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The Water Cooler
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Hobby.... Beekeeping?
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<blockquote data-quote="Dumpstick" data-source="post: 3072169" data-attributes="member: 41653"><p>I tried it several years ago. </p><p></p><p> You can probably get in it with 2 hives for about $300-500</p><p></p><p>Pros - the honey is better then anything you've had . Ever.</p><p> - not a ton of time invested, just a few hours a week, until harvest.</p><p> - unless you get some disease or pest (which you will) the bees pretty much take care of themselves.</p><p></p><p>Cons - Start up costs not terrible, but when it comes time for harvest there is equipment to buy/rent.</p><p> -pests : everything likes honey. racoons, birds, mice, wasps. There are certain moths that eat wax, and worms that eat bee larvae.</p><p> -overwinter losses killed me.</p><p></p><p> The losses are a real concern. The current thought is that certain pesticides (nicinitoids (sp?)) make changes in the bee brains, and the bees forget how to navigate - i.e- they can't get home. When the workers can't get home , the rest of the hive dies. My problem , I think, related to a neighbor that started a squash farm nearby.</p><p> Year 1 -Start with 2 "cells" of bees, 2 hives started. Did okay the first year, kept them alive all year, and overwinter. No honey that year.</p><p> Year 2 - Hives looked fabulous. Then, one hive just dwindled to nothing. Got 30 or so pounds of honey from the oldest hive.</p><p>Year 3- Bought another cell to start another hive. Oldest hive swarmed, split, and half the bees just left. The remaining bees struggled on for the year, then died overwinter.</p><p>Year 4 - the last hive just dwindled to nothing.</p><p></p><p> I spoke with my mentor, and several of his colleagues, and they report 30-50% losses every year, to whatever is killing the bees.</p><p></p><p> There is a group of beekeepers in central Oklahoma, but I found them unresponsive to me as a newbie. They were clannish and not very helpful. Maybe you will have better luck.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Dumpstick, post: 3072169, member: 41653"] I tried it several years ago. You can probably get in it with 2 hives for about $300-500 Pros - the honey is better then anything you've had . Ever. - not a ton of time invested, just a few hours a week, until harvest. - unless you get some disease or pest (which you will) the bees pretty much take care of themselves. Cons - Start up costs not terrible, but when it comes time for harvest there is equipment to buy/rent. -pests : everything likes honey. racoons, birds, mice, wasps. There are certain moths that eat wax, and worms that eat bee larvae. -overwinter losses killed me. The losses are a real concern. The current thought is that certain pesticides (nicinitoids (sp?)) make changes in the bee brains, and the bees forget how to navigate - i.e- they can't get home. When the workers can't get home , the rest of the hive dies. My problem , I think, related to a neighbor that started a squash farm nearby. Year 1 -Start with 2 "cells" of bees, 2 hives started. Did okay the first year, kept them alive all year, and overwinter. No honey that year. Year 2 - Hives looked fabulous. Then, one hive just dwindled to nothing. Got 30 or so pounds of honey from the oldest hive. Year 3- Bought another cell to start another hive. Oldest hive swarmed, split, and half the bees just left. The remaining bees struggled on for the year, then died overwinter. Year 4 - the last hive just dwindled to nothing. I spoke with my mentor, and several of his colleagues, and they report 30-50% losses every year, to whatever is killing the bees. There is a group of beekeepers in central Oklahoma, but I found them unresponsive to me as a newbie. They were clannish and not very helpful. Maybe you will have better luck. [/QUOTE]
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