The Buzz about Beekeeping

World Bee Day is celebrated on May 20 to raise awareness of the importance of pollinators, the threats they face, and their contribution to sustainable development. According to the United Nations, nearly 90% of the world’s wild flowering plant species depend entirely or in part on animal pollination, along with more than 75% of the world’s food crops and 35% of global agricultural land. Since attention to the importance of bees has grown, beekeeping has grown in popularity. Get the buzz on all things beekeeping in this interview with Amy, a beekeeper who is a member of AOP’s marketing department.

Tell us a little about your beekeeping adventure.
I started beekeeping in 2017 with my family, my two sisters and their families, and our parents. At the time, we knew nothing and are still learning every day. We currently have 12 hives with honeybees and around 10,000 bees per hive.

What is a typical day like as a beekeeper? Does it change seasonally?
I like to check the hives daily for activity (bees going in and out). At least once a month, we open the hives up and check inside to make sure there is a laying queen, all the bees are healthy, they have room to work, and if they have started making honey. Each month is always different and a lot of it is based on weather.

Are your hives located near each other?
I live in a small town and have one in my garden. My parents live on a farm near me, and they have 8 hives at their place outside their house. The other 3 hives are located at a family friend’s house in a neighboring town.

Do you wear protective covering whenever you’re around your hives?
When I first started, I was covered head to toe with anything and everything to keep from getting stung. I was scared. I have learned a lot over the years, and I’m more relaxed around them. When we open the hives, I still put on long sleeves or my bee jacket, along with gloves and a vail. When I am in my garden with the hive or just watching them, I don’t put on any gear, and I go on as normal.

How many times have you been stung?
Way too many to count. I do not get stung every time, but sometimes it’s more than one time in a single day. The only time I usually get stung is when I’m opening their hives, but who can blame them. I’m in their home, and they are protecting their home and family. Bees don’t go out of their way to sting people. They only sting when they feel threatened.

Do bees really die after stinging someone?
Sadly, yes. If you ever see a bee on you, just slightly and softly brush them away. You just might smell like a beautiful flower, so take it as a compliment.

Do bees sleep?
They do sleep around 5-8 hours each day. In the evening when the sun starts to go down and the flowers close for the night, so do bees. This is when you see the hives have a lot of incoming workers returning for the evening. In the morning when the temperature is right, they return to work collecting nectar and pollen.

Do bees recognize their hive? Do they always come back to their hive?
Yes, there is a great video explaining this. Bees can travel up to 6 miles from their hive.

How much honey does a hive yield?
That depends on your hive. Typically, a beehive can produce anywhere from 10 to 200 pounds of honey a year. If you have a lot of pollen and nectar near, along with great workers, you will have a good harvest. There are some hives that don’t have a lot of bees to gather the nectar and pollen, so they may not have as much honey.

How do you harvest the honey?
Since we live in Iowa, we harvest once a year. Some beekeepers in this area ship their hives to the warmer states and harvest twice a year.

Around the end of August, our family gets together and harvests the honey. We remove the supers, the boxes that hold the hone, and leave them the remaining honey for their winter food. We always want to make sure they have enough food for the winter. Bees don’t hibernate, but they stay in their hives to stay warm huddled together.

There are 10 frames in each box, and each frame can weigh 60 lbs. full of honey. I like to describe the frames with honey like a Tupperware container. The bees fill their Tupperware with honey and then put a lid on for safe storage. When we harvest the honey, we take a knife to the “lids” or wax cover. The wax is cut off and is used for thousands of different things. We take the frames loaded with honey and put it into an extractor. The one we use holds 4 frames, and we spin it by hand. As it spins the honey flies out and runs down the tub where we have a spout to drain. Once we open the spout, we filter it. Before we can bottle the honey, we must obtain a certain moisture level to ensure it stays fresh and avoid spoiling caused by fermentation. Once we are within our percentage range for safe honey, we start bottling.

Do you sell your honey?
We are still small, so for us it’s more of a hobby. We usually have about 30-40 bottles to sell to locals.

Does eating honey from your own town or state help boost your immune system?
I am a true believer that honey is the first step to a better immune system. The allergens in the air are gathered and made into honey. When you consume honey, you consume small amounts of pollen. The theory is that your body will stop recognizing local pollen as a threat. It’s a natural way to help alleviate allergy symptoms.

One of our customers purchased 10 bottles for herself. She eats a spoonful every day. She has allergies and the best way to help her is to eat local honey. She lives only a few blocks away from a hive so we’re happy to provide her with fresh local honey.

If I feel a sore throat coming on, my go-to is a spoonful of honey. Before I go to the drug store for anything, I always have my family start with a spoonful of honey.

What are the pros and cons of keeping bees?
Pros:
- Honey!
- The bees pollinate my garden and flowers.
- Entertainment. To me, bees are a very interesting insect. I enjoy watching them go in and out of their hives. I could sit and watch them for hours. It has a relaxing feel to it.
- Family time. For us, beekeeping is something we do as a family. My sisters do not live as close, so it’s nice to have them visit and help with the bees.

Cons:
- Bee stings (I am mildly allergic, but I’m still a beekeeper and have no plans to stop!)
- Expenses. Beekeeping has a lot of ongoing expenses.

How do bees help the ecosystem?
Everyone is talking about saving the bees and that’s because they play a huge part in our ecosystem. They pollinate plants that produce many seeds, nuts, and fruits that we and other animals eat. They are vital to a healthy environment and healthy economy, not to mention they are a beautiful and fascinating insect. (I might be little biased though!)

What fascinates you most about bees?
I love watching them come in and out of their hives. They are so small and can do so many things. There can be up to 10,000 bees in one hive, and they all work together and are all controlled by one queen bee. They all work for her. It just amazes me.

What are some of the biggest threats to the bee population?
- Pesticides
- Disease (Just like other animals, we need to watch their health and keep up with treatments needed to stay healthy.)
- Loss of flowers, trees, and agriculture. Large areas of concrete, paved roads, and buildings take away space for flowers and places to get pollen or nectar.

Do you have any other interesting facts about bees?
- All worker bees are female.

- The type of flower nectar the bee gathers determines the taste of the honey. We like to look at the honey from the
neighboring town and compare it to our honey. They are usually different colors of gold because of the nectar collected.

- A queen bee can lay 2,000 eggs. Fertilized eggs become females and unfertilized eggs become males (drones).- The bee is the only social insect to be partially domesticated by humans

- Bees love blue, especially plants like lavender and rosemary.

What advice do you have for anyone considering beekeeping?
You will get stung; however, beekeeping can be a full-time job if you can and want. There are a lot of things to remember and do for 10,000 bees in one hive. No matter if you make it a job or a hobby, have fun. I love getting my suit on and sticking my head into a hive to see what they have been up to since last I checked.