A best place in U.S. for bees?

[misfyredOhio]

Here's a question I would like to throw out there to the community: if you could choose anywhere to live in the United States with the best all-around conditions for keeping bees, where would it be? I'm sure the conditions would vary year to year, but in general, what do you think? I would guess Pacific Northwest, but I'm not sure.

[buzzbee]

Hawaii!!

[JP]

Wherever you can secure good bee yards!!!


...JP

[Brian D. Bray]

Wherever you can secure good bee yards!!!


...JP

I'm with JP, good pastures will out perform ideal weather every time....provided you get enough decent weather.

[Jim134]

I'm with buzzbee I live in Hawaii for 2 yrs in 1968 to 1970.




             BEE HAPPY Jim 134 :)

[Keith13]

I believe it to be Dane's house

[JP]

I believe it to be Dane's house

This is the first place I thought of actually, after reading this question!! :-D


...JP

[purvisgs]

i would be willing to go out on a limb and say not the PNW, best place to live, yes (not if you started out life in california though...), but pretty much we have only one main flow up here, blackberry, although, true, with good pasture, & moving bees, you can find much more.  it does rain a lot and unless you migrate from down south, bees often get a slow start in spring vs other areas

[Kathyp]

dane is in the PNW and doing great.  others of us, not so much.

i know i messed up my year by not feeding longer and stronger.  not sure what happened last year....

oh well, next year is another crack at it.

big swarm year here this year.  someone must be doing well!!  :-)

[eri]

Maybe someone who actually lives there will chime in, but I would think northern western North Carolina would be a great place for the bees. Tulip poplar, basswood, then sourwood and all the wildflowers inbetween. Usually plenty of rain; even in their 'drought' they don't get crunchy grass and 100 degree temps like we do in central NC. I bought some sourwood honey from there -- light, a little smokey tasting, delicious, comb in. Plus both Brushy Mountain and Miller Bee are close, maybe 30 miles or so down in the foothills near Wilkesboro and North Wilkesboro. I have a place to put bees near Boone, just have to get up the gumption to do it!

[TwT]

that could be many places depending on what you would want to do with your bee's, for example if you want to pollinate then California (almonds) would  be best and if you like beaches and bikini's then Hawaii  ;) , but I heard NC being the best for honey and North Florida and South Georgia being the best for Queen Rearing.

[Ross]

Other than the heat, the droughts, the floods, the tornados, the fire ants, the chiggers, the mosquitos, the ticks, the rattlesnakes and copperheads, it could be here :)

[tlynn]

When I got me bees, the beekeeper who is also the Dadant manager in Gainesville, told me that the Tampa Bay area is one of the best places around for year round flows.  We have palm, palmetto, citrus, mangrove, Brazillian pepper (invasive), and ornamentals.  And we may get a frost, but that's rare.  So for a hobby guy like me living in a populated suburban area, seems like it's a pretty good place for bees.  Got to admit I love Hawaii though!  And speaking of Hawaii, does anybody know if they've managed to remain free of Varroa, SHB, AFB, etc?

[Steve M.]

Really not sure where, statistically, would be the best place for keeping bees, but for me personally, right here in Central Maine on the shores of little old Plymouth Pond works just fine for me.  My wife and I lived in WA state for 10 years, and really enjoyed it, but this is where we grew up, and where we always seem to end up.  Now that we have the homestead/farm, and have started a family, this is where I want to be, and therefore this is the best place for keeping bees.

Now if there were some way to just avoid all the snow and sub-zero temps during the winter......

--Steve

[poka-bee]

Steve, I don't know if WA is the best place for bees but like you, home is the best place for me!  All immediate family is here. I'm also glad we don't have the cold or humidity! Where in WA did you guys live?  I love going to see other places/states but always get that warmth in my heart seeing Mt. Rainier!  Jody

[Steve M.]

