That's the finest beekeeping startup cost tutorials I've seen. Great job! As your apiary and experience grows you'll discover ways to cut costs. I paid $115 for two complete hives of bees in 1985; beekeeping was definitely more affordable back then, and honeybees weren't facing the problems of this era. However, overcoming the hurdles of managing robust colonies is indeed possible. It just takes time, knowledge, and determination. I wish you all the best with your beekeeping.
Thank you for your kind words 🙏 $115 sounds much better than what I paid this year 😀 I definitely wish we didn't have mites nowadays. Both my hives have them now 😢
@@FaewoodAcres I've great news regarding combating Varroa mites. In 2012, I tracked down one of the commercial queen breeders(Wildflower Meadows Apiary/California)that is continuing the decades of work of the USDA to create a line of mite resistant honeybees, now called VSH Italians. As of today my whole apiary consists of that stock, and, I do not take any measures to "treat" hives! I have also been raising my own queens through open breeding for five years now and their hygienic behavior appears to be a dominant gene that is passed down to their daughters. What's also interesting is that many of the brood diseases which were common in the past have been absent with this strain of bees. Unfortunately, I still experience winter losses of around 20%. But managing an apiary of VSH Italians is very close to what I experienced in the days before mites. Lastly, two additional changes in my management practices also proved beneficial. I manage all my colonies in single, ten frame brood boxes; I add a queen excluder and honey supers in the spring, as needed. And I also insulate hives in the Fall using R-6 foamboard. Hope this helps!
Hi There from Ireland I am on a similar journey to you only got 2 hive this year I am envious of you costs, way higher here. On the flip side its great for the mental health and my grandchildre love the honey 3 frames this year and they are really interested in the hives asking lots of questions. It's a great hobby my only regret is that I did'nt start it years ago.
Based on the interactions, you have a nice future on YT. Good recap and info for beginning beekeepers. I am also in central Texas, but "central" in Texas refers to an area about as big as 3 states!
Ha, true! 😄 Totally different climates in different parts of Texas.. This is especially tough when talking about fruit trees and some trees work in "southern central Texas" and not in "northern central Texas" 😂
I have been able to reduce the cost of of a complete hive double deep w/ one medium for $180 from a local Amish supplier, they do classes for very little cost and sometimes free. The avg cost to get started is $800 for the first hive and about $400 for additional hive if you are purchasing the bees. Once you get going . A hive will reproduce 2-3 times per year so here is when you need the spend money immediately for extra hive boxes to house these new colonies and this never stops. Bees expand especially in Spring. You must stay on it, each new colony is worth $200 and bees and honey sell very fast. If a hive swarms and you didn't prevent it by making splits it will set the Mother hive way back. There is a lot to Beekeeping. You don't just put bees in a box and expect them to survive as they do take some care and common sense is essential
@FaewoodAcres same until I took a weekend class...after the class I paid for a year mentorship because there is so much to learn...it was worth every penny
An important factor to consider when purchasing that Nuc is the drawn comb your getting. A frame is roughly $4 each. When the bees have fully drawn it is worth $20-$30.
I started 25 years ago. It wasn't cheap then. It's crazy expensive now. With the excessive use of pesticides in my community it's difficult to keep the hives from dying. I used to run 30-50 hives. Now I run under 5. I keep mites under control, but when pesticides are used I lose too many. When they go I'm done
The cost thing in Beekeeping is only temporary thank God! and thats why getting into Beekeeping is awesome man I wish you grow more in Beekeeping with Good Luck!
I spent $500 on lumber alone just to build my 8 hives (granted I built 5 supers for every hive since I live in a very pollen and nectar rich location) , another $1500 on the bees and around $500-$700 on the rest of the tools and suit. Cheapest hobby I have😂 Looks like you are getting off to a good start, keep up the good work!
@FaewoodAcres they are on a pallet, so pretty much on the ground, just raised a couple inches for better air movement and to keep water from getting in during heavy rain.
I got 4 nucs in July and am beekeeping in Lampasas. Started on getting a ag exemption. It is very expensive. But man is this interesting. Hard to know if cost is justified. But well done getting it out there.
@@phillipriggs3375 No idea! 😂 It's on my list to learn more about it in the winter. I know I'll make a trap with my 2 nuc boxes. But I am worried about my existing hives (varroa) so I'm not even sure I'll have anything to split in spring 😢
Start-up costs are crazy when people just want a little honey.. You can buy hive bodies with frames and add a bottom and migratory cover at a more reasonable cost than many starter kits. I grow nucs out all year because during the summer dry season, many hives fail to requeen, get robbed out, or start to fail because there is almost no pollen to thrive.. Insulated hives are a great option as less feeding is required in both summer and winter as their resources are conserved.. Some people do not feed and its a mistake to save money only to have a weak failing colony, a double brood nest will save on sugar costs with less in the honey supers.. Most bees need a new queen every year because she gets tired and/or swarms for reproduction.
Great info! In the beginning I needed hand holding, so I accepted the higher costs. Next year, as I expand my hives, I'll do it much cheaper. Thanks for watching 😊
Hi from southern New Zealand 👋😃 great little video. I don't charge for teaching 😂 i have four beginning hobbyists that im teaching and mentoring in beekeeping this year and beginners can pick up some really crazy stuff especially from TH-cam, 😂 however TH-cam videos can be helpful if you get someone that actually knows what theyre talking about, there's some fantastic beekeepers in north America, with great TH-cam channels and tutorials, guys like kamon Reynolds, bob binnie, Jeff Horchoff, Peter cowin, Brian of castlehives, and girls to like Natalee of beekeeping with Natalee to name a few off the top of my head. I started at 14 and apprenticed under a incredible mentor im now 54 and it's still amazing, every year is different and theres always something new to learn about beekeeping, i think the main difference between a novice and a expert is a novice wonders if they should have done something whereas a expert spends time going "damn, i should have done that already" or"damn, i shouldn't have done that yet"😂 glad you're enjoying your experience beekeeping and yes, its expensive 😬 but so are horses or cows or dogs, cats,chickens,pigs,cars,boats, jet skis or anything else if you sit down and do the maths😆👍
Please adjust your hive stand blocks so that they are not on end. Speaking from experience, the stand can topple resulting in a pretty rotten experience for the bees and beekeeper.
