How we got started with our first backyard hive and what we’ve learned along the way.

I thought all they wanted to do was sting me.

Never in a million years did I think our family would own a hive! I was scared of them! I thought all they wanted to do was sting me. Not to mention the thought of a whole hive swarming.

One taste of local honey.

As we started paying more attention to where our food comes from, we shopped more locally at farmers markets. I wasn’t much of a honey person at the time, but one taste of local honey and I was sold. I came home and made Chad try the honey. He actually was grossed out by honey after learning as a kid that its bee throw up! Finally after trying it he was hooked too.

We were still worried about being stung.

We started watching documentaries and endless youtube videos to learn more about how bee’s make honey. It wasn’t long before we decided we wanted a hive of our own. We were still worried about being stung, but knew we could buy bee suits to protect us. So we purchased a local rescue hive and all the gear.

There’s something so peaceful about opening a hive.

Chad freaked out a lot more than I did when it came to opening the hive and still does. There’s something so peaceful about opening a hive and watching them work together to make this magical food, we all love and call honey. I think that’s what makes it less scary to me.

The lifespan of a bee and how much honey they make in their lifetime.

We learned how to start a smoker, how to open the hive, look for ants or other invading insects, how to feed the hive during the winter, spot the queen, the difference between a worker and drone, the lifespan of a bee and how much honey they make in their lifetime. We also learned how to collect honey from a rescue hive and how to separate the wax.

This has been our sweetest and calmest hive yet.

Working with rescue hives was a little tricky because they would one day swarm and leave us with an empty hive box. Probably because a lot of the rescue hives where found an hour or two away from us, with much more flowers to feed on. Later we decided to purchase a hive through tractor supply and this has been our sweetest and calmest hive yet.

Our bee keeping journey has been filled with a lot more learning experiences, then honey.

We have enjoyed a spoonful or two of honey from each of the hives we’ve owned, but a happy and healthy hive has always been most important. It takes time to build a strong hive. Our bee keeping journey has been filled with a lot more learning experiences, then honey.

I couldn’t imagine not having our hive.

If you are considering backyard bee keeping, I want to encourage you! Start watching as many documentaries and youtube videos as you can, until you are ready to dive in. I find myself getting more and more comfortable with our hive, each time I open it. As with anything it’s a learning curve, but so worth it. I couldn’t imagine not having our hive.

If you’d like to learn more about the supplies needed to become a backyard bee keeper.. I have another post with all the supplies we use, coming next week.

PIN IT FOR LATER!!!