Go for it!

So you’re ready to have your own beehive. There are some things you may want to know. First, understand that beekeeping is a constant learning process no matter the time put in. If you ask any experienced beekeeper they will tell you that they are still learning. And, as the scientific and social communities continue to explore bees, there is new discovery all the time. Therefore, my advice is to do your due diligence, research, learn, but by all means, get started. There are so many ways to keep bees and a variety of opinions on what works best. No two beekeepers have the same conditions or circumstance so, what works for you may not work for someone else. No one way is correct or incorrect.

Decide on the purpose of your hive. What do you want to achieve? Are you looking to harvest honey? And if so, how and how much? How much room do you have? How many hives are you allowed to keep in your area?  What sort of hive will you choose? Maybe you wish to provide bees a place to live as they pollinate your garden or the community. Answers to these questions and more will help you as you plan.

Begin by checking the city ordinances for your area to make sure you are allowed to keep bees and find out what sort of limits, licenses and registration are required. In Los Angeles, non-commercial beekeepers are allowed a maximum of 2 colonies and must register their hives with the city. Additionally, a water source must be provided for your bees. 

One of the first things you will want to do is decide on the type of hive you will want for your bees. There are many styles of beehive. I recommend researching them, talking to beekeepers and, if possible, visiting people or places that have them. Some examples of hive styles are Lanstroth, Warre, Top Bar, and newer styles that use technology such as Flow Hive and their replicas. There are more options and customizations within these choices as well, such as whether or not to use foundation and if so what type, how many boxes for brood or honey, etc. These are simple choices that you can experiment with. I won’t go into that here as to avoid overwhelming. This is something that any beekeeper could advise you on and can easily be swapped out or used in combination. Generally, it is a good idea to to provide a smaller space and grow that space as each colony grows. 

I recommend finding a mentor in the beginning of your beekeeping practice or a community that can help if things get challenging or even for a helping hand as you do inspections. They can offer some guidance and experience when it comes to things such as where to place your hive in your backyard, school or community garden. Many beekeepers would gladly help for a small fee or many will do this for free. Keep in mind that some beekeepers are hobbyists and may not be interested in money while others make their living as beekeepers and a location visit or “scout” may be a service they provide. Many cities and townships offer beekeeping classes which are a valuable asset and provide hands on training.

Although ample research, and finding classes and mentors is advisable, there are pitfalls in this regard as well. It is possible to be overwhelmed by all the information available when it comes to bees. At the risk of pissing off the beekeeping community at large, I will go ahead and proclaim that it is entirely possible to jump into beekeeping as a newbie and have great success entirely on your own. There are a ton of online resources and reading materials that can get you started and much that can best be learned through trial and error. It is true however, that many of these mistakes could be avoided with help from others. But even then, there are always surprises and challenges. So if you want to have bees, go for it! Don’t let anyone tell you that you must take a special class or must use a particular hive. Humans have been keeping bees for centuries. There are many paths, and there is no gatekeeper. Enjoy your beekeeping journey. I’d love to hear your stories!