# Enable me!



## EnnisLakeFarm (Jul 18, 2010)

I really really want a couple of bee hives at some point in the future. At first my husband was all for it and I read all the books I could get my hands on. Now he has changed his tune and decided he doesn't like bees and doesn't want them on the property.
Any ideas on what I can say/do to change his mind? We live on an acre of land adjacent to a large field (owned by a really cranky lady that I am afraid to approach about putting hives on her land).
Alternately any ideas on how to approach the cranky/drunk lady?


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## stormwalker (Oct 27, 2004)

Well, first of all- let's establish how attached you are to said husband!
Second, if you ditched the husband, would cranky/drunk lady be happier?
There are many variables! LOL
Maybe if you brought your neighbor a nice bottle of wine, she would love to have a couple of bee skeps on her property!


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## EnnisLakeFarm (Jul 18, 2010)

I would like to keep the husband I think.  For now anyway. He keeps the bills paid.
I actually know very little about the neighbor lady. All I know is that she spends A LOT of time at the local bar, and she drives drunk up and down our road all day during hunting season to patrol her land. Making sure nobody is hunting there. A service guy (telephone) I know had to go on to her property last year and she yelled at him (even though she is the one who called in the trouble ticket.. go figure) I have never met her, and she would probably be much nicer to me (everyone loves Me! rincess but I am afraid to go on her property to meet her, and I don't go to the bar ever.


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## RedCricketFarm (Dec 8, 2011)

What are your husband's reservations, or reasons for not wanting bees on the property? We keep bees, and it seems that you could keep them in such a way that he might never even know they were there.

Better to be certain your property isn't an option before asking a neighbor you don't know very well, I think.


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## EnnisLakeFarm (Jul 18, 2010)

I think he is just afraid of them. He just built a sauna this year, and he thinks that if people are sitting outside with minimal clothing, that the bees will come and sting us. Even though it is pretty unlikely that we will be using the sauna all that much during the summer months, and even if we do, it would likely be after dark.
There are lots of people that keep bees here and they often put them out in the hay/wheat fields so he decided that I should go and find someone to let me do the same with my bees (thinking probably that we could make some money off of the deal for the pollinating properties)
I think he has visions of killer bee swarms in the yard really. We had a small wild bumble bee hive under the house this past summer (they didn't bother anyone - I think he actually forgot it was there when the weather got cold) and that is when he decided no bees on the property.


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## gracie88 (May 29, 2007)

> she drives drunk up and down our road all day during hunting season to patrol her land. Making sure nobody is hunting there.


 There you go, she needs bees to deter hunters  

Bees do not pollinate grass/wheat, whatever people are putting their bees out there for, it's not for that. You aren't going to make money for pollinating crops anyway, unless you have lots of hives. Is there a good spot for bees out of sight and sound of the house where they might feel less intrusive (out of sight out of mind)? Probably, your best bet is to find out exactly what bothers him now that didn't then, and problem-solve with him about it.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

If you just have an acre, get one hive and position it where it won't be easily seen from the road or by your neighbor. That ain't much land to keep the bees home so they'll also have to work your neighbor's land. Sweeten the old lady with a pint of honey as soon as she discovers them even if you have to buy it. She'll never know! 

Martin


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

We have 16 colonies of bees in our front and back yard. They are rarely around the house much. When they are around a lot it is when the milk weed in the front door garden blooms. They are flying about when we extract honey also but nothing to worry about as they are trying to find that honey they smell due to the hot knife taking caps off. 
I would venture to say you could lay out all day naked and not worry about honey bees, skitters on the other hand and low flying planes are.
Having the bees in the front yard have the benifit also of keeping sales persons and church nincompoops from knocking on our door. They like your hubby have unfounded fear.

As for the lady next door she doesn't pay your property taxes so if it is legals to keep bees in your area she can just contiune to drive drunk up and down the road.


