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Where it all began...

6K views 35 replies 30 participants last post by  Drifter 
#1 ·
Funny thing happened on a way to a fishing hole the other day with a co-worker whom I helped start a few hives this year. He asked me how long I had bees and how I got started. Well It got me to pondering, and I told him as a kid I had always been interested in bees, so my grandparents took me to the county extension office and I got a few pamphlets on bees and went to the library and checked out a few books. Studied, and worked all fall and winter long saving enough money to buy a starter hive kit thru the Sears Farm and Ranch Catalog. Yes thats right Sears Farm and Ranch (giving away my age here). My dad and a local beekeeper were friends and when he heard that I had ordered the kit, he said "You just can't have one", and within a couple of days I had 2 complete hives plus the kit that I had from Sears. Ordered my first 3 packages from York Bee, and never looked back from the ripe old age of 10 LOL. Another beekeeping friend of mine asked me the other day, what drives a person to want to keep bees. We mused about how maybe it was that we derived some form of pleasure being able to produce something from nature. How many of us on this forum have tapped a stand of maples and fired up a wood burning evaporator, ran a trapline, chased coonhounds at 3 in the morning thru a woods that you thought had no end, raised your own livestock, enjoy sitting in a duckblind or a deer blind on opening day with your kids, plant a garden and then realize you planted enough for you the 6 neighbors across the road and your dentist's, garbageman's sister, thrown up a greenhouse, enjoy sittin and watchin the sun slowly ebb from the sky at dusk, or sit and watch the meteor showers when the thermometer says get back inside? Maybe some of you havent done these things and maybe some of you are repulsed by the notion of a few of them, but there is a common thread that we share, maybe the marvel of how diverse and complicated a swarm of bees can be. Something drives us to do what we do, just looking for what is that keeps you going to the hive, dancing a jig when a bee gets up your pantleg. 30 years and 250 swarms later, it would be interesting to know what got you started and what it is that keeps your beekeeping fire lit?

Bill
 
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#2 ·
Bill,
Great post!
I've often pondered the same question when folks have asked me what got me interested in bees.
There are a few things thatI think have contributed to it:
First there was the observation hive I saw as a young girl on a camping trip with my folks. I was fascinated by the bees flying in and out of this long plexiglass tube to go outside and collect what ever bees collect in a young girls mind.
Then I remember sitting and watching, following ant trails to their colonies. What do those ants do once they get down that hole and go into the ground?
And third, when I was in about 3rd or 4th grade I read a book called "The Adventures of Maya the Bee." I've never forgotten that book and it must have made quite an impression for me to remember the title. I recently acquired it from e-bay and re-read it. It's about a little bee with a mind of her own who sets out to explore the world. In the end she does go back home and asks the queen to forgive her for absconding and she actually becomes a hero of the hive.
Not until 7 years ago when I moved to a farm did I actually start keeping bees. There have been times when I wanted to give it up the past couple of years, but then I realize how many friends I've met and made just from beekeeping. And my honey and pollen clientele depend on me.
Two omens I've encountered this week to continue with the bees:
I had a lady call up almost begging me for some bee pollen. AND she has friends that want it. I was encouraged to do pollen this year again, even though I'm starting all over.
Secondly, I had several brood boxes and honey supers on my front porch. I was intending on putting them in the shed when it gets cleared out of some other junk. With the nice weather I'd noticed some bees buzzing around them. I figured there was some robbing going on since these were brood chambers from dead hives and they were full of honey. Today I decided to sprinkle them with flour to see which of my new packages of Carnolians have started robbing. Then I noticed one of the bees taking pollen in! Sure enough, I opened the top box, which is a honey super and there was a bunch of bees as calm as can be and I saw the queen scurrying to get away from the light.
Guess the bees think this is a nice place to live so I'll move them to the apiary tomorrow.
Denise
 
#3 ·
Great post Gunner!! I have enjoyed almost everything you mentioned (except the duck blind) and reading those well worded thoughts calls to my mind how fortunate I have been to treasure those memories and look forward to passing them on to another generation. Again thanks for the post.
 
#4 ·
Most people in our society seem to fall into one of two categories. Those who want to worship nature from afar and those who don't care for nature at all. The rest of us belong to a smaller group. Those of us who want to participate in nature. We hunt, fish, gather mushrooms, raise chickens, horses, bees etc.
 
