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Author Topic: few beekeepers under 50  (Read 32861 times)

Offline Scadsobees

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #100 on: February 22, 2008, 02:35:31 pm »
I'm 57. Five years ago I was "outstanding in my field" looking up at one of my blossoming cherry trees and noticed there were no bees flitting from flower to flower. Now, I LOVE cherries and became concerned that I might not have a crop that year. I

I had a similar experience...after 2 years of tons of cherry blooms and very few cherries, I got the bees.  Over the next two or three years the trees managed to produce soo many cherries that half of the branches broke off!!
Rick

Offline beemaster

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #101 on: February 22, 2008, 04:40:18 pm »
Indy and BabyPhatt:

I love your stories and your spark into beekeeping. Thanks for sharing.

This August, I turn 50, thus join the SENIOR TOUR of beekeeping - I just can't figure where to get my 10% senior discount at - lol.

So I'll enjoy the 49th year of my life and sail into the future, bringing many many friends with me  ;) I'll see 50 when it get gets here, tell it to take its time  :-P

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Offline KES

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #102 on: February 22, 2008, 05:56:14 pm »
I just started keeping bees last fall and I'm 41.

Offline sarafina

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #103 on: February 23, 2008, 08:19:34 pm »
This is my first year and I am 49.  I have more free time now that my oldest son is on his own and I only have the 13-yo boy at home now.  I decided a few years ago that I would need bees in Arkansas when we retired to pollinate the apple trees I wanted.  We just bought a house last year after renting for a few years and I realized I didn't need to wait to start this fascinating hobby!

Offline Cindi

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #104 on: March 08, 2008, 09:40:48 am »
i'll be starting my first hives at age 19. 

Nate, I just noticed when you posted about the Brazil Walnut tree being specific gravity heavier than water, that you haven't yet been officially welcomed to our forum.  You have not been "officially welcomed", hee, hee, glad you found us, tell us of your experiences with the bees, anything about you is always interesting too, tell us what you are up to and sorry for the late welcome!!!

You are one of our young people interested in keeping bees.  That is so cool when such youngsters (hee, hee, smiling) like you get that interest in the bees.  You will see that the bees have a magical attraction, we are drawn to them and once you know stuff about them, you want to learn more, you become under the spell of the honeybee, without a question of a doubt.

Nate, enjoy your time here, it is a great place to make new friends, learn and learn some more, ask all the questions that you feel you need to, to make yourself understand about the honeybees. No question is ever considered irrelevant or dumb, all questions are good questions.  And most of all, every beeekeeper in this world did not start out with that head full of information about the bees, everyone began once upon a time as a new beekeeper and asked myriads of questions.  You have a wonderful and great day, on this beautiful planet we all share. Cind
There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold.  The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold.  The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee.  Robert Service

Offline _Brenda_

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #105 on: March 08, 2008, 10:21:03 am »
I'm 52 and have been toying with idea of keeping bees for about a year and a half.
I mentioned in another post that I had started making plans and then found out I had cancer. So, after being in treatment for the last year, I'm now feeling up to trying it, and have ordered my start up supplies and 1 package of bees.
I only saw a few honeybees in the backyard last summer, and that's kind of alarming to me, so hopefully I'll be helping re-stock the bee population.

(I changed my ID here from 9acres to Double Bee) 

Brenda

Offline Cindi

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #106 on: March 08, 2008, 10:30:25 am »
Brenda, so nice to have you back, and that you are feeling well, I wish you well, even more, what a glorious day it must be for you to be feeling so well that you feel like you can carry on with a dream of keeping bees.

I read your prior posts made in November and December of 2006. You told us about yourself there.  Very nice.  You have 9 acres that you want to grow bees on (and other stuff too eh?  he, hee).  You will restock that acreage with bees, we need bees, the honeybees and every new person that begins to keep bees is increasing the power of the pollination of the world, yeah!!!

Brenda, welcome back, again, I am so grateful for your healthy recovery, keep on keepin' on.  The bees will help you to keep your stress levels down, they will increase serotonin levels incredibly, especially when you sit by your colonies, breathing in the pureness and beauty of the scents of the hives, the flowers, and the possibilities are endless.

If you can afford to get two packages, Brenda, you should.  There are many advantages to two packages (1 is OK too, but I would go for 2).   If you have a colony that for some reason becomes queenless, you can combine the queenless colony with the queenright colony, you can take brood from the stronger colony if one is weaker, there have been many posts on the value of two hives, versus one.  Something to think about, but do.  Have a wonderful and beautifully great day on this great planet we share.  Cindi
There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold.  The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold.  The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee.  Robert Service

Offline _Brenda_

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #107 on: March 08, 2008, 10:38:18 am »
Cindi, I've decided to start with 1 hive here at home and then expand to the farm if I find that I am able to care for more hives.
Also, can't afford to buy more hives or packages at this time.
But I'm looking forward to getting started.  :-D
Brenda

Offline Cindi

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #108 on: March 08, 2008, 10:45:29 am »
Brenda, ooh that is cool. Can't wait to hear of your experiences with your new bees, you will have so many stories to tell your eagerly awaiting new friends, hee, hee  :) :) :)  Have a wonderful and beautiful day on this great planet, Earth.  Cindi
There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold.  The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold.  The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee.  Robert Service

Offline beekybuzzard

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #109 on: March 08, 2008, 04:12:21 pm »
My dad and I both just started this year he is 65 and I am 41. We were talking about our respective gardens and the need to get more out of them and then had a member of church that mentioned he was a beekeeper and it went from there. Turned out to be a great thing we could learn together. And since that church member turned out to be the local chapter president we now have a very convenient and helpful teacher. I have since found this site and while I do not post much, I am reading a lot and learning. Thanks to all.
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Offline keys861

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #110 on: March 09, 2008, 04:06:59 pm »
I'm 46 and I am just starting out. My wife and I bought 10 acres of land and built our house. Now that house building is finished, I need to get the land in shape. Bees are perfect for this. I plan on having the land regenerate itself into forest land, at least for the most part. Other parts of the property will be covered in natural grasses and wildflowers.  My lawn area will also contain about a 1/2 acre garden. Bring on the bees.

