Beekeeping Basics

 

 Beekeeping as google defines it as: "the occupation of owning and breeding bees for their honey". but beekeeping is so much more then that. To me beekeeping is something that brings me peace. just think about it you are truly changing the world just by owning bees. Its kind of crazy to think about it that way. Bees are not as scary as you may think. (well most hives anyways) bees are interesting in ways that they have quite different personalities to them depending on which hive they are in. Not only do we get sweet honey from them they pollinate our earth and truly change our lives. Have I sold you on getting a beehive yet? If so you might need a few things. The price is a little hefty but trust me its so worth it and I'm sure there cheaper places than amazon, but here's my amazon list. 

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2GJMK45R4D0FK?ref_=wl_share

If you looked at the list and had no clue WTF that all is no worries ill break it down for you. 

This is your bee suit or in this case known as the hood. The hood sits on your head and sticks out away from your face. a lot of the time this is a whole suit that you wear to give you a layer of protection between the bees and your skin. this layer of protection gives enough space that the stinger if stung can not go into your skin. Trust me if you want to be frugal with beekeeping the suit is something you should splurge on you get for what you pay for. (Totally not speaking from experience). 

The Gloves are usually made out of sheepskin and they are another part of the suit that protect you from beeing stung. 

The frames (very important)  usually ranging from 8 to 10 in a box (which you will learn about later) is were all the fun happens. By fun I mean where the eggs are laid and honey is kept. The black in the center are called starters this is plastic that helps the bees be able to start building out the comb faster and more efficiently. Some frames come with starters and others can come with just wires or even nothing. 

This is known as a hive tool that allows the frames to be pulled out of the box easier with no harm to the bees. The front flat end helps to scrape off anything that does not belong in the hive and the hook is used to pry the frames from one another.  

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