensive, but not to be overlooked. A bee smoker will calm the bees down and will allow you to work with them more easily.
The bees themselves: When you are just starting out you will want to buy your starter bees. This is just much easier than trying to catch a bee swarm.
Overall, bee farming is a very rewarding and interesting hobby or occupation. If you love to nurture things and enjoy the outdoors I would recommend you give a small scale bee farm a shot and see how you like it.
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