The Bees and Me
(Page 2 of 3)
May/June 1988
By Ruth McDaniel
I like to play with bees, letting them eat a drop of honey on my finger or just crawl around on my hand. I wasn't scared of bees at all until I got stung for the first time—and really, that was my fault. I was trying to turn one bee over onto her feet when I accidentally squeezed another one and she stung me. I didn't play with bees for a while after that, but soon got over my reluctance.
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If you're a new beekeeper and not too sure of yourself, you can take some precautions until you build your confidence. Gloves will protect your hands, or you can wear a bee suit—a full set of sturdy coveralls that's practically bee-proof! As you get more comfortable around the gentle insects, you may shed this armor, but you'll probably still want to wear a beekeeping hat and veil to protect your face. (I almost always wear my veil—I find it very disconcerting when a bee flies up and sits on my nose!) And you'll probably always use a smoker. Puffing the bees with that portable firebox helps keep them calm.
My Beekeeping Chores
My dad does most of the bee handling and heavy work with the hives. I nail and paint new hives and help him catch swarms and inspect colonies to make sure they are well and happy. Then when the bees have finished ripening and capping the year's honey, I help extract that liquid gold from the combs and bottle it for sale.
All these chores are really fun, but the job I enjoy the most is promoting beekeeping by teaching people about bees at the different honey festivals held in our area—especially at the Maryland State Fair. I've even taught my schoolmates a bit about beekeeping and the gentleness of honeybees.
Swarms
To me, catching swarms is the most exciting part of beekeeping. A swarm forms when a colony becomes too large to stay in its present home. About half of the bees then leave the hive with the old queen, while the other half stay and raise a new queen. The migrating bees often hang in a big cluster from a tree limb or house eave until they find a new place to move into. Swarming bees are even gentler than regular bees, because they have no hive to defend and because they fill their stomachs so full with honey before they leave home that they can't bend far enough to sting. They're so nice you can actually pick them up in your hands. [Editor's Note: An old swarm, one that's been homeless and exposed to the weather/or a couple of days, may be a bit testy.]
