Hello everyone, just a few questions for you all.

[ImaNewBeeToThis]

I'm completely new to this, I've been reading as much about honey bee's as I could and have a couple months to get as much knowledge of beekeeping as possible before I get my first hive to see if I will truly enjoy my new hobby or decide to make it more than a hobby.

1) best type of bees to start with?
2) does the type of flowers in your area decide the taste of your honey? I'm in Lexington, Ky
3) how much in cost am I looking at for a starter kit to get involved?
4) does the type of sugar water you feed bees affect the taste of honey?
5) on an average season, amount of honey, wax to expect from one hive?
6) besides wax, honey and royal jelly, what else can you get from bees?
7) I live in a neighbor hood, my back yard is fenced up all the way around at height of 8 feet. Will this be a problem to neighbors or should I find a farm to put them on??

Thanks for your help guys,I really don't know if these are the right questions to even ask.

[ralittlefield]

1) best type of bees to start with?

That is a matter of opinion. I have Italians and Carniolans and like both

2) does the type of flowers in your area decide the taste of your honey? I'm in Lexington, Ky

Yes

3) how much in cost am I looking at for a starter kit to get involved?

Probably a few hundred dollars. Check several suppliers.

4) does the type of sugar water you feed bees affect the taste of honey?

Typically, honey made from syrup is not harvested. It is left for the bees.

5) on an average season, amount of honey, wax to expect from one hive?

That varies greatly. I would not expect any the first year.

6) besides wax, honey and royal jelly, what else can you get from bees?

Stings

7) I live in a neighbor hood, my back yard is fenced up all the way around at height of 8 feet. Will this be a problem to neighbors or should I find a farm to put them on??

You will have to ask your neighbors. Regardless of the fence, the bees may travel a couple of miles from their hive.

[sqkcrk]

1. Someone elses. Get to know another beekeeper and see if you can handle being around bees before you invest any money.
2. Yes.
3. Hundreds of dollars. Check out the Beekeeping Equipment Catologs. There are a number of them. Kelley Co, of Clarkson,KY would be a good start. Maybe you would like to go see their operation.
4. Feeding sugar syrup should not be done when honey is being produced.
5. The amount of honey and wax produced in your area will vary from year to year and is different from where I live, so predicting that for you won't work. There may be someone near you who has some idea what they have done. A lot depends on the beekeeper's knowledge and ability to manage their colony towards their personal goals.
6. Propolis and venom.
7. Backyard beekeeping can be done and is done all over the World. You will get to know your neighbors.

There are no wrong questions, only wrong answers.

[cg3]

Find a local bee club. There you can often get in on a group package bee buy. Google "beekeeping supply" and sign up for the various companies hard copy catalogs. If you're starting out on a shoestring, ignore their "starter" setups and get only what you really need.

[Daniel Y]

1) best type of bees to start with?
I started with local bees from a reputable source. Bsically looked for a local commercial ro semi commercial beekeepr to buy them from.

2) does the type of flowers in your area decide the taste of your honey? I'm in Lexington, Ky
Yes that is one reason local honey is more valuable.

3) how much in cost am I looking at for a starter kit to get involved?
$250 plus bees according to this. http://www.westernbee.com/qs30/produ...15&detail=true
I paid $100 for a 5 frame nuc of bees. I don't recommend kits but it does give you an idea. This kit woudl not have been large enough for my first year.

4) does the type of sugar water you feed bees affect the taste of honey?
Sugar water is for feeding your bees not making honey. It is also used to help them get comb drawn.

5) on an average season, amount of honey, wax to expect from one hive?
0 to 100 plus lbs per hive depending on many factors. My bees did very well last year. I still got no honey.

6) besides wax, honey and royal jelly, what else can you get from bees?
Propolis, Pollen, Venom, Queens, and the bees themselves.

7) I live in a neighbor hood, my back yard is fenced up all the way around at height of 8 feet. Will this be a problem to neighbors or should I find a farm to put them on??

Local ordinance have more to say about this than anything I have 4 colonies in my back yard. no problem. I am also looking for a farm. I want a lot more than just 4 hives.

