Beekeeping Guides For Beginners

The Queen Bee

Of all the workers in the hive, the queen bee is the most important. She is the mother of all bees in the hive, and stimulates the activity of the workers based on the colony's needs. Without her, the colony would eventually die out.

The Brood Cycle

The honeybee brood cycle is one of the most important elements in beekeeping to understand. Brood is the entire future of the colony, and without a healthy amount of developing bees, the colony would not survive.

Honeybee Jobs

Honeybee colonies operate with a diverse network of roles and responsibilities, and understanding what to look for can help you determine the health and productivity of your hive, along with bringing the pleasant satisfaction of knowing what your bees are accomplishing.

Langstroth honeybee hive next to purple flowers.

Beehive Designs

Whether you're an experienced beekeeper with dozens of colonies, or a newbee just starting out - hive design is one of the most fundamental components to beekeeping. Being able to open your hive, read a frame, and analyze what you see is critical to understanding your hive's overall health.

Langstroth hives next to sunflower field.

Beehive Parts

Honeybees are naturally driven to insulated, sheltered cavities in trees, buildings, and caves. As a beekeeper, providing artificial hives that match their natural homes as closely as possible is a must. While there are many different types of artificial hives, the vast majority of the them are either of Langstroth or top bar design. As such, this article will focus on the designs and specific parts of these hives. We recommend following up your reading with further research of these hive designs, and choosing between one of these as your go-to hive, especially if you are a beginner beekeeper.

Hive Inspections

Few things are as daunting as inspecting a hive for new beekeepers. Knowing what to look for, how to spot a queen, what to do to avoid irritating the hive, and how often to perform an inspection are all questions that new beekeepers may struggle to find solid answers to. Inspections also change depending on the time of year and individual colony purposes, so instructions for one beekeeper may be completely wrong for another.

Honey

One of the most rewarding and enjoyable aspects of beekeeping is harvesting honey from your very own hives. In addition to beeswax and pollen, honey is one of the main products gathered or produced by honeybees, and humans have enjoyed its taste and health benefits for millenia. When beekeeping is done properly, a healthy hive can produce anywhere from 20-150 pounds of honey (depending on a variety of factors). Taking care of your bees is the most essential aspect of beekeeping. But assuming you've done everything correctly, continue reading below and get ready to learn about harvesting some of that delicious honey for yourself!

Honeybee Food

Just like us, honeybees need access to nutrient-rich food throughout the entire year. Colonies use energy to heat and cool the hive, workers expend energy during foraging flights, and young brood requires a steady flow of protein and carbohydrates to develop into mature adult bees. Beekeepers need to understand what types of food their colonies require at different points of the year as well as how to determine how much food each colony has currently stored. Without this crucial information, determining the strength of your colony is impossible.

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