#5 ·
Gunner, You ssure know how to bring back the old memories. Dun most of those things and like Denise I saw Observation Hives on trips and was always intrigued by them. Little did those places know what they were starting. I to have picked up phamplets and books over the years but was to busy trying to make a living to fool with bees. {wish I had started sooner, ever heard that before?] Went into the winter with 2 hives and lost them both to a neighbor's robber bees but am starting over this spring. Sure are intrugeing aren't they. Dale in S.E. Ks
 
#7 ·
Hoosier, you are right on about nature. There may be no proof of God in anything concrete, but when you look at Nature, it makes the possibilities seem endless. I started beekeeping due to pure practicality. I love to garden, and grow mostly vegetables. I noticed a couple of years ago that there were very few bees and last summer, my squash and cukes were not producing much of anything. When I realized why, I decided I would get a hive of bees to pollinate the crops. I had never been interested in bees before due to a sting on the face when I was a young girl playing softball. My face swelled up and I couldn't see out of my left eye, so I was a little afraid of bees since then, but I also knew that if I didn't either move close to a beekeeper or get some bees, I would have very little garden produce. After I got my first hive, I was hooked. I love observing their little world, and I think of the bees fondly now, almost like undomesticated pets.
 
#10 ·
Bill,
Thanks for the post. It's truly been a great conversation starter.
A cousin first got me interested in keeping bees just before the pending "doom" of Y2K. Unsure of just what exactly would happen, I thought a hive of bees would come in handy especially since our family uses honey in bread recipes.
As many of you know, one thing usually leads to another, and soon my one hive worked itself into 25 with another 20 queen mating nucs to boot. I guess if you're going to have an addiction, it might just as well be a productive one.
Now, it's the science and wonder of nature that keeps me addicted. Although I'm only in my late thirties, I look forward to the many years ahead.
How many bee meetings have any of you been to lately...are you surprised at how many "senior" members in the ranks? How many other activities could add longevity and stamina to the golden years like keeping bees?
I have a friend who is now 83. He's been keeping bees for over fifty years and I can only hope that I have his kind of energy when I'm that old. There's been a few days when I've had a tough time keeping up with him in the apiary.

Looking forward to my first gray hairs and many more years of keeping bees,

Jim
 
#11 ·
I have experinced many of the things Bill talks a bout except the **** hound chasing. We just do to ***** as common pest that ruin the veggie gardens. There is nothing like watching the sun set into Ogantz bay from Indian point anytime of the year. A close second though is watching the bald eagles taking a bath or fishing in the main bay while setting in the deer blind along the beach and a couple does and yearlings, ambling to the green field we have planted behind the pole barn.
I have started the keeping the bees because I ruined their home and am selfish in wanting their help with the flower beds.
Al
 
#12 ·
People have been hunting and gathering for many thousands of years. I find it perfectly NATURAL to get the urge every now and then to catch a fish, to bring in some sun-warmed vegetables from the garden, or to harvest honey. That is, after all, the way humans have ALWAYS lived until the last century or so! It's as natural as breathing!

I never did figure out what makes cubicle dwellers tick, and I have been married to one for 28 years!

What started me in beekeeping particularly was when 1. All of the bees in the area died, which was VERY bad for my garden, and 2. Four years later a swarm of bees moved into my cold frame.

I LIKE the bees, if I cannot get them into my new hive I think I will order bees. Pollination problems aside, they are gentle, not particularly obvious to the neighbors, and CHARMING! They will also bring honey to eat and to give away.

Why bees? Why NOT bees?

[This message has been edited by Terri (edited May 03, 2003).]
 
#14 ·
Bill, first of all; great post! I too, have know, enjoyed, and cherished the memories of a good 90% of the things you mentioned (just wish I could find the time to do some of them now!
)

As for how I got started? Truth be told, I'd say it started with a bee landing on my leg at 4 years old while swinging on an old swing set where I grew up. Later that year, my school went on a field trip to a museum in Geneva (I think
) where they had a huge beehive. Many years later and a better appreciation for spirits - especially those that can be made at home - brought me back to it all. I now had a need for honey that I never had really had and started reading books, talking to some people I managed to find and eventually stumbling across this board which I now read religiously.

