I am a teen interested in getting started in beekeeping. I have a couple of newby questions. Is their anyway to extract honey out of a top bar hive without crushing the comb or would it be best to start with a langsroth hive? And is their anything I need to know about beekeeping before I get started? I know I need to hurry if I want to get bees but I want to make sure I get every bit of info before I do anything.
I am planning on getting my bees from RWWEAVER located in Texas, they have 2 different kind of bees. The Buckfast and All American Bee, which would be the best for a beginner?
I am located on the Texas Gulf Coast.
Thank yall for any help
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I am a teen interested in getting started in beekeeping. I have a couple of newby questions. Is their anyway to extract honey out of a top bar hive without crushing the comb or would it be best to start with a langsroth hive?
There really isn't :) You will also need to really understand hive management with the limited space/options you have to work with on a topbar. I would personally suggest starting with the Langstroth and get that under yer belt first.
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And is their anything I need to know about beekeeping before I get started? I know I need to hurry if I want to get bees but I want to make sure I get every bit of info before I do anything.
Beekeeping is both simple and very complex. It really requires a commitment to ongoing learning... and, it's quite worth it!
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I am planning on getting my bees from RWWEAVER located in Texas, they have 2 different kind of bees. The Buckfast and All American Bee, whch would be the best for a beginner?
If they are indeed Buckfast bees, I *think* those are a bit more aggressive than Italians. I would highly suggest a strain of Italians for the beginner. Have fun with one of the most amazing of God's creatures!
I would start with a langstroth just for ease of interchangeble parts. your gonig to want to look at your bees and pull frames out and have fun with it. then after a while get a top bar for a trap.
and if you are looking for a good breed of bees. Go with Italian Cordoven bees very good bees. easy to work with.
Yes, there's a lot you need to know, but it's a great adventure! Start reading. Check your local library for books and videos on beekeeping. Check out the Beginning beekeeping tutorials on the main Beemaster page.
If possible, get involved with a local beekeeping club. Clubs often offer classes for beginners, and are great places to find mentors:
http://www.texasbeekeepers.org/clubs/ (http://www.texasbeekeepers.org/clubs/)
Please indicate your general location. This would help experienced beeks on this forum to provide info that might be more helpful.
Welcome to the world of beekeeping!
QuoteIs their anyway to extract honey out of a top bar hive without crushing the comb or would it be best to start with a langsroth hive?
There have been ways to modify baskets in an extractor to extract from top bar comb, by and large, it is crush and strain though.
If a top bar hive is built to larger dimensions, it can have about the same volume as three deeps, that is plenty of space for management. Because of the different management style, instead of pulling boxes every so often, you have to pay more frequent attention and pull top bars instead. That is, if one of your primary objectives is honey production. If not, then it's not quite as big of an issue.
Bees are bees and will behave as bees no matter what type of hive you do. Learn as much as you can about natural bee biology and read as many beekeeping books you can find, much of the langstroth general information is translatable to other hives with some creativity.
this pseudo 'competition' between langstroth and any other type of hive is counter productive. Use what suits you and helps you to be a good beekeeper and that helps you meet your objectives. It's really not that complicated.
enjoy the bees.
Big Bear
Ok thank yall all for the information. I am located in Brazoria, Tx about 1 1/2 hours south of Houston. My grandfather knows a experienced bee keeper and have talked to him and said anytime he would help me with anything. I'm just trying to get as much info as I can get.
Is there a good place to purchase langsroth hives prebuilt, and the bee keeper I know said look into cypress wood or just get pine?
And I am getting as much info as I can get. I am very excited about getting bees..
Thank yall again for all the great information.
There a number of places to order hives online.
But check out the Walter T Kelley Company.
Good gear, and they ship, and will assemble as well for an additional fee.
Hey Kountry!
R weaver is a very good place to order bees from..I was just talking to the lady yesterday as a matter of fact!. If I get packages from them I'll have to wait till the end of April. The all american are Italians( kinda funny, huh?)
Thats the way I started 4 years ago( cant believe its been that long already!)..The cost hasnt changed noticeably at all over the last 4 years for a queen and 3 lbs of bees.
You can get bees from Georgia alot cheaper, but then you gotta consider the cost of gas getting there and back.
