Here at Liberty Bell Beekeepers, we are committed to keeping honeybees as healthy and strong as possible. They are an invaluable resource to millions and millions of people. They provide pollination services to huge agricultural industries from almonds to citrus fruits, and of course, your backyard gardens as well.

Beekeeping is an amazing hobby, but not one to just jump into without a plan. Costs can be considerable, but with a little bit of help from a local mentor like myself, you can find ways to keep bees without draining your wallet! If you have a good plan, your experience will be fun, affordable, and delicious! You’ll be bottling honey, and making candles before you know it! But, knowing about the bees is the most crucial part. If you’re not interested in learning about the bees themselves, you’re better off just watching videos. Beekeeping requires some work!

In keeping honeybees, we are able to get an inside look at these amazing creatures’ world, and see how they care for their young, provide resources for their colony and queen, and manage to fend off pests, predators, and diseases. The honeybee, as well as native species of bees and other pollinating insects, face a whole long list of dangers throughout their life. The use of herbicides and pesticides has taken a huge toll on pollinators, a toll we can barely begin to calculate.

The good news is, you can help! Stop using neonicotinoids (Round Up) for weed control, let the dandelions live! They provide a huge boost for the bees in the early spring. Plan for a wildflower garden in your yard, or in containers if like me, you are in an urban area. Native wildflowers bring color to your landscape all year, while providing much needed resources for those native pollinators, as well as birds, amphibians, reptiles, and other insects that keep your local ecosystem healthy and happy.

Keeping bees is very location specific. Even within the same town or city, your circumstances can be very different from your friends and neighbors, so you’ll need to be observant of your local conditions like available resources the bees need to be successful. Some things hold true though. Learning all about the bees themselves, and not just beekeeping, is so very important. That information is the foundation, and without it, you’ll encounter so much more unnecessary stress and anxiety.

So do your research! Learn about the bees! And get ready for a whole lot of fun!