Hello from Arizona

[Viggen]

Hello all.
We have been paying attention to the bees for going on about 2 years Very new at this.
Thanks to the kindness of folks like Virl Dowdy or Arizona,  Michael Bush  and a lot of other sources we got our initial
guidance.
We got to know some old beekeepers in our area and found out early that bees in the desert is in some ways quite different from
colder parts of the world - areas with more distinct seasons. Another factor has been the type of bees in our region. A bit more care and forethought seems to be necessary. They are very productive but  don't take kindly to intrusion. But that is just part of the game around here.
We have experimented with Kenyan as well as Tanzanian  style top bar hives. Of the two types the Kenyan works for our area. We are also experimenting with some ideas from the Spanish speaking world. Oscar Perone presented some interesting concepts and we are doing some "proof of concept" setups of his hives for this region.
Looking forward to learning a lot more and hope to contribute as I can.
Also, any other Arizona folks around?

Regards

[specialkayme]

Welcome to the site!

[Joe D]

Welcome to the site.  On the bees in your area being a little aggressive, some around here are and some are very gentle.  Last spring I had a hive that after the first day I never put on protective clothing.  Would wear shorts and tee shirt.  But I have a couple of hives that I almost always wear protective gear.  I am going to try get the others to be more gentle, lots more fun to mess with.  Anyway welcome to site and good luck with your bees.

Joe

[AllenF]

Welcome to the forum.