# Starting a Hive



## JohnnyRebel (Dec 23, 2014)

My wife and I are considering starting a bee hive where we live. I have talked to several Beekeeper Assoc. around the area and have learned a lot from them as well as books from the library (I am 25 and still like the library, unfortunately not many people my age do). My question is this....can you prevent swarming but also keep a bee count moderate. I only want one hive, which is enough for my wife and I, but I don't them to swarm or get large where I can't keep up with them. 

Thanks for any information.

Eric


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## FarmTechnician (Dec 25, 2014)

I read in several books that the best method to prevent swarming is to provide them with adequate space and regularly harvest the honey. Next year will be my first year keeping a hive, but we are looking to encourage swarming so I'll be doing exactly the opposite of this.


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## 1shotwade (Jul 9, 2013)

I don't know why you would not want them to swarm.It is a natural event. That's how they progress.I have caught swarms with as many as 9 queens in then. That's nine new colonies in the wild if they weren't caught. That's exactly what we need.Correct my figures if I'm wrong but I read somewhere years back that we have lost over 90% of our wild honeybees.Helping to correct that is the sole reason some of us have bees!This is the fifth year in a row that I have not opened my hives but they are still there and pollinating the area and swarming like they were meant to do.
If you are getting into bees to make a living off them then by all means do everything you can do to keep them from swarming,but at the same time be sure and feed them syrup and get in them every week and cut queen cells,feed all the medicines and do all the other things that makes it a "job" or you can just have bees and get your garden pollinated and maybe enough honey for your personal use and if the swarm it's not a big deal.
Just the way I look at things.

Wade


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

First off I recommend two colony's at least. Best way to prevent swarming is to make a few nuc boxes of bees each year and sell them, give them away, gift them.

 Al


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## johng (Feb 14, 2009)

I would also say start with at least two hives. It can be hard keeping just one hive going for any length of time. If you only have one hive and something goes wrong (which it will eventually) you are out of the bee business. But, if you have another hive you can use the resources to help the struggling one out. 

Now as far as swarming. That is going to be hard to stop if the hives do well. Splitting in the spring like Al suggest is probably your best bet for keeping them from swarming. Sell the splits since you only want a couple hives. Being in Fl. you won't have any trouble selling the splits. Swarming is not near as bad as you maybe imagining.


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## LittleRedHen (Apr 26, 2006)

If you do not wish to expand just let them swarm after a split. It will keep your number down. As long as it isnt your original hive then your hive won't be left empty


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## quilaho (Dec 29, 2012)

Reading your question, I see 2 ideals you are aiming for.

1) You want to keep it to a low amount of work.
2) You want to prevent swarming.

Unfortunately, those are 2 conflicting ideals.

Swam prevention involves dividing the hives in order to give the bees room thus suppressing the swarming urge. Dividing the hives produces more hives. Since you do not want to maintain more than you and your wife need, new homes for these hives will need to be found. None of that is hard but it still add quite a bit more effort to the enterprise.

Low work = low intervention. Low intervention means, among other things, not worrying about if the hives swarm. You're still adding boxes (assuming Langstroth / Warre equipment) but you are not dividing the brood colony early in the season to prevent the early seasoning swarming. Keep in mind that if this happens, you may not get a honey harvest that year or may just get a minimal one.

For your situation, I would recommend that you concentrate on low intervention and if they swarm, then they swarm. You then call one of you bee associations buddies to come collect the swarm (if you know where it's at). I also recommend you keep 2 hives. It's a standard best practice that everyone recommends. The reasons are many.


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