Urban Beekeeping

How you can easily begin beekeeping at home, no matter where you live!

Table Of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1: What is Urban Beekeeping?

Chapter 2: Bees as Nature’s Pollinating Machine

Chapter 3: Why Get Into Urbanbeekeeping

Chapter 4: Getting Started

Chapter 5: Keeping It Going

Chapter 6: Colony Collapse Disorder: The Bane of Beekeepers Everywhere

Conclusion

Introduction

I want to thank you and congratulate you for downloading the book,“Urban Beekeeping”.

This book contains helpful information about beekeeping, and how you can do it no matter where you live!

You will soon learn everything you need to know to begin beekeeping from home. In the book, you will discover different types of bees, what equipment you need to begin, and how to care for your bees throughout different seasons.

While it can be expensive to start, beekeeping can be a very rewarding hobby, and can even provide an income.

This book will explain to you all the tips and techniques that will allow you to successfully keep bees and harvest honey, even if you live in the city!

Good luck with your beekeeping journey, I hope this book is of some assistance to you!

Thanks again for downloading this book, I hope you enjoy it!

Chapter 1: What Is Urban Beekeeping?

Everyone’s familiar with beekeeping by itself, even more so with the recent rise in urban beekeeping. This book will help provide you with the necessary knowledge to start your own urban bee farm.

First, let’s define what beekeeping is. Beekeeping, or apiculture, is the act of taking care of bee colonies. It has been around for centuries, and has evolved through the ages. However, the notion of urban beekeeping is somewhat new.

Urban beekeeping is apiculture done in the city, or a built up area. It’s as simple as that. Of course, there’s a lot more to urban apiculture than meets the eye. This chapter aims to introduce you to the idea of maintaining a colony right in your own backyard.

Urban Beekeeping: What is it all about?

Urban beekeeping, as mentioned before, is the act of maintaining a bee colony in an urban environment. For most people, this means doing it in the city. However, urban beekeeping is now a loosely-used term that means keeping bees in locations that are not usually associated with beekeeping: rooftops in cities, vacant lots, backyards, or anywhere you can set-up a small apiary or bee farm.

Normally, known apiarists or bee keepers are the only ones who engage in urban beekeeping. But you don’t need to be a formal bee keeper to start an urban bee farm. Anyone can put up their own bee farm, although it will require a lot of careful planning, as well as ample space. But don’t worry, a large space is not required for a bee farm. There’s a big difference between a farm and a yard, and urban beekeeping only demands a yard.

Why people do it

There are a lot of reasons why people engage in urban beekeeping, which will be discussed in detail in a later chapter. But for now, here are the reasons why you should start your own:

You have access to your own supply of fresh honey.

You can help your community’s flora (basically flowers, trees and other crops) blossom thanks to your bees.

You can provide people in your neighborhood with vital information about bees and honey.

You get an inexpensive hobby (even if it is quite expensive to start a bee farm).

You can also help with mitigating Colony Collapse Disorder (more on this in a separate chapter).

You can make money out of urban beekeeping: honey, beeswax, and even a fresh supply of bees for other bee keepers.

There are more reasons to engage in becoming an urban apiarist, and this e-book will go through the most common.

Getting started

You have a variety of options when starting beekeeping. Of course, there is a need to sort out a lot of things before you can look at becoming an urban beekeeper. Here are a few things to consider:

Costs (it’s expensive to go into beekeeping, but only in the beginning)

What kind of plants are around

The people in your neighborhood

Space for the hive

Your interest in being a beekeeper

Laws in your area about beekeeping

Chapter 2: Bees as Nature’s Pollinating Machine

While a lot of insects help Mother Nature with her purpose of spreading flora around the world, bees are nature’s most common way of spreading the love, so to speak. Here are a few facts you might not know about bees:

There are 25,000 known species of bees around the world, but not all of them are fit for bee keeping.

Not all bees “swarm” – more on this later.

Bees can have long or short lives depending on their species and role in the colony, or lack thereof.

Bees can build their nests anywhere – literally.

Bees can be a tell-tale sign that something’s wrong with the environment.

Female bees do all the work, hence they are bigger – male bees are freeloaders (no offense to men or women).

Bees can see colors from the ultraviolet spectrum – it’s how they find flowers to pollinate.

