So, You Want to Be a Beekeeper?

Reader Contribution by Ron Lane
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As I sit down to write this article the thermometer reads just one degree. Last night’s low was 3 degrees and tonight it’s supposed to be a few degrees below zero. I can’t help thinking of my girls outside in their hives, shivering their wings to maintain a temperature of about ninety degrees within their cluster.

They are amazing little creatures and all of them have already survived temperatures of minus 17 degrees this winter. How do I know they survived? During a break in the winter weather I saw bees flying from most of the hives, while others were visiting the dog’s water dish. What about the hives that had little or no activity? A simple test can give you a good read on what’s going on inside without opening the hive, which you do not want to do in the dead of winter. I put my ear to the side of the hive and listened for a familiar buzz. The three hives that were less active all had a nice buzz to them.

You might think that January is a little early to be thinking about taking up beekeeping, so it may surprise you if I said you might be a year behind. Beekeeping is becoming more popular all the time, but long term success has not been the result and many abandon the hobby after only a few years. So contrary to the many articles you can read that encourage you to jump right in, I hope, not so much to discourage you, but to help you make an educated decision about whether beekeeping is right for you or not. Would you make a good beekeeper?

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