Also these are the things I see as necessary. There is just a ton of different equipment out there. These are the things you must have to get started properly. There a few things that cause quite the controversy in the beekeeping community. As you get to know your beekeeping style you will figure out what works best for you and your bees.
These things should be purchased in the winter. A lot of companies send you unassembled hive components, and it is a little time consuming to put them all together if you are just starting out.
Your packages of bees will need to be ordered ASAP!! I am planning to order mine right after Christmas. All I asked for for Christmas this year is what I call "honey money," money for the bees!! You will need to make sure you order a package plus a queen, they are not always included. Your bees will come to the post office if you get them shipped. Your post office will call you when they are in and you will have to go pick them up. The further in town you live the funnier the reactions you will get at the post office. Trust me if you are a pretty girl walking out of the post office with 13,000-40,000 bees in your arms your gonna get some looks! haha
Lets start with the basic equipment you need to properly tend to your hives.
Equipment:
- Hive tool
- Veil or Suit
- Smoker
- Feeder
- Spray Bottle
Your hive tool will very quickly become your baby. It is about 9-10 inches long. The bees will glue the different hive components together with propolis, so you need your hive tool to separate the glue. The hive tool will prevent you from splitting the wood in your hive, like a screw driver or something else would do. The end of the tool is curved for picking up frames and scraping off propolis, comb and unwanted queen cells.
A veil is not completely necessary. But bees are drawn to eye movement and don't like it, so I like to wear one. Also, a sting in or around your eyes can be very serious. It's better to be safe than sorry. You can buy entire suits to wear in the bee yard if you want to be completely protected.
A smoker is very handy for entering a hive. The bees are calmed by the smoker. In response to the smoke your bees will begin pigging out on honey and get so full that they have a lot of trouble stinging and are just kinda in a food coma, kinda like Americans after thanksgiving.
A front feeder will be needed to jump-start your bees when they first arrive.
Buy a brand new spray bottle so you can spray your bees at the post office and up until they get dumped into their new home with 1/2sugar to 1/2water.
What makes up the hive:
- Bottom Board
- 2 Hive Bodies + Frames
- 3 Supers + Frames
- Inner Cover
- Outer Cover
- Package of Bees + Queen
I recommend a screened bottom board as opposed to a solid. I am a chick so I like to buy shallow supers for my harvest, but you can buy medium supers too, they are just a little to heavy for me to be lugging around. I would also get my queen marked, they will put a little white or colored dot on her so you can easily identify her in the hive. This is useful later so you tell if there is more than one queen in a hive or a new queen all-together. Do not panic if you see a queen that is not marked, sometimes the workers will take it off of her, thinking it is dirt, just do further investigation to see if you have a new queen, or if your hive is preparing to swarm.
Other things:
- Gloves
- Frame pullers
- Frame rack
Gloves are not completely necessary, just a matter of what makes you more comfortable. Sometimes it is easier to handle your hives without them because you can get a better grip. Frame pullers can help you pull frames out of a hive. I like using these when honey is capped, so my hive tool doesn't rip into capped honey and cause more work for my little workers. A frame rack hangs on the hive while you are inspecting to hold your hives. I don't use one but you can. It is just kind of an accessory.
These are the things absolutely necessary for beginner your hives. If you have any questions at all please comment or email me! There is nothing I love more than talking bees!
A great company for supplies is Brushy Mountain Bee Farm. I am a numbers person, and have compared their prices to a lot of other suppliers, they seem to be much cheaper. Plus they offer more choices in equipment, and have a lot of different traps for pollen and propolis, which is not even offered at some other supply companies. However, I am buying my bees locally, I don't want them to go through the post office, just because I am very motherly towards my bees and want to make sure they are well ventilated and nourished. The postal workers won't take very good care of your bees surprisingly, I don't know what their deal is!
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