As for my reason to stay with it? I'm starting a new family (just home from my honeymoon
) I have two children from a previous marriage that think daddy rocks for working with bees, and I just can't help but love the looks, comments, and feelings I get when I tell people I'm a beekeeper. Comments usually fall into one of three catagories: "You work with bees? WOW (any chance you can hook me up with ....)", "My xxxx used to work with bees, he (with an occational she) was so cool.", and the rarest "I used to do that too till ........".

Alas, locally, I have run into 3 beekeepers (other than to ppl at my local Dadant shop) and of thos three, one had an accident on 95 a month or so ago, one seems afraid Im going to move in on his gig, and the last is more of a bee haver if you know what I mean. Oh well, sorry for going soft at the end, but thanks for the thoughts and the memories!

-Bill DG

[This message has been edited by Dragon's gold (edited May 09, 2003).]
 
#15 ·
Hi All,
Kewl !!! Great post. Brought tears to my eyes. I remember living in the city as a small boy my Dad had a hive of bees on the garage, till someone reported them. I remember i think i was 6 or 7 drawing a picture of the hive, and showing it to our neighbor . Moving to the country as it was than found a bee tree and talked my Dad and neighborin getting it and they hived it in a barrel I would sit there for hours and hours thinking and pondering these insects that capitvated my interest. I also found a deeper meaning ,that there is a Master Plan created by a Master Creator. My life was changed after that forever. Thanks to the honeybees. Since than i have been in and out of them over the years,but my interest never wavierd.Just seeing a bee on a flower brought me back to a humbling sense of thankfulness. I could go on and on. We are now a small group,but a very thankful one indeed.
Walt
 
#16 ·
Guys,
These are all great posts and have really made me do some thinking. I have to agree that I see God at work everytime I go to my beehives. The other thing is about the age of the average beekeeper. We had a class for beginning beekeepers this spring and of the 12-15 people who took the class only one was below the age of 35. I wish there was some way to get kids involved. I know there are kids out there who are interested in nature but I just haven't been able to connect with them. I would love to beable to get into the schools somehow. Again great posts!!

Dave
 
#17 ·
Have to agree with Dave, when I attend State Beekeeping Association meetings here, I look around the room, and at 40 I seem to be the youngest in the crowd. I have been pondering local FFA (Future Farmers of America) chapters, and seeing if there was some way one could incorporate beekeeping into their program. Then again, the question of liability comes up. Sad to say, but times have changed. 20 years ago, I had a biology teacher who brought his class to my dads farm to check out the bees, they were amazed, and also 2 got stung, and yet no lawsuits, try that in todays world.

Bill
 
#20 ·
<Where it all began...>

Long ago, in a galaxy far away, when I was still a little kid, my daddy decided to keep bees. (We're actually talking mid 70's here) We lived on a 40 acre, mostly self sufficient, organic hobby farm in Northern MN. Grew up on goats milk, and whatever the garden grew. Dad went grocery shopping once a month, whether he needed to or not. Then he got this wild hair, (one of many) and decided we needed bees. I remember he ordered the woodenware from Sears, and picked the packages of bees up from someone in Duluth. Dad was in his 50's when I was born, and after his first heart attack was forced to retire from his structural iron work job. So, he stayed home, and looked for ways to keep all four of us kids busy.

One year, the bees were in the pasture, then another year, they were on the flat garage roof. That maybe wasn't so good. I remember that he opened one hive and it got REALLY cranky, the smoker went out, and everyone raced to get off the roof. (everything was a family event at that time) Mom stepped wrong, and fell off the ladder, flat on her back...(she was almost 40 by this time) I made my first meal that night, oven fried chicken on the wood cookstove. I think I was about 9 years old. Mom recovered fine, a couple days of bed rest and she was her old self.

The family moved to Central MN in 1980, and dad started bees again. As a teenager, they didn't hold quite the interest that they did before, but I was a fairly obedient daughter, and did as I was told. Dad had two hives on our garage roof, in a very small town. One of them swarmed, and landed in the neighbors tree. We couldn't reach them with one extention ladder, so dad tied them both together, and sent me up the ladder with a pillow case and the large pruning shears. (Dad held the ladder, Mom held her breath.)Recovered the swarm, got them into a new hive, and all was well. Mom thought for sure someone was gonna call child protection, but no one did.