There are more things to know about bees, but this book is largely dedicated to urban beekeeping. If you want to know more, there are resources available at your fingertips.

Types of Bees

In general, there are three types of bees: honey bees, bumblebees (no, not the robot from Transformers), and solitary bees.

Solitary bees, as the name implies, are bees that typically live alone. Typically, because there are certain species that build their nests close to each other. They can still be found in groups, and share roles, but generally live separate and never swarm. There are different sub-types of solitary bees:

Leafcutter Bees and Mason Bees. If you’ve ever heard of a leafcutter ant, then you should have no problem knowing what a leafcutter bee is. It’s a bee that builds its nest using leaves. Their nests can be found in hollow stems or holes in trees. Mason bees on the other hand are pretty much the same except they use mud to build their nests in any crack or crevice available – hence the term “mason”.

Digger and Carpenter Bees. Digger bees make their nests in soil. They dig, but don’t live underground. Carpenter bees, on the other hand, make their nests by boring holes in wood and using small amounts of wood chips to form the individual cells of their nest.

Mining Bees. As the name implies, these bees mine their way through earth and build nests underground.

Take note that though you can tend to such bees, as beekeeping usually involves honey bees it’s an uncommon practice to tend to such bees because of their solitary nature. These bees can fend for themselves, but if you’d like to still have them in your bee farm all you need is to set-up a place for them. Solitary bees are not aggressive, and only sting if provoked. Since they don’t swarm, there’s little chance of being stung by multiple bees. Although they are great pollinators, solitary bees do not produce anything that can be used or consumed by humans, which is why so few people take care of them. They are mainly taken care of by hobbyists who have an extended interest in bees.

Bumblebees belong to the same family as honey bees, but they don’t produce honey for human consumption or anything else of use to humans. What they can do for people is to pollinate a whole range of flowers, which will help their relatives the honey bees. Bumblebees live in small colonies of 120 to 2oo, although numbers can be as low as 50 or as high as 400. They are typically a social type of bee, although there are certain species that are considered as parasites, also known as “cuckoo bumblebees”.

Honey bees are what people normally see in bee farms and urban bee farms. They live in large colonies, existing as a superorganism, or an organized group of individuals functioning as a unit. Honey bee colonies are so efficient and organized that even if you take out one of them, another bee can come in and do the same job. There are several types of honey bees:

Italian Bee. As the name implies, it comes from Italy. Italian bees are prized for their industriousness as well as their resistance to disease. They are also very fertile yet reluctant to swarming. They are excellent honey producers, owing to the fact that they generally produce a darker honey than other varieties of honey bees. Apart from that, they are also aesthetically pleasing to most bee keepers as Italian bees are lightly colored. This breed was the first one to be introduced to the US, and remains one of the favorites for all beekeepers.

German Bee. Darker in color, they are also more defensive yet a bit more susceptible to diseases than their Italian counterparts, though they still swarm as much as Italian bees. They are a favorite amongst those who have bee farms in colder climates, because of their ability to survive long, cold winters.

Carniolan Bee. It’s no secret that if you have more producers to start with, you’ll be better off as a bee keeper, especially if you want to make a profit. Carniolan bees specialize in having the most explosive spring buildup amongst all the other types of honey bees. Carniolan bees are also great honeycomb builders, as well as being very docile and are less prone to robbing other nests of their honey. However, they are prone to swarming which does not bode well for urban beekeepers that want better honey. This particular stock is black in color.

Caucasian Bee. Once a very popular breed, this stock’s (a term that beekeepers used to characterize a certain group of bees) main selling point was its long tongue, which gives it access to nectars from flowers that other bees can’t reach. They’re moderately colored, are extremely docile, and are capable of producing good honey crops. They also produce a large amount of propolis, also known as bee glue. This particular product will be discussed in a later chapter.

Buckfast Bee. This stock was born out of necessity. Created by Brother Adams, a monk at Buckfast Abbey in Devon, England, he bred this stock in response to the endoparasitic tracheal mite Acarapis woodi, once called acarine disease. These bees are known to be good housekeepers (preventing the spread of disease), thrive in the conditions of the British Isles, and still produce a good honey crop. Buckfast bees are moderately defensive, yet if left unchecked can become fiercely defensive.