[FlowerPlanter]

3) Don’t buy a starter kit, most are overpriced with allot of stuff you don’t need, read the "How to Start Beekeeping" forum(first forum on this site) for a list of stuff you will need. Shop around, some place offer free shipping. If your handy with cutting wood you can save a bunch making you wooden ware.

I would suggest at least two hives to start.

Learn about mites, and monitor them, figure out how you are going to manage them. Don't ignore them they won’t go away.

Everything you need to know can be found on this site.

[Lburou]

I second what Mark says above.

You can't always control what the bees do, or the weather, but you can prevent a lot of rookie mistakes by proper planning. If you read the right things, you will have a leg up on most new beekeepers. I like this site for a thorough discussion of up to date issues and practices that a beekeeper must manage to be successful.

I prefer a queen that has been selected for mite resistance and recommend selection of a mite resistant queen for your first year. That limits your choices. I've ordered a few New World Carniolan (NWC) queens for next spring. You will find a fairly current list of mite resistant queen producers here.

Find a successful and willing mentor at a local bee club, that will give you the leg up you need to be successful in your area.

BTW, don't believe everything you read on a bee forum or see on youtube. When you read something online, keep in mind a person's experience level before betting your $500 investment on questionable advice. HTH

[westernbeekeeper]

I'm completely new to this, I've been reading as much about honey bee's as I could and have a couple months to get as much knowledge of beekeeping as possible before I get my first hive to see if I will truly enjoy my new hobby or decide to make it more than a hobby.

1) best type of bees to start with?
2) does the type of flowers in your area decide the taste of your honey? I'm in Lexington, Ky
3) how much in cost am I looking at for a starter kit to get involved?
4) does the type of sugar water you feed bees affect the taste of honey?
5) on an average season, amount of honey, wax to expect from one hive?
6) besides wax, honey and royal jelly, what else can you get from bees?
7) I live in a neighbor hood, my back yard is fenced up all the way around at height of 8 feet. Will this be a problem to neighbors or should I find a farm to put them on??

Thanks for your help guys,I really don't know if these are the right questions to even ask.

1) VSH Italians.
2) Yes.
3) $300(+-).
4) It shouldn't. You shouldn't extract syrup.
5) None the first year; it varies a lot from there on.
6) Pollen, propolis, more bees.
7) It shouldn't be a problem to keep them at home, especially if you have gentle bees.

[Cleo C. Hogan Jr]

I pretty much agree with everyone above. Might add just a couple of remarks since I am only 135 miles southwest of you, at Park City, Ky, Right at Exit 48, I-65) (Mammoth Cave).

1. Italian are the least expensive, most plentiful, so I would recommend starting with Italian, but, there are lots of other good ones also.

2..Absolutely. Each flower nectar produces a different taste, however, if you have multiple flowers/trees/shrubs, blooming, you will get a mixture of the different nectars, so you don't get a specific taste. In Lexington you will get predoninately clover as clover is very prolific, blooms almost all summer. Blackberry is very prolific in Spring, and it will dominate if they are in your area. Early fruit trees has a different taste, but in Lexington most of these will bloom early and the honey made from them will go to build up the hive and make wax/comb in your supers. By the time the bees start making surplus honey, the frut trees, have mostly bloomed out. In late Fall you could get goldenrod if it blooms early, or, we have a very warm September. Goldenrod has a very unique flavor, but, you will rarely get it here because it blooms late and often gets mixed with Fall Asters and Clover. This year was a good year for pretty much pure goldenrod. It bloomed early, and September was very warm.

3. At least few hundred dollars. Talk to someone who is keeping bees, and don't just buy everything that has anything to do with beekeeping. Lots of it you don't really need to get started. Maybe as you grow, but not at first.

4. Sugar water should not figure into the taste of your honey as feeding normally stops before the bees start making surplus honey.