Lost dad in 1983, I was 17 and a junior in high school. Had to move on and help with three younger siblings. We survived....

Fast forward almost 20 years...Married to a cubicle dweller, two kids, house in the suburbs, everything but the white picket fence. (maybe I should put one around my garden) I started working for a local farm, selling Christmas trees, doing farm tours, planting pumpkins, etc.
www.pinehavenfarm.com
My boss makes a comment at a planning meeting about needing bees to pollinate the pumpkins. He had done them, his son had done them, his father had done them, but just didn't stick with it. So...I said, "I'll do it, it will be fun" asked how many hives to start with, he said we had equipment for at least 5 complete, but go take the class at the U of M. So, I ordered 5 packages of bees, and took the class, and here I am.
First Summer, Trial by Fire
5 hives was too many for this beginner, but no one told me that ahead of time. Did lots of things wrong, but learned a great deal. Started with 5, then gained one from somewhere. A swarm moved into one of the old hives in the beeyard that I hadn't moved yet, lost the queens in two of them and they died out before winter, but managed to winter 4 over. Of the 4 that I wintered, two were strong and I split them, two were weak and I combined them, and just for fun, started two more packages. That makes 7 going into the second summer.
Second Summer, Are we having fun yet?
My goal the second summer was to not make the same mistakes as the previous year. In that aspect, I did succeed. In spite of spending two+ weeks in Germany in June of last year, I managed to not have any swarms, and harvested over 400 pounds of honey from 4 of the hives. They teased me, because the day my plane left for Germany, I was in the bee yard that morning, checking my bees. The day after my plane landed at home, I was back to the bees.
I am now going into my third summer. I still have a ton to learn, but find it easier to pick up on the little things. The bees are in some ways a link to my father, and of all the things that were good about my childhood. They are also my link to the future, as my 12 year old daughter comes to the bee yard, and helps with the honey. The memories go on and on, but this is what it is about. The honeybees are my way to link the generations.
 
#22 ·
dharbert has written about getting into schools to educate children about beekeeping. The May issue of Bee Culture has several excellent letters to the editor on this topic. I particularly liked the idea of taking props-a crown for the queen, noxing gloves for the guards, fans for the attendants-so children can role play. Anything to awaken their interest!
 
#23 ·
Well, I'm a teenager, and I'm already having fun keeping bees, though I've only had them a week.
Part of the trouble with many teens today is that they would rather play on the GameBoy or the computer than work. They don't know how to work and they don't want to. Add to that the many farmers' children leaving the farm and you can see why this is happening.
If there's anyone out there with children, be very sure to let them help you with your bees. Sure, they may get in the way, and they'll get stung, but yet they (hopefully) will come to share your passion for bees.
My dad always wanted to keep bees, but somehow never got around to it. Well, I had some extra money, and he suggested that I take up beekeeping. I got excited, and now here I am, a two hiver that hopes to have 200 by the time he's twenty. We'll see.
It might help if the supply companies gave discounts to minors. Anyone listening?
 
#24 ·
newguy... I have a teen son and wished that he did more outside like I did when I was his age. Gameboy/Nintendo/Playstation,etc...he has it and is attentive to it. I can lead a horse to water but can't make him drink. Maybe there will be a day when he realizes that with a little work and patience there is a "reward" when all is done (yes, he loves honey!).

Nothing but the best for you and your goals in life...

Regards,
Greysmoke
 
#25 ·
I have a fifteen year old son. He has tried to help me twice. Once last year he was carrying a gallon of syrup out to the yard for me. He got about twenty-five yards from the hives when a bee got caught in his hair and paid the ultimate price. Will did not drop the syrup, but soon ran away after handing it to me.
Then last weekend after I had finished my requeening, I was comming down with a cold and was running a high temperature, he took pity on me and was helping me carry all my equipment back from the yard. He was fifty yards away from the hives when guess what? Another unfortunate bee got tangled up in his hair and again lost is poor life.
They are just not making it any easier for me to get him into the bee yard.

Perhaps I should start shaving his head like I do mine!


------------------
Bullseye Bill
Smack dab in the middle of the country.

[This message has been edited by BULLSEYE BILL (edited May 15, 2003).]
 
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