Russian Bee. The Russian bee, as its name suggests, comes from Russia and was imported in the US to combat an outbreak of the ectoparasite Varroa destructor. They brood only during times of nectar and pollen flow, and are known to be good housekeepers. It’s a good choice for those who like to have bees that can produce a good yield in bee products yet still have resistance to most diseases. They perform particularly well when the area they are housed in does not have any other stocks.

Though there are more types of honey bees, these are by far the top choices for all bee keepers.

Telling them apart

Of course, all this information would be useless without a way to tell them apart. Here are the things to look at if you want to tell the types (solitary bee, bumblebee and honey bee) apart:

Colonies. Honey bees live in large colonies, typically numbering between 50,000 and 60,000 workers. Bumblebees only live with an average of 120 workers, while solitary bees are never found in a colony, although they might build nests next to each other.

Honey. Solitary bees don’t produce honey. Bumblebees make honey, but only for their queen, so it’s too little for bee farms. Honey bees make more honey than they can live with.

The queen. Honey bees and bumblebees both have queens, solitary bees do not. A honey bee queen typically lives for 2 to 3 years, laying thousands of eggs; a bumblebee queen lives for a much shorter time, and lays significantly less eggs.

Swarming. Only honey bees swarm; bumblebees and solitary bees do not. Why? Because there’s not that many to be called to one.

Nests. Only honey bees are known to live in hives, though in the wild they build nests. Bumblebees and solitary bees never exist in hives, since they are a human construct.

With this much information, you can pretty much tell one bee from another. However, if you need more help you can invest in an ID chart, which will help you in identifying bees based on the traits mentioned here and much, much more. You can also talk to other beekeepers so they can let you in on their techniques in identifying bees. After all, there’s no better way than to learn from an expert first-hand.

Chapter 3: Why Go Into Urban Beekeeping?

Now that you know all about bees, it’s time to talk about beekeeping! To review, beekeeping (or apiculture) is the act of maintaining a bee colony. Urban beekeeping is, essentially, beekeeping done in an urban setting. But as mentioned before, it does not have to involve being in the city. Urban beekeeping is now a loosely-used term to define any sort of beekeeping that’s not in a formal setting, i.e. a full-size bee farm.

As with any undertaking, there has to be a method behind the madness. It’s easy to go into urban beekeeping, but a reason to do it will make your path much more laid out. Here are 10 reasons to go into urban beekeeping:

You have access to your own supply of fresh honey. Most urban beekeepers also happen to be people who consume honey on a daily basis. With people being more health conscious, being able to produce your own supply becomes a need especially if you put in a lot of money on buying honey weekly. Besides, it’s best to actually see your honey being made right in front of your eyes. Seeing bees hard at work makes their honey taste so much sweeter, or better depending on your tastes.

You can help your community’s flora blossom thanks to your bees. It’s no secret that bees are one of, if not nature’s greatest pollinators. With bees around, it’s much easier for people with gardens to improve their yield thanks to your bees “spreading the love”.

You can provide people in your neighborhood with vital information about bees and bee products. There’s a lot of buzz around bees and honey in general, but did you know you can get a lot more products out of bees? Here’s a short list of products you can get from bees:

Bee pollen

Beeswax

Propolis

Royal Jelly

There’s so much more that can be gotten from bees, but as far as an urban bee farm is concerned these are the most common. Apart from giving your community access to information about bee products, you can also talk to them about bees, especially if they’re apprehensive about going near your house because of you urban bee farm.

You get an inexpensive hobby that will keep you busy. If you often find yourself with nothing to do from spring to fall, then beekeeping might just be the perfect hobby for you. Yes, it was mentioned that starting out an urban bee farm is expensive, but it more than pays for itself after a while. However, if you really want to save, one of the chapters in this book will talk about natural beekeeping, something that urban bee farms can take advantage of.

You can help in mitigating Colony Collapse Disorder. Colony Collapse Disorder, better known as CCD, is a phenomenon where worker bees abruptly disappear. It’s a devastating hit to beekeepers everywhere, and urban beekeeping is seen as an alternative to not just stem the tide but to actually help bees rise out of the ashes. More on this in the closing chapter of this book.