Jody,

We lived in Olympia, or technically unincorporated Thurston County just outside city limits.  That was when I was still working as chef of the Olympia Country & Golf Club, and my wife was sales manager at the Tyee Hotel in Tumwater....I hear the Tyee has been torn down and is now a Fred Meyer distribution warehouse.....

I still remember fondly, looking out from the kitchen at the country club across Budd Inlet, over Priest Point Park, and seeing Mount Ranier crowned with clouds.  I never got tired of looking at that mountain.

We really would like to get back to Olympia for a visit, and our five year old daughter really wants to see where Mom and Dad lived before she was born....It is just so far away....perhaps when our son gets a bit older.

--Steve

[Dane Bramage]

I believe it to be Dane's house

LOL!  It is for me anyways.. I'm too lazy to move!  ;)  With the late cold spring snap we had here, I was a bit concerned.. the blackberries were late but now they are still going strong & the purple loosestrife, jasmine, mimosa, bluebeard, etc., are just starting.  Last year the nectar flow here accelerated after the blackberries finished - which surprised me.  Most of what I hear about other beeks in the area is that they are "done" after the blackberries and prepping for winter.  I'm pulling supers everyday right now.  :-P

But what makes a "best" area?  Here in the PNW the winters are quite wet, even if mild.  That presents challenges but once you're colonies are set they require little maintenance.  A year round flow sounds nice... also requires year-round maintenance, no break in brood production for mite control?  Places with more severe winters (e.g. Maine, etc.,) have to pack all their flow into a short season.  So the beeks work hard but very productively over a short time.  I'd be curious to know how over-all production (one full year) compares in the various areas (seasonal vs year-round). 

I enjoy being non-migratory (again, lazy!), but I can surely see the lure in moving bees solely to take advantage of a flow (non-pollination work) and then again to avoid the winter.

Another obvious consideration, if honey is a factor, is the type and taste - as opposed to just production.  I certainly have become a honey snob since becoming a beek.  I always loved most varieties of honeys but now... I get a bit upset with "boring" honey.  We get some crazy flavourful stuff here.  Early spring was maple, blueberry, cherry, apple, pear, tulip, etc.,. amber, very quick to crystallize and sooo good, then it's the blackberry, which tastes different from any blackberry I've ever tried (some say like "roses" for me it seems like Juicy Fruit gum) & a real favourite, then it's the purple loosestrife, jasmine, mimosa, morning glory, etc.,. - extremely light and delicate, real late season (Sept) the honey gets darker again.  I know there is some clover, dandelion, birdsfoot trefoil throughout most of the season and then there are likely dozens upon dozens of sources that I don't even know about - all adding up to super unique flavours/aromas.  That is what I like about honey = it's uniqueness.  I tried some "poison oak" honey.. tastes like clover, "blackberry"?, tastes like clover... what's the deal with all these honey's tasting the same?   Having a location that produces several unique varieties of honey per season is a bonus - but that bonus also comes at a price in that it requires constant observation and a quick harvest/super-switch if one wants to keep any segregation.

Anyways - my long-winded point is that variety is the spice of life, every place is different and - with honey - you can taste the difference! (at least you should be able to!)  I'm content where I am... perhaps I'm blessed/lucky though.  8-)

Cheers,
Dane

[hoku]

  And speaking of Hawaii, does anybody know if they've managed to remain free of Varroa, SHB, AFB, etc?

Sadly, Varroa mites were discovered on Oahu in 2007.  They haven't spread to the other islands so far.

I have read that SHB and AFB are here, but I have no personal experience of that yet.  But, I am a VERY new-bee.

[beekybuzzard]

I have to say here in the north central part of SC. Not to many tornadoes, hurricanes, or floods. It does not get that cold for very long around here, so we usually end up with a pretty early flow to get started with. And out here in the sticks it is all farmland so the girls have plenty of work to do. Also in the fall I can get to the foothills for a good late flow only about 2 hours away. But then I could be a little biased. Of course from the looks of your hives it looks like you are not in too bad of a place either. By the way great bee blog, keep it up.  T C

[KONASDAD]

my backyard! Great landlord!