Practical solutions for people + planet

Carrying the beekeeper's torch

Just when we think we're embarking on something new, it turns out to be old. What seems an adventure is really just carrying the torch to a heritage we knew nothing about.

This spring, I'm starting a beehive in my city backyard.

I thought the beekeeping adventure would be striking out into some great unknown. As it turns out, I recently learned that my great-grandpa kept bees on his farm in the Midwest to pollinate the apple orchard. Turns out, I'm carrying a family torch 1000 miles away, 80 years later in the Albuquerque desert. And it's nice to know I'm not alone; that beekeeping might be in my blood.

Temporally, as you'll see, I'm even less alone and that's critical to the success of my first year keeping bees...

MEET TJ, MY MENTOR

TJ is a retired engineer in Albuquerque who keeps 4 hives on his roof (!) and has become the defacto mentor for many of us new "beeks." This weekend, TJ invited a couple of us for a hands-on springtime hive inspection.

Carlsbad Caverns, mixed media wax and honey

Spring is the time when you're likely to find dead-outs, or an entirely dead hive, so it's an important learning experience for new beekeepers. It's also the best way to gauge the health of the hive in anticipation of honey flow when the flowers and trees start blooming.

On TJ's roof, I learned how to distinguish between honey and worker brood, worker brood and drone brood, pollen cells and swarm cells. It was invaluable to say the least.

Anyway, here's a slideshow of my hive inspection on TJ's roof. If you want the annotated version of these photos, check out the Flickr set and click on a photo to learn more.

Tags: beekeeping, honeybees

11 Comments

Comment by Miss Maia on March 31, 2008 at 12:12pm: Hi Chantal,

This looks great! I was checking the Permaculture Institute website and saw they have posted some info on beekeeping and permaculture. You may have already looked to them as a resource, but just in case, here is their website -- www.permaculture.org. Can't wait to taste that honey!

Comment by Chantal on March 31, 2008 at 3:46pm: Hey thanks for the link, I wasn't aware of their classes and this PDF contains some really interesting classes not too far from Albuquerque.

Comment by jack-of-all-thumbs on April 2, 2008 at 9:58am: Excellent photos! I've had a hive for three years now, possible splitting it into two colonies this weekend. While I may someday spend more time with my bees, I confess that for now beekeeping is just a part of our rural lifestyle that includes chickens, gardens and orchard and the development of a 5000 rainwater collection system for all our water needs. Since both of us still have day jobs, our Russian bees get a lot less attention than they deserve, but they seem pretty happy.

Comment by Chantal on April 2, 2008 at 10:03am: Nice to hear from you, jack-of-all-thumbs,

I'd be curious to know how you find the Russian bees? Some say they're a bit more aggressive than the western european varieties. Oh and also, do you use Langstroth hives?

Comment by Brenda on April 2, 2008 at 7:54pm: Chantal,
Love all your pictures! I am considering taking a class on beekeeping only I don't have the space to really do it. How big is your backyard?

Comment by jack-of-all-thumbs on April 3, 2008 at 6:35am: Got the Russian (who are quite docile) as part of a program from my state agriculture department a few years back to encourage small beekeeping operations. Yes I use Langstroth hives.

Comment by Chantal on April 3, 2008 at 11:29am: Brenda, my backyard is quite small; less than 1/2 an acre. This matters little to the bees, though, as their foraging range is about 5 miles (!). Several city beekeepers like TJ, the guy in my photos, keep their bees on the roof which helps with both the neighbors and limited space.

Jack-of-all-thumbs, thanks for the info. I'd love to see some photos of your hives if you're inclined to share.

Comment by Marion Dumont on April 15, 2008 at 1:07am: Beekeeping is on my "to do list" for the future. I had a hive years ago. Urban beekeeping is purportedly one way to help preserve our bee populations. A book I recommend for those who may be interested in the spiritual side of beekeeping is, "The Shamanic Way of the Bee" by Simon Buxton.

Comment by Chantal on April 15, 2008 at 8:44am: Thanks for the recommendation. Currently I'm reading Letters from the Hive:An Intimate History of Bees, Honey, and Humankind.

Comment by jack-of-all-thumbs on April 15, 2008 at 9:18am: So this weekend didn't go according to plan.

http://selfsufficientsteward.com/?p=193

But it's a pretty cool picture.