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bluecollar2

(3,622 posts)
Sat Feb 3, 2018, 11:22 AM Feb 2018

Any beekeepers in the house?


I'm going to put some hives in my tropical fruit grove this year. I have joined a local beekeepers association and have arranged with a local comercial beekeeper to put in some hives in a couple of months .

We've decided on a suitable location and he's agreed to let me "train on the job" when he comes to inspect/monitor the hives.

Basically, he's getting out of the business and looking for good homes for his bees.

I think it will be beneficial to have the pollinators on site.

I still have to figure out what to plant to help keep them fed when the trees aren't flowering.

I cross posted this in the farm/ rural life
11 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Any beekeepers in the house? (Original Post) bluecollar2 Feb 2018 OP
Where I am, the deciduous trees are one of the first things to flower. Dale Neiburg Feb 2018 #1
Generally we have food sources bluecollar2 Feb 2018 #6
My dad was an amateur beekeeper Major Nikon Feb 2018 #2
No close neighbors bluecollar2 Feb 2018 #7
My son has a bee keeping business in the mid west with distributors out in the west and south west.. marble falls Feb 2018 #3
Pm sent bluecollar2 Feb 2018 #10
Bees will travel several miles to get pollen TlalocW Feb 2018 #4
Shouldn't be too far.. bluecollar2 Feb 2018 #9
If you have the space, plant a wildflower and native grasses meadow. Nitram Feb 2018 #5
The plan is to do just that in sections bluecollar2 Feb 2018 #8
That sounds awesome hibbing Feb 2018 #11

Dale Neiburg

(746 posts)
1. Where I am, the deciduous trees are one of the first things to flower.
Sat Feb 3, 2018, 11:42 AM
Feb 2018

I expect to see the first of it in about a month, or a little over. If you're growing tropical fruit it sounds as though you're farther south, so you might have food sources (wild if not domesticated) available year-round. Your local pro and local association should be your best resources.

bluecollar2

(3,622 posts)
6. Generally we have food sources
Sat Feb 3, 2018, 03:19 PM
Feb 2018

Year round.

When the trees aren't blooming there are plenty of nurseries in the area.

The county extension and local beekeepers association are very helpful.

Major Nikon

(36,899 posts)
2. My dad was an amateur beekeeper
Sat Feb 3, 2018, 11:46 AM
Feb 2018

We had 14 hives at one time, all in the same spot. Fruit trees typically don't flow for that long, so the bees are always going to need other sources of nutrition. In most areas in the US this predominately comes from clover. I wouldn't worry too much about planting anything for the bees. They are very good at finding and using whatever is available and assuming you're tending your hives regularly, you'll know how much they are finding based on how much honey is produced and how fast the hive is expanding. If the hive expands faster than you can expand their space, they will swarm which is a sure fire way to piss off your neighbors.

bluecollar2

(3,622 posts)
7. No close neighbors
Sat Feb 3, 2018, 03:22 PM
Feb 2018

We're in an agricultural area with other groves and nurseries nearby.

Keeping an eye on hive balance is obviously going to be the key.

marble falls

(61,996 posts)
3. My son has a bee keeping business in the mid west with distributors out in the west and south west..
Sat Feb 3, 2018, 11:57 AM
Feb 2018

pm me if you'd like his website address, he is a featured speaker at bee keeping conventions about bee die-off issues.

TlalocW

(15,623 posts)
4. Bees will travel several miles to get pollen
Sat Feb 3, 2018, 12:48 PM
Feb 2018

So if they don't like what you're giving them, they'll find what they need.

Nitram

(24,479 posts)
5. If you have the space, plant a wildflower and native grasses meadow.
Sat Feb 3, 2018, 02:37 PM
Feb 2018

I replaced 10,000 square feet of lawn with a meadow and it attracts countless pollinators and seed-eating birds. Choose flowering species that bloom at different times of year so there will usually be a source of pollen.

bluecollar2

(3,622 posts)
8. The plan is to do just that in sections
Sat Feb 3, 2018, 03:25 PM
Feb 2018

Of the grove not dedicated to production.

I'm hoping to "crowd out" nuisance grasses that have to be mowed in favour of native plants and grasses that are polinator friendly.

hibbing

(10,401 posts)
11. That sounds awesome
Mon Feb 12, 2018, 05:22 PM
Feb 2018

I'm looking to get rid of most of my urban lawn and do a mini prairie with native grasses and wildflowers.


Peace

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