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Bee Restriction

3K views 10 replies 7 participants last post by  GaryC 
#1 ·
Hi,

This is my first post. I started beekeeping this year and live in SE Missouri. I'm preparing to move to a suburb of Fort Worth, Texas and my problem is that the document I recieved from the title company states that "no..bees..are allowed in the subdivision." When we bought this house I didn't think there would be any problem, but now I'm not sure what to do.

Do I have any sort of recourse? I think it is pretty stupid to limit honey bees if they are maintained properly.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.
 
#3 ·
Well it sounds as you have already bought the house,right? I'd check around for a local Bee club,They should be able to help you find a location to place your bee's.also you could ride around on your on & try to locate a Bee yard,most people that has a garden would welcome some hives of bee's,But being that it is Ft worth I guess they are worried about the AHB.good luck to you.>>>>Mark
 
#6 ·
I am not familiar with the Fort Worth regulation regarding beekeeping. If the regulation is already in place, then I suspect you will not be able to keep your bees at home. The Trinity Valley Beekeepers Association in Dallas or the Texas Beekeepers Association may be worth contacting. Other than getting rid of your bees, the Dallas association might be able to point you in the right direction to find a suitable temporary or permanent "outyard".
A person in our area wanted to outlaw beekeeping, stating the dangers of AHB. One of our responses were to state that honey bees will be in an area where there is suitable habitat. We then ask the question if they would prefer the feral honey bees that are likely AHB or our much less defensive managed colonies competing for the available resources.
 
#8 ·
Hi,

In response to some of the posts. First, I'm not giving up my bees, period. I'm going to check with some of the local bee clubs around Fort Worth. I know there is one in McKinney, Irving and Dallas, not sure about Fort Worth.

Second the document was included with our title insurance doc. It is basically rules that apply to our subdivision only. We are in the suburb of Watagua, which is north of Fort Worth.

The document exlcudes all sorts of livestock, including bees. We are also limited to 4 pets. Not sure if this is standard around metro areas of not. I've seen this one guy's web page that lives in Carrolton, which is north of Dallas and he has three hives in his dog run.

Beemainsa, you brought up some very good points. I think most people around Texas are very worried about AHB, but they forget the importance of the non-aggressive honey bee. It's like I've heard said, if all the honey bees are removed, all the undesireable bees, wasps, hornets, etc. will move in.

Thanks.
 
#9 ·
>It's like I've heard said, if all the honey bees are removed, all the undesireable bees, wasps, hornets, etc. will move in.

Too true.

Maybe you should try an observation hive in your living room. Probably no one will notice it.
Of course you'll have to work it in the garage at night when you do have to do something to it.
 
#10 ·
Interesting question. Subdivision rules came up today in the paper. It seems that Geraldo Rivera is complaiing about the gated community he lives in. Folks that move to areas with restrictions have some protections, in turn you might have to give up some things that you might enjoy.

I think an outyard is a good solution but I could not give up having bees at my house. I heard of something in some beekeeping discussion that has stuck in my mind and might apply here: "Better to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission".

Out of sight and out of mind. Give them fencing to fly over. Make it look like a small dog pen, just not anything that a nosy neighbor could see.

I gave up on lots of land and houses I liked because of restrictions...
 
#11 ·
I agree with nursebee. I've been thinking about building a small fence in the corner of the yard to protect my kids from getting too close as the yard is rather small. The yard is also surrounded by an 8' privacy fence all the way around. I think keeping them and following the "forgiveness rather than permission" idea would be the best course of action.

Any other suggestions would be apprecitated. Thanks.

GC
 
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