I am planning to put a box or two of Honey Bees in the backyard. I have been doing research online and reading about it. Wondering if anyone here keep Bees and can help / recommend reliable sources to buy from. Also appreciate any NJ specific tips.

Do you live near bears ?

good article.

 

http://smallfarm.about.com/od/beekeeping/a/Protect-Bees-And-Beehives-From-Bears.htm

No bears here :-)

Here in Mercer the community college occasionally offers a beekeeping class (as does Snipes Farm just across the river from Trenton). You may want to look into something like that in your area.

Why do you want to get into beekeeping? I know it is a popular thing but I never understood it.

Without bees we die.

Why do you want to get into beekeeping? I know it is a popular thing but I never understood it.

* They do all the work, for almost nothing from me

* They don't need to be fed unlike certain pets :-)

* Honey is yummy, healthy and can be stored for long periods

 

More importantly, bees play critical role in pollination, crops etc, good for us (people) and I get to learn something new.

Actually bee keeping is not quite as simple as some tend to think, they do require care for pests and diseases, supplemental feeding for winter. and constant observations. Swarming is another concern, one minute you have a full hive and next you got none, We lost and gained bees from swarms.

 

Honey is a wonderful resource. Along with the wax and bee pollen.

 

We have had bees for few years and I know a few guys who run some well know apiaries and they are barely getting by, colony collapse it taking a huge toll on bees.

 

There are classes offered thru some of the colleges as mentioned. Also there are some guys from local apiaries who will teach you if you let them keep bees on your land in exchange for some honey. That is how we got into it. They put their hives here and we got honey in exchange and also began learning when they would come to tend them. Eventually we started investing into new supers and they would help manage them. Some years were better than others but last few have been bad with colony collapse.

 

 

Thanks OG, I am in Bergen County (more urban and no farms around).  I would be more than happy to let someone keep bees here, but dont know anyone who would be interested in.
I got into Chickens (for eggs) about 5 years ago in the backyard, have small flock of 6. Its been fun keeping them so thought of getting some bees too.

One hive per month and 15 combs max.

* They do all the work, for almost nothing from me

* They don't need to be fed unlike certain pets :-)

* Honey is yummy, healthy and can be stored for long periods

 

More importantly, bees play critical role in pollination, crops etc, good for us (people) and I get to learn something new.

So.. Basically you just want to do it for the fun of it?

sure.. not for profit or business or anything like that..

 

I am looking for someone who may sell the boxes, bees locally, even share few tips etc

I don't know how much land you have and how close your neighbors are but you def want to give them plenty of space and not be disturbing them often. Simple things like mowing lawn near them will cause someone to get stung. They will be very active, and will be always flying around your yard. I get stung mowing lawn 20 yards away. Also remember to consider any one with allergies to bee stings.

 

Not trying to discourage you but I am not sure what you know or don't know already and just trying to give my experiences.

thx. good advice. the lots here are no bigger than 100 x 100 ft. That only leaves with about 30 ft from the location to neighboring properties and 50 ft to the house. may not work on that point.

Better check with your town. Some, like my town of Closter have an ordinance banning bees. I know it makes no sense but they only allow 2 hives at the Closter Nature Center and two hives on the town owned McBain Farm. There are several people who keep hives in Bergen County and there are a couple of organizations within the state that promote bee keeping. Try Googling it. If you do start a hive, I would keep a low profile as there is a lot of bad perceptions about bees and most mix up bees with yellow jackets which are a meat eating wasps. Bees don't eat typical food at outdoor cooking but yellow jackets do and do so aggresivly. Bees are pretty passive and only protect the hive if directly assulted and only in a small radius of the hive. Everything benificial that has been said about them is true and we are in dangerously short supply of bees in this area.

Bees have a range of up to 15 miles from the hive. Yes they will explore closer to the hive but only during daylight hours when few people are around. Tuck the hive  in a quite corner and put a six foot high fence around it. That forces the bees to fly up and spread out and down to return to the hive. It will stop a direct line that could intersect with people.By the way, the honey bee is the New Jersey State insect.

 

Better check with your town. Some, like my town of Closter have an ordinance banning bees.

 

 

My township bans rain.

 

I couldn't help myself, that just sounded silly

   

 

My township bans rain.

 

I couldn't help myself, that just sounded silly

Now I know where Closters Board of Health moved on to.

Now I know where Closters Board of Health moved on to.

The millionaires next door in Alpine must have complained. The "Closter honey Bee's" were flying over, and bothering them while they enjoyed their $100k backyard outdoor kitchens. Something had to be done. They should ban bicycle riding on ClosterDock rd. Every time I drive through Alpine into Closter, I almost unintentionally kill 50 idiots.

 

Alpine reidents never complained, it was the Closter residents on the Alpine boarder who raised the fuss.

Alpine reidents never complained, it was the Closter residents on the Alpine boarder who raised the fuss.

I could never live in Bergen county, I don't know how anyone can stand it there.