Setting up a beehive is relatively easy after my beekeeping courses and reading beekeeping books: Beekeeping for Dummies and The Backyard Beekeeper. Being a good neighbor includes doing as little all I can to reduce the honeybee/neighbor interaction. Placing the beehive in the southeast position is best. I want it away from my neighbors as to allow the bees a more constant flight pattern for both coming and going from the hive. I have been beekeeping for more than 15 years, I am also proud and privileged to be the Present of the American Apitherapy Society.
People's reaction to bees and beekeeping in unpredictable. Education is needed. A few in the community are excited and enthusiastic, some may not even care, and there are some who strongly object for one reason or another. A little talk will go a long way. Some may be allergic and that might be their main concern. Unlike wasps, yellow jackets, and bumblebees, honeybees hardly sting unless seriously provoked. The honeybees of today are more docile than twenty years ago. Italian honeybees are very docile. It is true that a few people will have a life threatening reaction from a bee sting, but the percentage is very low. I will always have an EpiPen in my habitat. If anyone has a serious allergy to an insect bite, that individual should have their own EpiPen/ Auvi-Q. The typical bee sting is a slight red reaction at the bite site with some itching two to three days afterwards. This can happen with any insect bite. I am more concerned over spider bites than any bee sting. Since I want to have a real relationship with my bees I have placed their hive not in direct sunlight, and always have a water supply near by I have a Koi pond in the back which the bees love
Warning signs can be posted for your neighbor's protection. These signs are not to scare anyone but to notify them. Signs may also inform people in the community about saving the environment.
All of us have temperaments including the neighbor who doesn't understand, and so do the bees. I have learned to examine the bees on warm sunny days and never in the cold rain. I will be gentle opening the cover. Bees should remain docile especially if smoked. If I get stung I will feel bad, as within 48 hours or less the bee that stung me will die. I have been taught to always keep my bee suit clean especially after a sting . I didn't understand the logic at first, but I have learned that venom left on the suit after a sting could be a warning sign for the colony of bees that I am a threat and cause other bees to sting. Honeybees will not deliberately sting you unless you are provoking them while they are foraging or try to kill them.
I will always be there for my bees and my neighbors. Not only are bees needed in our community but this is a way for many flowering plants to continue to flourish since bees are the major pollinators on Earth.
It is also a way to give back to Mother Earth.
Just think of this--free honey for your neighbors as long as you protect the bees with enough honey for the winter months.
If you inclined to find out about apitherapy join me May 19-21, 2023 at the American Apitherapy Society Conference in New Jersey www.apitherapy.org
Until tomorrow…