 Al


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## EnnisLakeFarm (Jul 18, 2010)

Oh I am not worried about the drunk/cranky lady having issues with my someday bees, I was just thinking of her as a possibility because she has so much property that is right across the road from my house. Her house is way back there and you can't see it from my property (in fact I am not 100% sure of where it is).
I am thinking that I will just keep reading more bee related books/sites/magazines and I will just sneak a hive here when my DH isn't home and see how long it takes him to notice. Then when he does notice I will say see its no big deal they have been here for "x" amount of time and you didn't even know it. Here have some honey Honey! 
You have to order bees pretty early on right? I might be looking at next season >Sigh<


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## stormwalker (Oct 27, 2004)

Go talk to your neighbor!
Tell her about mead.
Make a friend!
Honey cures a multitude of ills!
Including loneliness!


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## EnnisLakeFarm (Jul 18, 2010)

I will try! I will give myself until this time next year to get it done. Whether it be persuading my husband or befriending the neighbor. And also to save up some money and tuck it away so if I have to sneak the bees in it won't show up in the pocket book (and also so it can't be used as a reason to not let me get them)


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

The hives don't have to be the usual white ones which can be spotted a mile away. A local beekeeper had those for years and often had a few vandalized or raided. Switched to brown and black top bar types last year and one has to be looking for them in order to spot them along the edge of a woods when driving by. 

Martin


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## EnnisLakeFarm (Jul 18, 2010)

Good to know Paquebot.

What do you suppose is a good target amount (money wise) for the complete beginner to shoot for to start up with two hives and appropriate supplies? I noticed one site sells a kit of two hives plus bees for just shy of $800. I'm not worried about where I am going to get stuff at this point, just looking for a rough estimate at this point so I can have a target to shoot for.


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Almost everyone around here gets their supplies from Lapp's which is about 20 miles away as the crow flies. They have 2-colony standard kits, less bees, for around $400 plus shipping. 

http://lappsbeesupplycenter.com/index_files/Page439.htm


Martin


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## RedCricketFarm (Dec 8, 2011)

We keep bees. People who visit don't know they're there until I point them out. They can be standing 10 feet from the hive and not notice them. Read up on how to protect the hive from the elements, and orient them properly and then find a place on your acre that fits, and that can't be seen. 

Have your hubby read the Beekeeping for Dummies book. It should remove most or all of his fears or objections (except for financial). 

Honey bees are known to forage far and wide - 2 miles or more. We almost never see our bees on our property, except when certain flowers are blooming heavily. 

Oh, and in Montana, if you're using the sauna in the winter (I'm guessing that's the most likely time,) your honey bees are going to be snug in the hive, not dive-bombing your hubby in his trunks!

Good luck. Bees are amazing.


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## Sunmo (Dec 29, 2004)

$800 is a little steep. Join a local bee keepers club. They may either have a local supplier or order in bulk from one of the larger supply companies.

Our club orders bees in April for about $65 a 3 pound box. When I started keeping bees, one of the guys in the club helped me get started for about $90 for two complete 2 deep hives. I think upwards of $400 would be a closer estimate, now-a-days for 2 complete hives.

We've been keeping bees for about 5 years. This year we had 16 hives. I have 4 grandkids. No one has ever been stung by a honey bee on my property (that doesn't include the times we go into the hives). Yellow jackets, ground hornets, stinging nettle, ticks, 2 bears that tore up a couple hives, coyotes, neighborhood dogs, feral cats are a problem, but not bees.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

Shop the on line catologs of the many different bee related supplys to get prices of equipment.
Joining the club is a very good Idea. a couple years ago one of the club members at our club was down sizing and sold complete 2 deep set up with the bees for 100.00 each. Then would sell 2 medium honey supers with draqwn comb for another 50.00 dollars.

I don't under stand my self why every one things you need to pay a bribe or what ever to keep bees on YOUR property. If it is legal to have them by law then the neighbours can just KMA.

Kelleysbees.com

Dadant.com

bushympountian.com

mannlakeltd.com

These are about the 4 biggest suppliers in this area.

 Al


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## tom j (Apr 3, 2009)

I have grand kids living with me ,, and they love to play right in front of my hives ,, I tell them not to play there that they might get stung ,, they just say we know ,, they got 3 stings playing there this summer last year none ,,and they play less then 6 feet from the hives , so I dont think he has much to worry about in the yard ... but then they all ways want to pet the drone ( the boy bees ,, they can not sting ) bees


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## EnnisLakeFarm (Jul 18, 2010)

Okay I am going to attempt to find a bee club, but as of yet am having no luck online. Been watching the local paper in case it is in there some time, but I doubt that there is one close to me. We don't have any rabbit clubs either in my neck of the woods. If I were the "start 'em up" type of person (which I am most definitely not!) I would start one of each. 

