We’ve been keeping bees in our backyard here in Wallingford about 15 years now. With the growing urban farming movement, we’re hearing “I want to keep bees, too!” more and more frequently. Usually, this comes sometime in June or July, which, unfortunately, is a bit late to get started. Bees have a season, and their season is nigh.
So, this here is a public service announcement to anyone out there who has been thinking of getting bees: if you want to do it in 2011, you’ll need to order your bees now. We know of two places you can buy them around here: Beez Neez Apiary Supply in Snohomish or through the Whidbey Island Beekeeper’s Association (The Whidbees, cute, eh?) Beez Neez will charge you around $120 for a “package” of bees (enough to start one hive), the Whidbees charge significantly less (around $90). You also can choose European or Carniolans through the Whidbees.
The bees you’ll get are coming up by truck from California, so there’s a pretty small window (typically there’s only one or two days when you can make your pick-up). Once those groups have made and delivered their orders, it’s much more difficult to get started. There isn’t a bee store where they just keep them on the shelf, waiting for people to come stick a hive in their shopping cart.
There’s lots more to say about how to get started, the equipment, the timing, etc., but we’re not going to say any of it, because this is a Wallingford neighborhood blog. If you want a beekeeping blog, you can visit our Hive Mind Beekeeping site. Better yet, if you want to learn the basics of beekeeping, sign up for one of several courses at Seattle Tilth at the Good Shepherd Center:
- Beekeeping 201: Starting your hive (March 12): Learn how to start and manage your spring bee colony with confidence.
- Top Bar Beekeeping (March 15): Learn how to keep bees using the top bar hive method.
- Backyard Beekeeping 101 (March 17): Learn everything you need to get started with your backyard apiary.
If the dates don’t work for you, see their full list of classes, but get your order in now for the package bees.
Then let me taste some of your honey, because it’s sooooo good!
Thanks for this! I had no idea I had to start so early. I want to keep bees *so* much, especially after reading Farm City. Now I just have to convince my husband of it, and quickly, it seems.
While it’s technically not too late to get started in beekeeping, it would be diffucult in terms of the learning curve. There’s so much to learn as well as getting the equipment together. I speak from experience. Two years ago my wife and I got a hive in April and had to read and talk to experienced folk about bees. We were totally unprepared as far as sufficient equipment and what to do when the bees do the unexpected, for example swarming, which is how we got our second hive. And due to inexperience we lost both hives during the winter, which often happens with beginners.
We went on to read everything we could on bees, joined a local club and are taking part in the Master Beekeeper program.
At this point, what you might want to do is to have someone put a hive or two in your back yard and you can learn by observing. My wife and I are on a swarm list which is basically a way to get free bees and we’re always looking for places to put hives.
On another note, back yard beekeepers tend to become advocates for bees. One thing you can encourage folks to do is plant bee-friendly flowers and refrain from using pesticides. If you MUST use pesticides, don’t spray when plants are flowering or during the day when bees are out foraging.
Unfortunate consequence of beekeeping equals bee poop! It obstructs the view of skylights, bombards guests during barbeques and is incredibly tenacious when removing from laundry, windows and cars – Nothing against bees’ folks; an estimated one third of the human food supply depends on insect pollination, just want everyone to be informed as to the by-product of keeping bees around!
http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=7655335
If you want to try out a fun bee hobby without dropping $200 on supplies, consider mason bees. You get a little house with tubes (about $20) and some dormant bees (another $20) and you’ll have two months of fun beewatching in April and May. Mason bees are native to this area and are very effective pollinators for fruit trees.
They don’t sting and they don’t make honey. If you get a house with an observation tray, then you can watch them at work and it’s a cool backyard science project. 🙂
http://www.crownbees.com is a great local supplier in Woodinville.
Our next door neighbors started keeping bees last year. Initially I was a little worried, having had a few close calls with furious (and dangerous!) “killer bees” down in Arizona. But as active as the hive was, with bees coming and going, zipping and zinging, we were never ever bothered. It reminded me of growing up here in the fifties and catching bees in mason jars when busy bunches of them swarmed the flowering quince. We watched them buzz about in the jar for a while and then released them. Probably not a good idea, but that was then. Now I am so glad that folks are nurturing them. They’re in trouble and we need them.
One thing about being a beekeeper is that you tend to also learn about other bees and watching them forage, too. In particular, Mason and bumblebees are also pretty cool. They can pollinate plants that honeybees can’t and vice versa. There are also a lot of other bees I’ve seen that I can’t even identify, even one that is an irradescent green! And as far people keeping bees, there are at least seven households I know in lower Wallingford keeping bees, and I imagine there are quite a few more that I DON’T know of.
Wow, KPG, thanks for all the information. I have three books from the library I’m going to read, but yes, it’s probably too late for us. Tell me if you’re interested in using our yard as a bee site! We’d be happy to oblige.
Yes, we would be interested in your yard. I’m not sure of proper etiquette on blog sites like this, and how we’re supposed to (or maybe not supposed to) contact each other, so maybe you can let me know how this is done. I don’t want to upset the Wallyhood folks.
And here are comments for the general public reading this thread. The public library is one of the greatest places to get information. The books they have on bees range from children’s books all the way to the geekiest of science and research materials. The main downtown library also has copies of The American Bee Journal.
A great resource for beekeeping if you’re in or around Seattle is the Puget Sound Beekeepers Association. I won’t plug it further other than to say that the meetings are open to the general public with presentations for beginners followed by topics of interest for all. Meetings are at the Graham Visitor Center at the Arboretum at 6:30 p.m. every fourth Tuesday of the month. Exceptions are November, where the meeting is on another Tuesday due to Thanksgiving, July (I think) where there is instead a potluck picnic, and December where there is no meeting. You can do a search on Puget Sound Beekeepers Association for more information.
That being said, there are several other local beekeeping associations outside of Seattle.
OMG, I think people are “hooking up” in the Wallyhood comments section. What happens when word gets out that it’s the in place to find “beekeepers” seeking “yards” to put their “hives” in?
FWIW, I don’t think it’s too late, even if you know little. Yes, you’ll make lots of mistakes, but that’s how some people learn (me!). I lost my hives over winter plenty of times and I’ve been keeping bees for 15 years. What have you got to lose?
Patrick is right about the poop, though. Also, forget about walking barefoot in your backyard.
Thanks KPG. You can email me at shaloom AT gmail for more info. And I have three books on beekeeping I’m working through right now (I used to be a librarian in an ag library, thanks for plugging libraries :).
Jordan, we have chickens. I’ve totally given up on walking barefoot in our backyard. Convincing our children is another thing, though. I hope there are lots of probiotic benefits to this stuff; my kids will have immune systems of steel.
@ssm My 2 yr old has stepped on bees about a half dozen times now (“owee! owee! owee! da bee! da bee!”) but recovers quickly, usually mostly forgotten in 5 minutes or so. We keep a shaker of meat tenderizer around to make a paste and apply to the sting, which definitely helps both immediately and over the 5 – 10 hr stretch. This article in slate says that toothpaste may be even more effective: http://www.slate.com/id/2088863/
I am allergic to insect stings (yellow jackets I think) so I keep an epi-pen at home and in the car. Not a good candidate for regular bee keeping, not to mention I live in a condo. I will call the Mason Bee place.
BTW is Puget Sound Beekeepers a non-profit? I would like to contribute to beekeeping.