Bee Nice To Me I'm New

[Sarah]

I am the proud mama of three pounds of bees.  They arrived just about three weeks ago.  Beekeeping is a dream finally come true but also much more nerve wracking than I thought.  There is sooo much I do not understand... which is why this forum is really a lifesaver for me!  Maybe I should have read more books on the topic or maybe I just haven't read the right ones yet but my bees don't seem to fit what I have read.  I guess I am kind of hoping to learn as I go.  So far I have learned that beekeeping is more of an art than a science.  I do have about eight hundred million questions so do I post them here or in another category?

Thanks,

Sarah  

[Hi-Tech]

The general beekeeping section is probably the best place to post general questions. I too am new at this and have really been helped by everyone here....

WELCOME TO THE PARTY!

[Michael Bush]

The books are great for things like how many days until an egg hatches, gets capped, emerges etc.  Life cycles and facts about how bee can make a queen etc.  They are very narrow on methods of beekeeping, of which there are many, and on all the variation of what the bees MIGHT do.  Discussions like this are great for all of that.  I'd study the books.  ABC XYZ of Beeculture is one of my favorites.

[manowar422]

Learn to monitor your bee's health.

Take good quality pictures if you can
(remember each one says a thousand words)
and learn to post links to them on your posts.

Include as much written detail as you can when asking questions.

There are a bunch of smart and experienced folks here who
give of their time to help those in need. That is why we are so
high up on the serch engines when browsing for honey bees.

Welcome to the forum and the world of beekeeping

[beemaster]

Welcome and glad you found the forums as a help resource - you surely will find answers here!!!

About being more of an art than a science, I thing the former comes with experience, the first and most important thing (I believe) id to learn that bees are instinctually motivated and  CLASSIC EXAMPLES of anal retentive creatures - the fact that they respond the same way to similar situations REALLY becomes your best friend - well, after your smoker that is.

The ART part comes once you have learned enough of their beaviour to recognise the finer points of beekeeping.

Books are great - people with experience are greater. You may have a million questions, but I'm sure you'll find about 20 million answers here.

Good luck and keep posting. Remember - feed them while they build-up comb and you quickly increase the bee count in the hive plus the food stores for larva to feast on. Again, nice to mmeet you!!!!