I went for a walk today – down the hill through the woods, through the meadow, and around the pond. The air is like perfume with the scent of honeysuckle and blackberry flowers – freshly washed from the 10 or so inches of rain we’ve had in the last 2 weeks – birds singing, squirrels doing squirrel things, horses grazing in the meadow. It’s a beautiful spring day, but one thing was missing – honey bees. I didn’t see a single one.
That’s all about to change. Back in January I placed an order for a 3 pound package of bees which are due to come in the mail (I bet the mail man loves that!) any day now. That’s about 10,000 girls to do all the work (as usual), and one queen to lay all the eggs – when the drones emerge they’ll pretty much just hang out and chase the young queens (like college boys in insect form). With any luck my colony will thrive and increase, and eventually I’ll be able to split it into several hives which will produce honey and pollinate not only my garden, but every garden within almost a mile. Ive been reading, studying and building bee hives for most of a year now to prepare for that package of bees to arrive in the mail. It’s like I’m 8 and it’s Dec 24th.
When I was a kid (not all that long ago) honeybees were everywhere – in all the flowers and working the clover in the yard. They were an integral part of being outdoors. Not so anymore. Honeybees are having a hard time, and even the experts don’t know exactly what the problem is.
Colony Collapse Disorder is what they’ve started calling it when a whole hive of bees just disappears for no particular reason – some bee keepers have lost 1/3 of their colonies in a single year to CCD. Bees have always been known to “abscond” when their nest developed a persistent problem – invading ants, raiding skunks, neighbors with loud music – that sort of thing, but CCD is different. CCD might be caused by a combination of things – exotic mites and diseases, rampant use of petrochemical poisons, cell phones, global warming, deficit spending - It’s hard telling what all. But the effect is that bees are experiencing a failure to thrive both in domestication and in the wild, and you just don’t see nearly as many as you used to.
You might have noticed in your garden things like cucumbers that only develop on one end, or healthy squash vines that don’t seem to produce like they should. These are symptoms of inadequate pollination. Farmers of certain crops must have plenty of honey bees to make a profit – so they hire commercial bee keepers to bring them in. The bees just can’t be done without.
So, now that it’s harder than ever to successfully keep bees why would I want to start? Several reasons actually:
- Backyard beekeepers can be part of the solution by acting as a kind reservoir – domestic bees “escape” into the wild as a matter of course, and also mate with wild bees – for better or worse. Also, as I mentioned – One hive of bees can help with pollination for a large area.
- Some hobby beekeepers seem to be making real progress in overcoming the problems by using natural methods and breeding – I would like to be a part of that. Commercial beekeepers are having enough problems just trying to make a living without experimenting with organics, so that is probably going to be left almost entirely to hobbyists and dedicated small operations.
- Almost all commercial bees are treated with various chemicals and medications which almost certainly contaminates both the honey and the wax – I plan to avoid all that. I like the idea of feeding my Grand Children sustainably produced clean honey.
- It’s a hobby with the potential to make a little bit of money, instead of costing a bunch of it. I’m envisioning a future where that might be a good thing.
- Honey bees don’t make noise, don’t have to be tended while you go on vacation, and help encourage your good for nothin’ neighbors to stay away from your stuff. What’s not to like?
For now, I’ve got nothing to show you, but assuming the post office doesn’t lose my bees I will in a couple of days. In the mean time, please be kind and try not to poison the birds, bees and other wildlife (and yourself) with nasty chemicals – go organic for all of us.
Happy Gardening!
Here’s a link to a great place to learn about chemical free bee keeping.
I garden very intensively, as you know, with a huge diversity of plants. I have not seen a single honeybee in at least three years. On the other hand, the Bumblebee population has exploded, but still, that’s small comfort.
Have you noticed the cost of honey lately? It’s gone through the roof, and keeps going higher. Small wonder. If things keep going this way, you may be able to make more than a “little” money.
When you get it going, you should advertise locally. I have a friend who has been searching desperately for a local organic beekeeper. Her son has multiple allergies, and they’re hoping the honey might help him develop some resistance.
That’s how it is here – the bumble bees seem to be starting to occupy the niche that the honey bees have vacated.
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I have noticed that honey prices have really gone up. A good hive can produce more than 100 pounds (about a pint) of honey in a good year. I’ve heard of instances where intensively managed hives produced 300 pounds.
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The word “Organic” has become highly regulated for any food that you sell, and in the case of honey it is extremely difficult to qualify for. You never know where your bees have been.
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Nonetheless, I’m planning to avoid using chemicals if at all possible – and I believe that it is possible.
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Anyway, using local honey seems to have reduced my allergy symptoms to almost zero – or my aging immune system just doesn’t cause them any more. Either way, not getting hay fever every Spring and Fall is a blessing.
I really enjoy your site. Kudos for sharing your views.