What You Need to Get Started Beekeeping?

Beekeeping can be a great hobby, but you have to have the essentials tools to do it correctly. Otherwise, you won’t be able to successfully raise bees. The market for honey is especially strong for local beekeepers or beekeepers that produce specialty honey. This hobby can be enjoyable, but also lucrative if done well! If you have always wanted to become a beekeeper and don’t know how to get started, keep reading to learn what you need to know.

What Is Beekeeping?

Beekeeping is the act of maintaining bee colonies that are typically in man-made hives. Beekeepers, also called honey farmers or apiarists, can keep honey bees in boxes, beehives, or other containers. When it comes down to it, these individuals are in the role of scientists, working to keep the bees happy and healthy. The average honey bee colony will have about 50,000 bees. In the colony, there will be a queen, worker bees, and drones. If you want to become a beekeeper, you need to know about how a bee colony functions and how bees thrive.

What Equipment Is Needed for Beekeeping?

There are basic supplies that every beekeeper will need, but you also may want to get some optional items to make the job a little bit easier.

1. Beehive
2. Bees
3. Queen
4. Comb Foundation
5. Hive tool
6. Bee Smoker
7. Hive Stand
8. Bee veil
9. Bee Brush
10. Queen Cage
11. Queen Gate
12. Queen Excluder

How Do You Get Your Bees?

It’s a good idea to place your hives with the opening facing south or east. The bees will get more of the morning sun and then shade in the afternoon.

If this is not practical for you, be sure that the bees are in the best location you have outside for sunlight. Try to find the best spot for good drainage, protection from predators, and less direct wind. You don’t want to place your bees anywhere that is busy, such as near a playground or an outdoor swimming pool. Keep them away from public areas as well to avoid theft. Be sure to place your hives somewhere that is convenient for you to access. You will need to spend time with them to make sure they are healthy, disease-free, and prosperous.

Adding more to the list, you will need honey extractor, scratcher, knife, more hives and even more equiments to carry on with your new hobby.