Select a site that has low wind or a wind break, a fair bit of sun, away from people and away from obvious pests. Do internet research for other considerations.
Where should I place my hive?
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Do I really need that protective clothing?
Yes, yes, yes. First, don’t be overly influenced by all those YouTube videos of beekeepers who approach their hives in shorts and a T shirt! If they want to go down that path, OK, but they are not new beekeepers. They have paid the price in stings and decided that they are OK without protection.
As a new beekeeper, we strongly suggest you focus on your bees and do what you can to not be stressed or worried about stings. That means proper protective clothing. You may choose various combinations from a jacket and veil to a full bee suit. Down the road you will find your balance. But one thing we suggest you always wear is a veil. Even experienced beekeepers can suffer badly if they are stung in the wrong place on the face. And if any beekeeper tells you they can “tell” when bees are likely to sting – sorry, but they are just plain wrong! Just play it safe and always wear a veil, whether a standalone version or one that comes with your jacket or bee suit. Finally, for reasons of comfort, the majority of the jackets and bee suits sold today are ventilated, which help significantly on a hot summer day. It’s a real shame to cut an inspection short because you are feeling the heat and ventilated fabrics do a great job preventing stings and letting the breeze in.
What equipment do I need?
We advocate keeping it simple! Beekeeping is awash with all sorts of awesome equipment and tools and it’s all good. But to get going you need just your hive, a smoker, a hive tool and a bee brush. A great way to get started is with a starter kit. These are available as equipment and clothing package or, for further savings, with the hive too. Both save you money over buying everything individually and provide you with the base set of tools you will use for all your hives. Many beekeepers start with a starter kit with a hive, equipment and clothing and then an additional purchase of a hive (as the second hive).
Should I get a nuc or a package of bees?
Actually there are three main options – a package, a nuc or a swarm. If you are a first-time beekeeper, leave the capturing of a swarm till a little later in your beekeeping “career”. You have a lot to learn – all of it fun!
Both a package or a nuc work just fine. If you are using Warre or Top Bar hives then a package is the only option. A nuc is an excellent choice for a first-time Langstroth beekeeper.
When should I order my bees?
Sooner is better! January is not too early to order bees for the spring. Call up a local bee supplier to ask about availability and put down a deposit. Leave it much later and you could be out of luck. Of course, later in the season choices still exist. Nucs may be available and there is sometimes the chance of getting on a waiting list for a swarm. But whatever your plans and your timetable, don’t assume you can just pick up the phone in the spring and immediately buy your bees!
Should I get cedar or pine supers?
There are two common choices for the wood used for your hive – pine or cedar. Pine is the traditional choice. It is strong, offers reasonable longevity and is a proven option. To extend that longevity, it is quite common to paint pine hives before they are installed in place. That gives you some nice choices as to the aesthetics but also means you need to wait a little longer (and do some work) when your hive arrives.
Cedar is an upgrade, of sorts. Compared to pine, it is lighter (think about the weight of honey and add the weight of the box), stronger and lasts longer. Although not necessary, many coat with a little pure tung oil, which offers a little extra protection and brings out the beautiful rich colors of the cedar. But that is not essential and a cedar beehive can be put directly into service, with no painting necessary.
Although somewhat subjective, most consider cedar to be aesthetically more pleasing than pine.
Should I practice natural beekeeping?
This is 100% up to you! Many do, many don’t. Most beekeepers would prefer to do so, if they can. But there are also the realities and practical issues to be considered. There are many facets to natural beekeeping, but let’s touch on a couple to illustrate the choices at play.
Natural beekeeping implies foundation-less frames. While the Warre and Top Bar hives are designed for foundation-less, many Langstroth beekeepers use foundation. One of the quickest ways for a new beekeeper to become discouraged is to find large chunks of comb – with bees and honey – falling off the frames when carrying out an inspection. Natural comb is initially very fragile and so many a beekeeper has fallen foul of this.This doesn’t mean foundation-less beekeeping is bad, of course. It merely means that you should educate yourself before going down that path. If you understand the practical issues related to foundation-less then go for it!
Another topic is major debate is whether to go treatment free. This generates heated discussions among beekeepers. If you decide to go treatment free, then make sure you are educated about what you are doing and the risks you take. There are many strategic and tactical decisions you can take here, but it’s a long term perspective that you need.
If you expect to just throw a package of bees in a hive, not treat them for anything (even when you see issues in the hive) and expect everything to be rosy and your bees to survive regardless – well, you are kidding yourself. Beekeepers who practice treatment-free beekeeping generally do us a favor, by raising bees that are tolerant of many risks. But it takes time and patience, so don’t be hoodwinked into thinking that bees in a hive with no treatments or medications is a simple path to robust bees! Read and learn.
How many hives do I need?
Need? That’s easy -just one. How many SHOULD you have? At least two. When you first kick off your beekeeping life, it is fair to say there’s a little expense ahead. Thankfully many of these expenses, the smoker, the hive tool and so on, are one time costs as you use with any hive.
Purchasing two hives does add a more cost, but the utility you gain in doing so is often well justified. The new beekeeper won’t really have a good sense of a strong versus weak hive. Having two hives (initially of the same type) allows comparisons to be made easily which can lead to earlier detection issues. Additionally, in some scenarios a problem with a weaker colony can be addressed by moving frames from a stronger one. Having two or more hives significantly improves your understanding of bees in that first year.
Should I get 8 or 10 frames boxes?
The 10 frame boxes are a little more common and hold more honey, but a fully-laden a 10 frame honey super is a heavy thing to lift! The 8 frame Langstroth box is effective, too, but is a little less weight to lift. That said, when full with honey you are still enjoying a major bounty!
In summary, at the light/small end you can go with medium boxes with 8 frames and at the heavy/large end you can use deep boxes with 10 frames. And you can choose anything in between (deeps with 8 frames, for example). It’s really down to personal preference.
Should I use medium or deep frames?
This decision applies if you are using a Langstroth hive only. Using medium or deep frames is just a trade off and either work just great. Although all sorts of combinations exist, two common configurations for a hive are two deeps or three mediums. You can mix and match, though, if you want. The deep box can obviously hold considerably more honey (or brood), but that comes at the cost of more weight to lift at inspection time. It’s really down to you and you are not making a mistake with either. It’s just a question of weight vs. capacity.