The Hive and The Honey Bee – Is Beekeeping Right For You?

Honey bees were brought to the Americas by early European settlers and have been domesticated for centuries. Honey bees account for up to 80% of the pollination for our fruits and vegetables. Without them our food sources would begin to disappear, and we would have no wonderful honey to enjoy.

The importance of backyard beekeepers in keeping the bee population healthy and happy cannot be over estimated. Beekeeping is an interesting and rewarding hobby and requires only a small time commitment. Most hobby apiarists can expect to spend approximately 2 to 3 hours per hive per month on their beekeeping efforts. June is the busiest month for beekeeping and 4 to 5 hours is the norm then.

Before buying your equipment or setting up your hive make sure you check with your state for any licensing requirements. Some states require you to get a permit or license. They are typically not expensive and easy to get.

When you are just starting out as a beekeeper - or apiarist - you will need some equipment to get started. You will need a hive, protective clothing, a smoker, and of course the bees.

But before you start buying equipment get a good beginners beekeeping guide and sign up for some beekeeping forums to start learning about your new hobby. This way when you go to set up your hive you will be ready.

Bees are very interesting, but many new beekeepers are surprised to learn that worker bees life spans are very short. They only live for about 6 weeks during the summer and about 4 to 9 months during the winter. Queen bees can live for several years.

This short life span keeps the queen bees very busy laying eggs to keep her hive populated.

Bees live in a very structured type of society. Each bee has a distinct role within the hive.

Since bees are highly self sufficient, keeping bee hives is a perfect hobby for someone who want to have their own honey production but has limited time to spare.