You can make money out of urban beekeeping: honey, beeswax, and even a fresh supply of bees for other bee keepers. Beekeepers have been cashing in from the list of bee products listed in reason number 3. You can sell everything that bees make, from honey (arguably the one that’s going to rake in the most money) to beeswax and even a surplus of bees; you can sell bee products to your community which will in turn help you to further cultivate your bee farm. There’s even money to be had if you want to simply rent out your bees for pollinating your neighbor’s garden.

You can give bees some much-needed rest. Yes, bees are one of nature’s hardest workers, and humans have been exploiting that for thousands of years. However, large-scale bee farms have turned them into something short of livestock: pollinating a single crop, restricting natural bee behaviors, and simply turning them into work horses. Urban beekeepers can help change that by studying bees in their natural state, yet still producing the yield they expect to make a living out of beekeeping.

You can make homemade gifts. So you’re not so much into selling bee products? Not to worry. Simply giving fresh, homemade honey to your friends and relatives is satisfying enough.

You can use beekeeping as a form of relaxation. It’s hard to imagine, but yes there are people who feel relaxed when they hear the steady buzzing of a swarm of bees, especially when they know they can just walk into the swarm without fear of being stung.

There are still many more reasons to go with, like being an advocate for honey, bee venom therapy, or simply sparking a community interest in bees. Whatever your reason is, just be sure to stick to it and your urban bee farm is sure to prosper.

Chapter 4: Getting Started

You now know something about bees. You also have your reason to go into urban beekeeping. It looks like the only thing left to do is to tell you how to get started in beekeeping. So, without further ado, here’s what to do to start your own urban bee farm:

Research local beekeeping regulations and ordinances. Like anything, it’s best to talk with authorities first. You don’t want to start a bee farm in your neighborhood (city or suburban) without first knowing the laws in your area. There are certain cities that ban beekeeping, so if you live in one of these cities it’s best to steer clear of any kind of beekeeping. Of course, there are a lot of areas that welcome urban beekeepers, both in the US and around the world. Be mindful of nuisance laws, though, as they might include bees. Just check with the authorities before you get started and you should have nothing to worry about.

Talk to your neighbors. Once you take care of the authorities, your next move is to see if it’s okay with the neighbors. Most people are okay with bees as long as you assure them they won’t get hurt. There are bee stocks used in bee farming that are only defensive if provoked or left unchecked, like Italian bees, Caucasian bees, and Buckfast bees. By giving your neighbors information about bees, they can feel more at ease with a bee farm in the neighborhood. If that doesn’t work, a free jar of honey might just do the trick. Who knows, they might also become interested in urban beekeeping, which can prompt you to set up a beekeeping community (if there’s none in your area).

Look for, and join, a local beekeeping club. Urban beekeeping clubs may not be the hottest thing in the market, but there are a lot of them out there. Look around and you’re sure to find a beekeeping club that’s willing to take in new members. These people will be your best source of information for urban beekeeping, apart from this book. You’ll be able to get everything from them: from starting an urban bee farm to making money out of your bee farm. There might even be people who are kind enough to tell you where to get a swarm of bees, if not actually give you one.

Get a gentle stock. Since you’re not secluded in any way whatsoever, gentle bees are the best choice for an urban bee farm. Stocks like Italian bees and Buckfast bees are best to start with since they are docile, produce a good honey crop, and are fairly resistant to disease. More importantly, it’s best to start with two swarms instead of one. That way, you have a back-up swarm in case the first one dies out or collapses.

Go for used bee hives. If you’ve talked to, and hopefully joined, your local beekeeping club, chances are you’ve also been talking to them about getting beekeeping equipment. While most people view new things as great things, it’s always best to start off with used equipment. Other urban beekeepers are bound to have a spare hive or two for those just starting out, so go on and ask for them. But don’t stop at hives. Ask around for other things you need to start your urban beekeeping escapades.

Fence in your yard. You don’t want anything, much less anyone, disturbing your bees. That’s when they become a nuisance. Of course, you can’t control your neighbors or anyone else in the community. The next best thing: build a fence. It not only keeps your bee farm away from harm, it also becomes an added layer of protection for your home.

These six steps are all you need to start your own bee farm. Well, that and completing this list of beekeeping equipment:

Bees. It’s not a bee farm without the bees. The best stocks have already been presented in Chapter 2, so all that’s left to talk about is where to get them. There’s really no need to fuss about where to find them, since there are a lot of beekeeping stores around. However, if you really want to save money, you need to talk to your local beekeeping club. Usually, members get their bees from a trusted source, so talking to them will give you access to that source. There might also be beekeepers who will lend you a swarm or two, especially if you know a large-scale beekeeper.