I buy most my stuff from Dadants, however, considering shipping costs, sometiomes I get better deals all the way from Mann Lake in Cali..I dont know why it works that way but sometimes it does.
At any rate, GOOD LUCK!!!...Beekeeping is really a blast!...its not as wimpy at all like I used to think it was! Be prepared to see the whole world in a different light from now on! Honest!
your friend,
john
There is a Dadant bee supply store in Paris, TX east of Dallas. They have everything you need.
Quote from: kountryboy on February 25, 2010, 10:18:44 AM
Ok thank yall all for the information. I am located in Brazoria, Tx about 1 1/2 hours south of Houston. My grandfather knows a experienced bee keeper and have talked to him and said anytime he would help me with anything. I'm just trying to get as much info as I can get.
Is there a good place to purchase langsroth hives prebuilt, and the bee keeper I know said look into cypress wood or just get pine?
And I am getting as much info as I can get. I am very excited about getting bees..
Thank yall again for all the great information.
Hey friend, just get started, that's the main thing. Get you some sweet Italians and put them in anything, top bar, langstroth, whatever, but get started and learn, observe and enjoy your bees.
Check Sam Comfort's site out: http://anarchyapiaries.org/hivetools/ (http://anarchyapiaries.org/hivetools/) he builds cheap top bar hives, you could start there.
Also look at this site: http://www.gabees.com/cypress_hives.htm (http://www.gabees.com/cypress_hives.htm) its Rossman apiaries out of Texas. They specialize in cypress woodenware.
Enjoy your journey!
...JP
Hey, JP, ol' buddy. What you been drinking? :evil:
Fred Rossman is in Ga., not Tx.
Kountryboy, the rest is correct. Get started any way you can. The learning "and fun" really starts when you get the bees and get in the hive. You can always adapt to other ways afterward.
Quote from: iddee on February 25, 2010, 10:55:44 PM
Hey, JP, ol' buddy. What you been drinking? :evil:
Fred Rossman is in Ga., not Tx.
Kountryboy, the rest is correct. Get started any way you can. The learning "and fun" really starts when you get the bees and get in the hive. You can always adapt to other ways afterward.
I guess some Georgia moonshine or maybe something from your still Iddee. Now that's funny, and all this time I've been thinking Rossman's is in Texas! Well, anyway, they offer fine products.
...JP
Thank yall very much I have been doing as much research as I can.
I just ordered my bees from R Weaver since they are so close, and I also ordered my hive from gabees.
Quote from: kountryboy on February 26, 2010, 09:20:57 PM
Thank yall very much I have been doing as much research as I can.
I just ordered my bees from R Weaver since they are so close, and I also ordered my hive from gabees.
I have a friend who has been buying queens from Weavers for more than 15 yrs or so. He has been happy with them.
...JP
Way to go, kountry! You'll find that waiting for those first bees is like waiting for your first kid! :)
I had Langstroth hives for 26 years before I thought it was worth spending the money for an extractor. If you only have a hive or two it really isn't worth it. Yes you can extract from a top bar hive, but most don't. Some people do it in a regular extractor and Swienty sells one especially designed for a top bar hive.
http://www.bushfarms.com/beesharvest.htm (http://www.bushfarms.com/beesharvest.htm)
http://www.bushfarms.com/beestopbarhives.htm (http://www.bushfarms.com/beestopbarhives.htm)
If you are looking for additional advice, go with a gentle strain of bees. Italian or Cordovian (sp?) are usually very nice. If you go with a buckfast, you may end up getting stung so many times that you arn't interested in continuing.
Also, when starting off, get at least two hives. This way you can compare what one is doing to the other, and you can tell if everything is going alright. Plus, if one gets weak, you can switch frames of brood, pollen, or honey to keep both of them going.
I used to never get stung..now I'm a walking pincushion out there! It makes me mad as heck!!! But it also encourages me to mess with them and see what they can dole out!...and, for whatever reason, I cant wait till the bees come out again!!...I lost 2 hives...Now I'm determined to catch more swarms this year!..Maybe evebn requeen a few hives..( But I'm terrible at finding my queens!
When I ordered my first bees, it was like waiting for Christmas!!! And, when I went to the post office to get them it was like bringing Lassie home to live with me!
your friend,
john