-ff-

Offline Mklangelo

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #111 on: March 09, 2008, 04:31:05 pm »
I wanted to follow up on a comment bluegrass made about very few beekeepers being under the age of 50.  The comment made me pause because I started beekeeping at 49.  I don't have any beekeepers in my background and had never been around any.  The thought just came to me one day that it would be something interesting to try.
 I have a two part question: How old were you when you started beekeeping?  And why do you think it's mostly us "older folks" that really get into it?  I am very interested to hear your answers.

I started at 48.  My thoughts on why older folks enjoy keeping bees is it really does require patience. 

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Offline asciibaron

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #112 on: March 13, 2008, 02:12:54 pm »
i am involved  in several hobbies that tend to be more gray - model trains, amatuer radio, and now beekeeping.  i look at it as a chance to learn from the wisdom of my elders.  i'm in my mid thirties and don't see many of my contemporaries with hobbies - they are driven to make money or slack about.  i need a mental challenge and love to learn and exploring the world around me helps answer many of my latenight, can't sleep questions - like how we came to eat some of the foods we have.

-Steve

Offline annette

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #113 on: March 13, 2008, 07:52:10 pm »
[[/quote]

HAHA!  Or sitting in a cardboard box in a back alley with a Nuc hive, wrapping surgical tubing around your arm with your teeth, trying to find a vein so you can get another fix of Apitherapy... while heating up a spoonful of honey with a bic lighter!  HAHAHAHA

Sean Kelly
[/quote]

I am late to this post, sorry, but this is so, so funny, I can't stop laughing.

Anyway, I am one of those aged beekeepers - Ha, Ha (56). I find it funny in reading these posts, how people got into this hobby. Most of you had at least thought about it for a while at some time or another. I have a tendency to throw myself into things without knowing much. I find out later what I"ve gotten into.  I never had any desire for beekeeping, was always afraid of bees, but a man I work with, told me to try beekeeping because I was going through a midlife crisis at the time. All he had to say was "You get about 100lbs of honey per hive" and I had to know more. This is how I started this hobby. If I knew then, what I know now (the cost, the varroa mite ) I might rethink the whole thing, but I just love taking care of these little creatures.

Funny because the guy who got me interested will not start a hive now that he knows how much trouble the varroa mite is. He had hives in the 80's when it was easier.

Annette


Offline poka-bee

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #114 on: March 13, 2008, 08:00:56 pm »
Annette,  our town only has a couple of alleys so Sean & I will have to flip or arm wrestle for the best one!!  Jody
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Offline Brian D. Bray

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #115 on: March 14, 2008, 01:19:44 am »
Annette,  our town only has a couple of alleys so Sean & I will have to flip or arm wrestle for the best one!!  Jody

Liar, Liar, pants on fire.  Sham Poka-bee, Buckley is bigger than just a couple of alleys.  Must have at least 40-50.
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Offline poka-bee

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #116 on: March 14, 2008, 12:45:06 pm »
Hmmmm Brian..thought that was a hot flash! :shock:  I don't think there are that many, better go count em today! My excitement for Fri nite!  Have a great one.
Jody
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Offline Sean Kelly

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #117 on: March 15, 2008, 05:57:33 pm »
i am involved  in several hobbies that tend to be more gray - model trains, amatuer radio, and now beekeeping.
Steve welcome!!!  We have a bunch of us beekeeping Hams here.  Even Beemaster (John, the guy who started this forum) is a ham.  I'm W7SPK.  We'll have to schedule a QSO here in the future!!!

Brian and Jody, Do we even have alleys?  I guess maybe there are a couple on main street behind the police station/dentist office or vet clinic/resturaunt.   Oh yeah and there is one behind the feed store where the keep the old steam donkey engine.  BUT WE DO HAVE THE WORLD FAMOUS LOGGERS RODEO!!  WHOO HOO!!!

Sean Kelly
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Offline keys861

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #118 on: March 17, 2008, 02:50:34 pm »
On the positive note. I just attended my first State of KY BeeKeeping School. I was shocked by the number of people, about 300 I would guess. I attended the newbee courses and was shocked again, over 120 new bees. Out of all the new bees several, Im guessing around 25 were under the age of 25.
The school was awesome. I found a mentor, won a door prize (2 Queens) and gathered a ton of information. I'm still looking forward to getting my hives and my bees.

-ff-

Offline asciibaron

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Re: few beekeepers under 50
« Reply #119 on: March 17, 2008, 02:57:35 pm »

The school was awesome. I found a mentor, won a door prize (2 Queens) and gathered a ton of information. I'm still looking forward to getting my hives and my bees.



i thought the class i was taking was pretty good - 25 or so of us with e good mix of ages, even 2 early teenagers.  the lack of door-prizes is disturbing.  i will get a nice certificate at the end though.  sounds like a great time, do you have bees to go with those queens?

-Steve

 

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