5. In Kentucky, first year package bees, little to none. But, it can vary from year to year. If you get a gallon or two in your supers, make sure your deeps are loaded with honey to get them through the Winter. Better to leave them that extra honey than lose the hive to starvation. If you get a good nuc in early April you could easily get 2-5 gallons first year. After the first year, 4 to 14 gallons per hive, using good management practices is pretty common for this area, with 6 to 10 gallons being a good average. But, you will find you may get 15 gallons from a hive or two, and absolutely none from others, sitting side by side, in the same area.

6. All the above, plus a lot of enjoyment, if you like working with your bees.

7. I have bees in the country, in the woods, and in backyards in Park City and Cave City. I often let neighbors in the towns use a hive or two to pollinate their gardens, never had a problem.

You are 135 miles from me and I invite you to visit my facility, any time after 1 April and I will provide you with suit to wear, and we will go through a few hives and I will be happy to show you, and talk about everything you have asked about, from how the hives are built, to set-up, maintained, split, harvest, etc. I am also happy to help with questions you might have. Just e-mail me cchoganjr@scrtc.com, (270) 749-5191, make a time suitable to both of us, (I am available most any time) and I will be happy to help you.

There is no such thing as a right question, if you do not know the answer.

Hope this has helpful.

cchoganjr

[Mike Gillmore]

Some great suggestions above.

get as much knowledge of beekeeping as possible before I get my first hive to see if I will truly enjoy my new hobby

It sounds possible that you have not had the opportunity yet to physically work with bees in the field . It's great that you are reading and studying up on beekeeping, but there is nothing in a book or forum that can prepare you for the actual "experience" of working the bees. It's different for everyone. Hopefully you will become hooked and addicted like so many here on Beesource. But after you've spent some time in the field there is a possibility that you might decide, this is not for me.

Before you make the decision to invest hundreds of dollars in beekeeping equipment, this is my suggestion. Find a local beekeeping association and sign up for a year. You're probably only looking at a $10-$40 annual membership fee. Attend the meetings and start talking to some experienced members and see if you can find someone who would be willing to mentor you for a season. Borrow or purchase a veil or bee suit, tag along on their inspections, and try to get some hands on experience. You'll figure out pretty quickly if beekeeping is for you or not. At that point, if you decide to pursue it further, there are several different ways to get started. Package bees, nucs, or buy a compete hive set up locally from someone in your association.

[NasalSponge]

Here are nine of them in my back (side) yard with my neighbors house 8 foot behind. Never told him I had bees but I am sure he knows.

[squarepeg]

welcome to the addiction newbee.

a lot of good advice already given here.

might add, be sure you or anyone close is not deathly allergic to bee stings.

finding another beekeeper nearby who would be willing to let you visit when his/her hives are being opened would be an excellent first thing to do.

[Rader Sidetrack]

might add, be sure you or anyone close is deathly allergic to bee stings.

Or maybe NOT!

[westernbeekeeper]

Hey NasalSponge,
That's a great looking back-bee-yard. Good job!

[mgolden]

You can get honey and splits the first year if you are prepared to spend some money and time on sugar syrup.

From a 1 kg package of bees and no comb, I harvested 50 lbs and grew to three hives. I purchased the two additional queens.

1. Feed them 1:1 sugar syrup to stimulate a nectar flow. They'll draw comb and raise brrod. Stop when you add your honey supers.

2. Apply beewax to foundation and do frame manipulation. Don't be afraid to insert blank foundation between pairs of brood frames. On outer frames, once one side is started to be drawn, reverse the frame so they draw the other side.

3. Once a honey frame is 80% capped, pull and extract.

4. Feed 2:1 syrup in the fall to supplement winter food supplies.

5. Monitor food supply over winter and add dry sugar, fondant, candy blocks.

50lbs of honey at even a Costco pricce of $3 per lb, and 2 additional hives of bees, if bees are worth $100 each is $350. Should deduct two queens cost of $50, but $300 buys a lot of sugar. And the sugar is the cheap part of the hobby!

60 lbs is not a lot of honey. A deep super fully drawn and filled is 50 lbs of honey and two mediums is 60 lbs.

My goals for my first year was to get some honey, learn, get a second hive functional, and get my bees through the first winter.