Standard Boring Newbie Questions

[ndvan]

I am in a beginning beekeeping class, and I think I want to take the plunge.  I have a bunch of questions, which I have run by the people running the class, but I would like some other points of view.

First, I live in a city (some people may not consider Tulsa a city, but there's about 750,000 of us in the metro area).  I live in a neighborhood.  I have a decent sized lot, because I have one regular lot and then half of another one, so my yard is about 1.5 times my neighbors'.  My lot is about 65 by 100 feet.  Am I going to bug the life out of my neighbors if I have a couple of hives?  Does mowing the grass around hives stir up the bees.  If I have a hive about 15 feet from a neighbor's yard, will they stir up my bees by mowing their yard?  

Second, assuming I take the plunge, I think I want two hives.  Money is a consideration.  I would like to put the hives together myself to see how they go together.  Does anybody have any good/bad experience with starter kits from particular companies?

Finally, what kind of bees should I get?  Oklahoma has a tough environment.  It gets cold in the winter (usually some days down in the 10s or even the 0s to the 10s sometimes).  It gets hot in the summer (usually over 100 for a at least a couple of weeks).  (There are about 5 days a year with perfect weather, and they never happen on the weekend.) Above all else, I want gentle bees.  I would also like some mite resistance.  I would prefer not to have swarms that freak out the neighbors.   Honey production is really not my concern at all.  

I have read that Carnolians are very peaceful and have mite resistance, but they seem to be more suited for cold environments and tend to swarm.  Russians have mite resistance, but are they gentle?  Italians may be the best deal for me, given the weather, but do they have mite resistance?  I suppose I want the perfect bee, which does not exist, but what is the best bet for me?

I would appreciate any input that anybody has.  Thanks in advance.

[tom]

Hello

 All bees have mites some bees are bred to be very clean and hygenic. I have NWC and i have a hive that is carniolans and cordovan italians mixed they are very gentle and i love them very much. As for swarming all bees swarms it is a part of nature but if you keep them plenty of room you should have no problems with that. And also check with your neighbors and inform them on what good bees do for gardens and the trees and flowers and let them know you are thinking of getting a hive that way they will know and they won't be scared and plus you will teaching them something they may not know about the usefulness of bees.

Tom

[Finsky]

I
I have read that Carnolians are very peaceful and have mite resistance, but they seem to be more suited for cold environments and tend to swarm.  Russians have mite resistance, but are they gentle?  Italians may be the best deal for me, given the weather, but do they have mite resistance?  I suppose I want the perfect bee, which does not exist, but what is the best bet for me?

.

NO bee race is enough mite resistant, but that is not bigproblem. Mites are  easy to control.

We have mostly Italians in Finland and it manage with weather like other bees.

When you take 2 hives, those individual may be what ever. There are stocks inside races and they act very different way.

If Italians are from south they may be week against winter. In noth tested and selected stocks act otherwise.

When hives cross breed during 2 generation you need not to talk any more same thing as earlier.

[AndersMNelson]

Mowing around your hive doesn't stir the bees up at all, from my experience.  I don't know why, but I assume they just know it's harmless.

[Finsky]

Mowing around your hive doesn't stir the bees up at all, .

Same here. When I move hives to another place I may take transport screen away and put inner cover and they mind at all.  New bees are calm and takes all easy.

[Brian D. Bray]

In placing your hives (within a city) I would recommend you orient the entrances so that they point either sout, east or southeast.  With that in mind then locate a site as far from property lines as possible considering building placement on the lot.  

2 hives is better than 1 when starting out.  More forgiving if a fatal mistake is made on one, you still have resources to keep it alive.  

Most any bee will do but bees from a warmer climate will fare less well in a colder climate and take a season/generation or 2 to adjust. For that reason it is best to get bees from an area that has as similar weather conditions as your local area as possible for best results.

Good luck.

[Kathyp]

i have Russians.  they were pretty easy to handle.  most of the year i was working them in t shirts and shorts.  had to quit that when the honey came and the robbing.

if you put something in front of your hive like shrubs, or low fence, they will fly up as they come out and wont' be so apt to go straight across your neighbors yards, etc.  i used a fence to encourage them to fly over my first pasture and not through it.  seemed to work.

