Hello my name is William, I am from Kennesaw Georgia and I am working/learning my way towards becoming a first time beekeeper. I have a farm in the mountains outside of Chattanooga with a good supply of apple orchards, clover, sourwood, sumac etc and can't wait to get started.
While I am here saying "Hello", I would also like to ask what race of bees are you keeping? I ask because I realize each of you have very distinct opinions on what is best but in reality choosing a race of bees is a complex issue. Some people love Italians, Carnies, Russians, VSH, Yugos, etc... but finding a local nuc other than hybrids, or mutts as some call them is not easy. I ask this because it would appear to me that unless you use a AI queen on pure stock (if that really exists), most of what you end up with are hybrids to some extent. So in essence would I not be better off with dealing with a reputable breeder that specializes in small cell producing, mite resistant bees that have proven themselves resilient in the area regardless of pedigree.
Thanks for the help. Also thanks to those that have informative websites, written books, and answer newbie questions in here for us to learn from.
While I am here saying "Hello", I would also like to ask what race of bees are you keeping? I ask because I realize each of you have very distinct opinions on what is best but in reality choosing a race of bees is a complex issue. Some people love Italians, Carnies, Russians, VSH, Yugos, etc... but finding a local nuc other than hybrids, or mutts as some call them is not easy. I ask this because it would appear to me that unless you use a AI queen on pure stock (if that really exists), most of what you end up with are hybrids to some extent. So in essence would I not be better off with dealing with a reputable breeder that specializes in small cell producing, mite resistant bees that have proven themselves resilient in the area regardless of pedigree.
Thanks for the help. Also thanks to those that have informative websites, written books, and answer newbie questions in here for us to learn from.