Beekeeping- A Hobby That Makes You Money
“I just do beekeeping as a hobby” is usually what most beekeepers will say if you ask them. Like any hobby, people usually develope a decent interest in the topic. Tending bees is a great combination of learning the technical specifics about the tiny little insects and developing a special caretaker relationship. That is what makes beekeeping such a great hobby! Plus, like most hobbyists, beekeepers don’t do it for the money. However it is a hobby that actually can be profitable. So you actually get a fulfilling hobby AND a possible side business out of beekeeping. What a sweet activity. Beekeeping is a very hands-on hobby as well. You need specific materials and equipment to start you in beekeeping and then some different supplies to keep your bees going and in good health.
If you really like the hobby of beekeeping, you first need to ask yourself a few questions in order to determine if it is a good fit for your lifestyle.
1. Do you have the land needed to set up a beehive? Taken for granted that there are a lot of people who setup beehives near farms or in rural areas, try to assess if you have a big space to work on. Remember, bees fly off to forage, they do not stay in one place all day, so make sure you have plenty of space.
2. Do you have flowering plants nearby to support the bee population? Bees fly as much as 2 miles to forage for flowering plants, but for maximum honey production, anything less than 1 ? miles is optimum. A space with a farm nearby provides the best location to set up a beehive. Other good locations would be near vegetable farms, orchards, near the woods. If in the city, near parks where there are lots of flowering plants and trees, etc.
3. Do you have enough space to set up a hive that is facing east? Bees do not have any form of an internal clock and use the sun to guide them in their daily routine. Since they do not have a way to wake up early, the hive must be set up so that the entrance directly faces the rising sun, and this action wakes them up at the start of the day when they start collecting nectar.
4. How do I start my beekeeping? There are many ways to start your hobby. Obviously you will have to spend money to get your first hive and most of the materials that are needed to maintain it. you also need to decide if you want to make the hive yourself from scratch or just buy one that is readily made. This is a personal decision that only the beekeeper can answer. If you have the necessary skills to make your own hive, then by all means make it yourself. If you are one of those people that cannot tell a ripsaw from a chainsaw, just buy a complete package.
Regardless of how you choose to start, beekeeping is as rewarding as any hobby you can think of. The reason is simple, because you like it and it is not work. Learn to make your interaction with the bees an enjoyable pass-time, a pass-time that rewards you with sweet, sweet honey.