Hives. This is where bees do their thing. Even if you have bees, they won’t be of much use if they don’t have a place to make honey. Here are the components of a hive:

Hive body and cover. This is where the bees live and store their honey. A hive body comes in three sizes: deep, medium, and shallow. A lot of experts say two deep bodies are good for living quarters, while multiple shallow bodies are best for storing honey supers. Medium bodies tend to get heavy, although they allow more room for honey supers. You’ll also need to get 2 covers: a wooden inner cover and a weatherproof outer cover.

Frames. Frames are the structures where bees create the honeycomb. There are a lot of types, although plastic and wood frames are the more practical choices.

Bottom Board. As the name implies, it goes at the bottom of your hive. But don’t count them out. Bottom boards are as vital as the body, cover and frame of the hive.

Protective clothing. Bee suits are a necessity for those just starting out. As far as necessary parts, a veil is always a priority. If you’re not too confident (as most people are), it’s best to start out with overalls. As you become more confident, you can go in based on how comfortable you are with your clothes. There are people who can even go in with just a veil, but it’s still best to go with standard beekeeping clothing.

Smoker. This is a beekeeper’s best friend. Bees will sting you, regardless of how docile they are. It’s a defensive measure, and you’re essentially a home invader in the beginning. Practice keeping your smoker lit and maintaining your smoker as often as possible. As for fuel, pine shavings are best, although anything that can cough up smoke will do.

Hive tool. It’s that sharp, pry-bar like tool that beekeepers use to separate and remove frames from a hive.

Feeder. You need one to start with, since bees don’t have anything else to eat. You can get rid of it once you’ve established your urban bee farm.

Uncapping knife. It removes the wax covering that bees use to keep the honey away from water. Large-scale farmers use a heated one that can be plugged in, but a long flat knife that’s warmed up will do just fine.

Fence. As mentioned in the steps, it’s protection for your farm. Investing in a fence is better than having to buy hive after hive.

Extractor and container. Extractors are often shared by beekeepers, since it’s far too expensive for every urban beekeeper to have one exclusively for them. Containers are just as you would normally think: it’s where the honey goes. Anything will do, although it’s best to go with a jar or a bucket that has a spout for easy transfer of honey.

As mentioned earlier, try and get these items cheaper from a beekeeping club or similar. If you can’t find items locally, search online, there are plenty of stores that will happily ship you the components you need.

Now that you know what you need, all that’s left is to go out and find a spot to put up your urban bee farm. This can mean anything from a rooftop to your backyard, or even that vacant lot no one seems to be interested in. Of course, it’s best to start with a place that you can easily go to so you can keep an eye on your bees. If you don’t have a place to do so and you live near a bee farm, you can ask them for a spot. You’ll also need to consider the environment you live in. Walk around and look at what flowers are around the area where you want to set up your urban bee farm. If there aren’t that many flowers, it may be better to set up a garden before you go all out with a bee farm. After all, bees and plants go hand in hand.

Chapter 5: Keeping It Going

Now that you have your urban bee farm up and running, you’re probably thinking that’s all you have to do. Yes, it doesn’t take much to keep a bee farm going, but that doesn’t mean you should slack off. Beekeeping, whether large scale or urban, is a year-round affair. Here are the tasks you need to remember to keep your urban bee hive up and running, split season by season:

Spring

This is the time to start a new hive. If you’re just starting out, make sure you do this every spring. You’ll need to get new bees as well as make or build a new hive.

Spring is also the time to harvest the honey your bees made from the previous year (if you have an established hive). If flowers are blooming, it’s also time to harvest honeycombs that were not used during winter.

Other things you can do: address health issues, requeen the hive (which involves taking the old queen and introducing a new one), adding more room, and any other tasks you don’t do during other seasons, like feeding.

Summer

Harvest honey from your hives, new or established.

Just enjoy watching them work. Summer is the time when bees can take care of themselves.

Keep them in check in case you spot any problems.

Autumn

Harvest honey. Yes, you’re bound to do it every season, although this time is the best since honey production went at its peak during summer.

