Bee on a Sunflower
One of the things we’ve been thinking of doing for a few years in keeping bees. We’ve done a lot of reading on the subject and though we really want to do this, it seems beyond us. What we’d like to do is find a mentor to help us through the first year or two so we can learn first hand how to raise a healthy colony.
I have to admit that I am afraid of being stung. I know the valuable role bees play in pollination and that there is some side benefit in gleaning honey if the hive does well, but I am still nervous about it. We have ground bees here also and hornets and all kinds of other things that sting so it comes with the territory.
At the PA Farm Show I picked up a brochure put out by the PA State Beekeepers Association called “Give Honey Bees a Helping Hand.” You can download a copy of the brochure here.
In the brochure they discuss the decline in bee populations and what you can do to help. Even if you don’t want to keep a hive yourself, you can help the bees by planting a pollinator’s garden. See info on making a bee friendly landscape here. For now I’m sticking with that.
Eventually though I will get over my fear and we will find someone to walk with us down this path, but for now we keep reading and learning.