"The keeping of bees is like the direction of sunbeams" -Thoreau
"Books are the bees which carry the quickening pollen from one to another mind." -James Lowell
"It's wonderful to me that bees have this simple, age-old thing going on." -Peter Fonda
The bees mind their own business, so why can't we. You must remember, there’s a right way and a wrong way to do everything and the wrong way is to keep trying to make everybody else do it the right way. Today's title really should read, "Mind your own business." Now this is a concept some of us need to learn. There are some who cannot mind their own business or bees..ness. These individuals thrive on always being in other people's business. I never understood why, but living in a small summer community has taught me a lot about people. For some, this is their nature. For others, it is an addiction, and yet for others, it is a way to fit in--so they think. Individuals who mind other people's business instead of their own must have a lonely, dull life. Or perhaps living through other people's business is a way for some people to find a bit of self-worth. I have learned not to take other people's inventory. I have enough of my own personal inventory to keep in check everyday.
Bee Keeping as hobby is way for me to communicate with nature. The beauty and serenity of nature feed my spirit. After reading about bees and being (no pun intended) in Ithaca NY last year, I knew I wanted to be a beekeeper. This for me would be the natural progression after botany. So before I start this new hobby, I had to buy books about beekeeping. This is just me. Not everyone would buy 5 books on the subject before even taking the first beekeeping course. I have read about 3 to date. I was so fascinated when I first learned about beekeeping from one of my patients and from an expert while in Ithaca last year.
Beekeeping is not just for the country folks. It can be for us city folks also. It is legal in New York City to be a beekeeper and have hives. I have always been fascinated by bees. I remember reading an article in Scientific American when I was twelve about bee behavior. There are many beekeepers in New York City and the other boroughs, as well as Long Island, Connecticut, and New Jersey. I admire the colony behaving as a single unit. It is hard to imagine that a single queen reigns over as many as 50,000 honeybees. The queen is the diva. She is busy laying eggs--sometimes about 2,000 per day. There are male bees called drones whose major function is to mate with young queens. I will call them princesses or duchesses. Then there are the female worker bees. I guess I should call them the servants. The female workers or the servants (as I call them) feed the larvae, construct and clean the wax comb cells. These same servants forage for water, nectar, pollen and other resins from plants. I have been reading that bees stay within a certain radius of their hive. The bees turn the nectar into honey, and store pollen to feed the larvae. The propolis is used to strengthen and waterproof the hive.
I find the whole process amazing. I know I will find it gratifying. This hobby will definitely boost my self esteem. It will do the same for you if you decide to accept the mission.
I have reasons for being a beekeeper. I want to help the environment and the plants. Without bees, there would no crops and certain flowers. I have just finished a book entitled, Spring Without Bees which discusses the reasons why bees are dying. I want to jar my own honey for friends and family, and add my own herbs to the honey. I want to use the beeswax for preparing my herbal salves.
Rick and I are excited about this rewarding endeavor. If you are excited and curious about beekeeping too, here are some ideas to get you started:
Read Beekeeping for Dummies by Howard Blackiston ( 2002)
Take a beekeeping course:
http://www.gobeekeeping.com/
There are courses offered at the New York Botanical Gardens, and in Brooklyn and Upstate
http://www.honeybeelives.org/
I also recommend two beekeeping associations, http://www.longislandbeekeepers.org/ and
GothamCityBees.com
Other books I have read:
1. The New Complete Guide to Beekeeping by R. Morse
2. The Backyard Beekeeper by K. Flottum
3. Hive Management by Bonney
Today I bought Honeybee Democracy by Thomas Seeley. He is the man I heard speak about bees in Ithaca last year. There is also a documentary film on Bees called Queen of the Sun. (http://www.queenofthesun.com/) Here is a paragraph from their website:
" In 1923, Rudolf Steiner, a scientist, philosopher & social innovator, predicted that in 80 to 100 years honeybees would collapse. His prediction has come true with Colony Collapse Disorder, where bees are disappearing in mass numbers from their hives with no clear single explanation. In an alarming inquiry into the insights behind Steiner’s prediction QUEEN OF THE SUN: What Are the Bees Telling Us? examines the dire global bee crisis through the eyes of biodynamic beekeepers, scientists, farmers, and philosophers. On a pilgrimage around the world, the film unveils 10,000 years of beekeeping, highlighting how our historic and sacred relationship with bees has been lost due to highly mechanized industrial practices. Featuring Michael Pollan, Vandana Shiva, Gunther Hauk and beekeepers from around the world, this engaging, alarming and ultimately uplifting film weaves together a dramatic story that uncovers the problems and solutions in renewing a culture in balance with nature."