[Ruben]

>Am I going to bug the life out of my neighbors if I have a couple of hives?


Not as long as you give them honey :)  No  seriously I would be kind of quit about what you we doing until someone asks but at the same time don't hide/lie to them. I have five hives at one place and houses are all around and they don't even know they are there. If they did stumble close to them I have signs that say "caution beehives" but for the most part unless you are looking at the hives you don't see the bees, they fly up and away.

>Does mowing the grass around hives stir up the bees. If I have a hive about 15 feet from a neighbor's yard, will they stir up my bees by mowing their yard?


I can only speak for my bees and they don't mind mowing, but will not tolerate a weed eater with in three feet of the hive. but I mow right up to them. But keep in mind that one of the few people that have been killed by Africanized Honey Bees in the U.S.A was mowing when attacked.



>Does anybody have any good/bad experience with starter kits from particular companies?

No but you will be better off buying what you need without buying a kit. The kits have thing you won't want or need and don't have things you will need. I started with two hives this past spring and spent about $700 for everything. If you can find a beekeeper to sell you some existing hives you can save money but I would recommend starting with all new, you get to seethings from a fresh clean view and have less of a chance of having to deal with mites and disease right from the beginning.


>Finally, what kind of bees should I get?  

I would recommend Italians 3lbs package

[KONASDAD]

I live in area thats all housing for miles around. No farms, just strip malls, supermarkets and the like. I have two hives and my neighbors dont even know. Neighbors on both sides gave me extra tomatoes, apples and cucumbers from their gardens and said, "I have more than I/ve ever had in any year."  I've never seen a honey bee before I put in hives in my yard. Go ahead, its fun.

[ndvan]

thanks for the help!

[denart]

I would nix the idea of starter kits.   Get a catalog from a supplier like Dandant, and order just what you need.   use the money saved for a bee suit.

I now have a very nice bee suit....but....started out with...

+ tyvec painters disposable coveralls.....about $10.00...from Lowes
   they work very well...never been stung through them and I still use them ...fast on and off
+ vinyl gloves with brown jersy gloves under them.....bees pay no attention to them.....very easy to work in.....I still use the gloves reguardless of which bee suit I am wearing...tyvec  or  "real" beesuit
+ rubberbands to go around the sleeve  and  pant cuffs...keep the bees from crawling in.
+ with the tyvec outfit I use a Alexander style  veil....and I always wear a sweat band when I have a vale on.
------never   wipe sweat, scratch your nose, or answer your cell phone through the veil while you are working the bees...lessons learned the hard way.

some of the things that come with a starter kit   are just fluf....stuff you wont use or not as good as you will want later on.
Dennis

[buzzbee]

Beekeepersvoice.com also has recommendatins for a starter kit. I would get as many bee supply catalogues as you can and check their websites for shipping. Sometimes shippiong is cheaper from one farther away. Go figure!!
Anyway hats off to you for considering a markedly different than most other hobbies.

[Michael Bush]

Here's my advice:

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesnewbees.htm

As far as the city, I've had bees in the city most all the time for the last 32 years including now.  I have several in Lincoln, NE even though I live in the country.  Once in a while some neighbor gets excited when they find you you have a hive but usually calm down when they find out it's been there a year already.  Their fears are worse than reality.  Better to not tell them ahead of time because they can't comprehend what it means anyway.  If they are VERY observant they might notice a honeybee.

[tereads]

I asked my immediate neighbors before I started to make sure no one had any allergy to beestings.  
That said, my hives are at the back of my property and the neighbors say they never notice the bees.  Do provide a water source so they don't go to your neighbors' pools or garden hose hookups and make sure there's some sort of screening (shrubs, etc) so when the bees come out of the hives they go out and up immediately.  That should keep anyone from being in the direct line of flight.
When I got my honey crop the first three jars went to my neighbors as a thank you.  They were thrilled.
Terry