My Favorite Part of Beekeeping

Meet my friend Bob (not his real name). I met Bob at a beekeeping meeting over a year ago. He was just getting into beekeeping and needed an extra hand. I told Bob I was glad to help. Because truth be known, I actually enjoy helping other beekeepers more than keeping my own bees. And that's saying a lot because I love beekeeping!

Bob got into beekeeping because his granddaughter was interested and it was an opportunity for him to spend some time with her. The first time I went over to his house to look at his bees, his granddaughter was there. I quickly learned she knew a lot about bees. Before I could point out something she might be interested in, she already told us both what it was. I was so impressed!

Bob and I have had some interesting experiences together. Despite the fact that he's in his 80's, he is just as active as anyone I know. In fact, during one visit last year I asked Bob what he had been doing over the summer. He said: "Oh, I went skydiving with my grandson. It was something he wanted to do for his graduation so I said, 'Why not!'" I sure admire his sense of adventure.

Originally Bob had two hives, but one day he called me and said: "One of my hives is empty." So I asked him: "Do you see any bees at all?" He paused for a moment and then said, "Actually they are all balled up in my tree. Now what do I do?"

I told Bob, "I have bad news and good news. The bad news is it appears your hive has swarmed. But the good news is, they didn't leave your yard! When a honey bee colony swarms, it takes 60% of the bees and the original queen and they look for new home. This is actually their natural reproductive cycle. They find a home. In that home they increase the population of bees until they run out of space. At that point they swarm and 60% of the colony leaves with the original queen while the other 40% stay back and raise a new queen from an egg the original queen laid before she left. Thus, the one hive now becomes two. That's bee reproduction!

Now back to Bob's dilemma. I was out of town at the time, so all I could do was give instructions. I told Bob to take his empty hive box and set it under the swarm in the tree. Once in place, I instructed him to shake the limb holding the swarm so all the bees would fall into the hive box. Once the queen is in the hive, all the bees will march right in. Amazingly, it worked like a charm!

Now you may be wondering: "Doesn't it make the swarm angry to shake the tree like that?" The answer is: "No". Because before the bees swarm from their original hive, they gorge themselves with honey. The need food for the journey so they can be quite lethargic. Honey drunk, you might say. And once they enter the new home you provided, everyone is happy. After all, that's what they were looking for in the first place.

But that's not the best story with my friend Bob. Once day he asked me to come help him with his bees. He needed some advice and I was glad to help. It was in the fall and bees can be a little spicy during that time of year. They are storing up resources for winter and they are not real fond of intruders. So the bees were active around the hive, but it wasn't too bad. We just needed to make sure they were in good shape going into the cold winter months.

The next think I know, Bob says, "I think I have a bee in my veil." And originally, I wasn't too concerned. Anytime bees are active and they fly around your face, it can feel like they are in your veil. Chances are, they're not. So I told Bob to step away and I'll take care of the bees. He pulled his veil off but still seemed bothered. He said, "Todd, can you take a look? I think there is a bee in my ear."

Notice I didn't write an exclamation point. Because 86 year old Bob was as a cool as a cucumber. Meanwhile, I'm freaking out!!! (Yes, it deserves all three exclamation points.) I said, "It's ON your ear?" And he replied, "No, its IN my ear. I can hear it buzzing."

So I looked in Bob's ear and I could not see any evidence of a bee. But he assured me, "It's in there!" He then went inside the house and said, "I have an idea". Again, just as calm and collected as he could be. Meanwhile I put the hive back together trying not to vomit inside my veil from anxiety.

I then go inside the house and he says, "Well, she was in there. I poured alcohol down my ear canal and then turned my head and she slipped right out." And no, the bee never stung him. Not once!

So now you know why I love helping others. It's always an adventure! Now, it's usually not nearly as exciting as that particular adventure, but still lots of fun. Helping other beekeepers continues to be the highlight of my beekeeping journey. I think it resonates with me because it reflects the heart of Jesus. In the apostle Paul's final visit to Ephesus, he reminded the elders:

“In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ” (Acts 20:35, NASB95)

It is my desire to follow His example. And helping other beekeepers is just one way to do that.