When I get involved in a hobby, I really get involved. This hobby will be rewarding in many respects. I love experiencing harmony with nature. I hope you will also. The more you learn, the more interesting and exciting it will become.
Until tomorrow...
Beekeeping is not just for the country folks. It can be for us city folks also. It is legal in New York City to be a beekeeper and have hives. I have always been fascinated by bees. I remember reading an article in Scientific American when I was twelve about bee behavior. There are many beekeepers in New York City and the other boroughs, as well as Long Island, Connecticut, and New Jersey. I admire the colony behaving as a single unit. It is hard to imagine that a single queen reigns over as many as 50,000 honeybees. The queen is the diva. She is busy laying eggs--sometimes about 2,000 per day. There are male bees called drones whose major function is to mate with young queens. I will call them princesses or duchesses. Then there are the female worker bees. I guess I should call them the servants. The female workers or the servants (as I call them) feed the larvae, construct and clean the wax comb cells. These same servants forage for water, nectar, pollen and other resins from plants. I have been reading that bees stay within a certain radius of their hive. The bees turn the nectar into honey, and store pollen to feed the larvae. The propolis is used to strengthen and waterproof the hive.
I find the whole process amazing. I know I will find it gratifying. This hobby will definitely boost my self esteem. It will do the same for you if you decide to accept the mission.
I have reasons for being a beekeeper. I want to help the environment and the plants. Without bees, there would no crops and certain flowers. I have just finished a book entitled, Spring Without Bees which discusses the reasons why bees are dying. I want to jar my own honey for friends and family, and add my own herbs to the honey. I want to use the beeswax for preparing my herbal salves.
Rick and I are excited about this rewarding endeavor. If you are excited and curious about beekeeping too, here are some ideas to get you started:
Read Beekeeping for Dummies by Howard Blackiston ( 2002)
Take a beekeeping course:
http://www.gobeekeeping.com/
There are courses offered at the New York Botanical Gardens, and in Brooklyn and Upstate
http://www.honeybeelives.org/
I also recommend two beekeeping associations, http://www.longislandbeekeepers.org/ and
GothamCityBees.com
Other books I have read:
1. The New Complete Guide to Beekeeping by R. Morse
2. The Backyard Beekeeper by K. Flottum
3. Hive Management by Bonney
Today I bought Honeybee Democracy by Thomas Seeley. He is the man I heard speak about bees in Ithaca last year. There is also a documentary film on Bees called Queen of the Sun. (http://www.queenofthesun.com/) Here is a paragraph from their website:
" In 1923, Rudolf Steiner, a scientist, philosopher & social innovator, predicted that in 80 to 100 years honeybees would collapse. His prediction has come true with Colony Collapse Disorder, where bees are disappearing in mass numbers from their hives with no clear single explanation. In an alarming inquiry into the insights behind Steiner’s prediction QUEEN OF THE SUN: What Are the Bees Telling Us? examines the dire global bee crisis through the eyes of biodynamic beekeepers, scientists, farmers, and philosophers. On a pilgrimage around the world, the film unveils 10,000 years of beekeeping, highlighting how our historic and sacred relationship with bees has been lost due to highly mechanized industrial practices. Featuring Michael Pollan, Vandana Shiva, Gunther Hauk and beekeepers from around the world, this engaging, alarming and ultimately uplifting film weaves together a dramatic story that uncovers the problems and solutions in renewing a culture in balance with nature."
When I get involved in a hobby, I really get involved. This hobby will be rewarding in many respects. I love experiencing harmony with nature. I hope you will also. The more you learn, the more interesting and exciting it will become.
Until tomorrow...
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