I opened up the conversation of bees again with my DH last night. Just lightly, and read him a couple of passages out of the "Beekeeping for Dummies" book. The ones about how docile honey bees are, and how the author rarely ever gets stung and how his family/neighbors/guests never have been stung by his bees, and also the passage about bees traveling in a several mile radius away from the hive (with emphasis on the above head height part). He seemed mildly interested  I will count that as a point for me!


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## Paquebot (May 10, 2002)

Looks like there's only one beekeeping club in Montana and that's in Kalispell if that's any help.

www.bees-on-the-net.com/montana-beekeeping-clubs.html

Martin


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## EnnisLakeFarm (Jul 18, 2010)

Thank you Paquebot, Kalispell is about a 5-6 hour drive from me.  That area gets all the cool stuff! :sob: 
We do have lots of beekeepers in the area, I suppose I will have to buck up and track them down and force them (nicely of course) to mentor me


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## Phantomfyre (Jul 1, 2004)

1st-year beekeeper here. My DH was apprehensive, too, but start studying, and then share all the cool info you share with him. That's what I did, and he warmed to the idea. Then I dragged him to a beekeeping class offered by a local beekeeper. Then I got the bees. And now he's absolutely hooked. He'll go stand by the hives and just watch them do their thing, fascinated. He loves to cook, and started cooking with honey. If your DH is into carpentry, get him to look into "experimenting" with building hives - there are so many options and ideas to explore. (Or you can save money by having him build standard equipment.) My DH is not the handyman type, but I am, so I built my own experimental vertical top-bar hives. (Sort of a Warre/Langstroth/top-bar hybrid.) They actually worked almost *too* well, and due to unforeseen events, I didn't have time to manage them like I needed to, and both of my brand-new colonies thrived and then swarmed. One did not recover and died out. The other raised a new queen on their own and are doing great again. (I lucked out with that, actually - the original queen was raising somewhat ornery bees, and the new queen's "kids" are calmer!) 

I had a neighbor or two worry about the bees, but then get really supportive once they were here and they realized that the bees are no threat. The lady that was the most concerned actually found a couple of bees in her yard on a cold day, that had ventured out and gotten too cold to make it back, and she actually scooped them up and brought them home, so I could put them back in the hive so they wouldn't die. It was really cute! You never know about people! 

As for putting them on your land vs. your neighbor's land, just put them on your acre. They'll fly where they need to forage. The hives don't take much space, and you can work around the hives without them fussing, easily to within 10-15 feet of the hives, even on "cranky" days. Except for seeing a lot more honeybees on various flowers around the yard, I wouldn't have even known my own hives existed. (I put them behind one of our barns - both because they were "out of the way" there, and the barn blocks the west wind and trees block the north winds, but they still get good southern exposure.) 

I'm puttering with a couple modifications to my bar design this winter, hoping to make things a bit easier on myself next year. Also building extra equipment so I can be ready to expand their space in a timely manner next year so they don't swarm again! That was my #1 lesson this year: have extra boxes/bars/etc. ready ahead of time!!! Also, don't mess with experimental hives unless you're willing to spend a lot of time tinkering, adjusting, thinking, etc. I love that kind of stuff, but a lot of people won't want to mess with what I've done, so standard equipment is the way to go if you're not the type to keep tinkering, and tinkering, and re-thinking, and more tinkering... 

My cucumbers have never done so well, I think in large part because there were plenty of pollinators handy! I had sooooo many cucs this year! Bottom line: get bees!


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## EnnisLakeFarm (Jul 18, 2010)

Thank you for the inspiration Phantomfyre! I am determined to get bees for the 2013 season. I am going to save up enough money for two hives and order them and the bees next December for my Christmas present to me. 
I am a by the book type of girl for the most part so I will be going with the traditional hives (that and while my husband likes to build stuff, he is NOT a handyman/carpenter by any stretch of the word. Shh don't tell him I said that)


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