Ensure the hive has enough honey for the winter. 70 pounds is a good standard to follow.

Medicate. Winter is coming, so making sure your bees are disease-free before the cold comes in is crucial.

Mouse guards. No mice are allowed in bee hives in the first place, so this is a necessary measure.

Adequate Ventilation. Bees keep themselves warm in the winter by clustering. Make sure there’s enough ventilation to keep the temperature relatively the same throughout the hive.

Close-up the hive. Ventilation is key, but so is making sure cold air from outside can’t freely go into your hive. A solid bottom board should help you with this.

Winter

Ensure your colony is well-prepared before winter comes. Tar paper is a popular choice among beekeepers, as well as a heavy-duty plastic bag lined with R-19 insulation.

Make sure all treatments are complete.

That’s about the extent of what you have to do to keep your hive going. Just follow these tasks and you’re bound to have a happy colony of bees buzzing in your yard.

Chapter 6: Colony Collapse Disorder - The Bane of Beekeepers Everywhere

This chapter will talk about the history, causes, signs and symptoms of Colony Collapse Disorder, as well as what you can do to prevent this from striking your colony.

What is Colony Collapse Disorder?

Colony Collapse Disorder is a phenomenon wherein the abrupt disappearance of work bees are observed from a bee colony or hive.  This phenomenon was referred to with other names including: autumn collapse, disappearing disease, fall dwindle disease, May disease, and spring dwindle. It was formally called Colony Collapse Disorder in 2006. Beekeepers in Europe likewise observed the same thing.

When did it start?

Though it was only called CCD in 2006, CCD cases have been popping up as early as 1869. During this time, it became known as one of the following: disappearing disease, spring dwindle, May disease, autumn collapse, and fall dwindle disease. It was only called a disorder when it was proved that it was not actually a disease as well as not being completely seasonal. Other years of CCD reports where in 1918, 1919, 1965, and between 1972 and 2006.

Possible Causes

Though still largely unknown, things linked to CCD include malnutrition, pathogens, inadequate immune systems, mites, fungus, pesticides, several beekeeping practices (use of antibiotics and long-distance transportation of hives), as well as electromagnetic radiation. US groups like the Colony Collapse Disorder Working Group as well as the USDA have been hard at work trying to find a way to ultimately eliminate CCD.

Signs and Symptoms

Signs that your colony has been struck with CCD include the following, occurring at the same time:

Capped broods in colonies that have been abandoned.  Remember that bees wait for all capped broods to hatch before the abandon a hive. 

Food stores which are either not immediately taken by other bees or are attacked yet with a noticeable delay.

A queen bee, the presence of which rules out the natural death of the hive.   When the queen bee is still present, CCD is considered as one of the reasons for the hive’s condition.

Precursors to the final collapse may also include the following:

Not enough work bees to maintain the brood

Workforce is largely made up of young adult bees

Reluctance in consuming provided feed

Preventing CCD

Now that you know the basics of CCD, here’s how you can help:

Become a beekeeper. Yes, it’s the best way to help fend off CCD. More bees means more chances for your bee population to live.

Keep colonies strong by practicing the best management practices, including the regular tasks mentioned in Chapter 5.

Replace the old comb with new foundation yearly or every two years. This minimizes residual chemicals in the old wax.

Avoid inducing stress to your colonies (again, focus on the tasks from chapter 5 to do this).

Monitor Varroa mite populations, as they are often cited as one of the causes.

Avoid using chemicals in your garden and on your lawn. Better yet, convince your neighbors to do the same.

Establish a bee-friendly garden. Like humans, bees are healthy if they get good nutrition.

There are more ways to help out bees in their battle against CCD, but these seven are what you can do as an urban beekeeper. With any luck, and more research, bees will get back on their feet, helping the world become a better place.

Conclusion

Thank you again for downloading this book! 

I hope this book was able to help you learn more about urban beekeeping, and how you can get started.

The next step is to put this information to use, and start your bee farm!

Bee keeping can be an enjoyable, and rewarding hobby. It may have some high costs to begin, but can be well worth it in the long run!

Good luck with your beekeeping journey, and I hope this book was of some service to you!

Finally, if you enjoyed this book, please take the time to share your thoughts and post a review on Amazon.  It’d be greatly appreciated!

Thank you and good luck!