@@FaewoodAcres yes lol it was only supposed to be a hobby when I had 3 but that did not last long it’s alote of work if you don’t make a plan lol took me a few years to get my system set up a cold front Has entered and it will be snow next week I have all hives wrapped and insulated now thanks you too
I tell other people beekeeping is like owning a boat bust out another thousand.$$$. Also for others is selling the equipment supplies they make the money, it's not in the honey.
Those startup costs are shocking. Hopefully I can keep it cheap by capturing bees and making splits, but I will still buy boxes because making them is time consuming.
@@noahG82 I had a lot of syrup leftover. Fall flow was better than expected. The average I fed was 1 gallon per hive. I went into winter with 500 colonies.
This dude wasted a TON of money. If nothing else, for your smoker, do not BUY burnable material. Grab the dry stuff lying around. If you care more about honey than you do bees, then yeah all this grabage is necessary. If you'd rather have healthy bees and do a LOT less work, look into natural beekeeping and horizontal hives.
I'm a first year beekeeper, so I definitely didn't go the cheapest route. As I said in the video, I was happy to have someone holding my hand through the beginning since I didn't know much. My second time around will be much cheaper :-)
That's the finest beekeeping startup cost tutorials I've seen. Great job! As your apiary and experience grows you'll discover ways to cut costs.
I paid $115 for two complete hives of bees in 1985; beekeeping was definitely more affordable back then, and honeybees weren't facing the problems of this era. However, overcoming the hurdles of managing robust colonies is indeed possible. It just takes time, knowledge, and determination. I wish you all the best with your beekeeping.
Thank you for your kind words 🙏 $115 sounds much better than what I paid this year 😀
I definitely wish we didn't have mites nowadays. Both my hives have them now 😢
@@FaewoodAcres I've great news regarding combating Varroa mites. In 2012, I tracked down one of the commercial queen breeders(Wildflower Meadows Apiary/California)that is continuing the decades of work of the USDA to create a line of mite resistant honeybees, now called VSH Italians. As of today my whole apiary consists of that stock, and, I do not take any measures to "treat" hives!
I have also been raising my own queens through open breeding for five years now and their hygienic behavior appears to be a dominant gene that is passed down to their daughters.
What's also interesting is that many of the brood diseases which were common in the past have been absent with this strain of bees.
Unfortunately, I still experience winter losses of around 20%. But managing an apiary of VSH Italians is very close to what I experienced in the days before mites.
Lastly, two additional changes in my management practices also proved beneficial. I manage all my colonies in single, ten frame brood boxes; I add a queen excluder and honey supers in the spring, as needed. And I also insulate hives in the Fall using R-6 foamboard. Hope this helps!
@@mikerevendale4810 😮 no mites! Now I need to research the VSH queens. It would be great to not deal with that. Thanks for sharing your experience 🙏🙂
Hi There from Ireland I am on a similar journey to you only got 2 hive this year I am envious of you costs, way higher here. On the flip side its great for the mental health and my grandchildre love the honey 3 frames this year and they are really interested in the hives asking lots of questions. It's a great hobby my only regret is that I did'nt start it years ago.
Kids love it! It's so interesting to them. What's expensive over there, the boxes, the bees, or all of it?
Based on the interactions, you have a nice future on YT. Good recap and info for beginning beekeepers. I am also in central Texas, but "central" in Texas refers to an area about as big as 3 states!
Ha, true! 😄 Totally different climates in different parts of Texas.. This is especially tough when talking about fruit trees and some trees work in "southern central Texas" and not in "northern central Texas" 😂
I have been able to reduce the cost of of a complete hive double deep w/ one medium for $180 from a local Amish supplier, they do classes for very little cost and sometimes free. The avg cost to get started is $800 for the first hive and about $400 for additional hive if you are purchasing the bees. Once you get going . A hive will reproduce 2-3 times per year so here is when you need the spend money immediately for extra hive boxes to house these new colonies and this never stops. Bees expand especially in Spring. You must stay on it, each new colony is worth $200 and bees and honey sell very fast. If a hive swarms and you didn't prevent it by making splits it will set the Mother hive way back. There is a lot to Beekeeping. You don't just put bees in a box and expect them to survive as they do take some care and common sense is essential
When I was first starting I definitely thought I could just put them in the box and leave them alone until they give me honey 😂 boy was I wrong
@FaewoodAcres same until I took a weekend class...after the class I paid for a year mentorship because there is so much to learn...it was worth every penny
An important factor to consider when purchasing that Nuc is the drawn comb your getting. A frame is roughly $4 each. When the bees have fully drawn it is worth $20-$30.
Good point! 👍
I started 25 years ago. It wasn't cheap then. It's crazy expensive now. With the excessive use of pesticides in my community it's difficult to keep the hives from dying. I used to run 30-50 hives. Now I run under 5. I keep mites under control, but when pesticides are used I lose too many. When they go I'm done
😢 that's so sad! And there's nothing we can do.
Luckily my bees are in a ranching area, but there are hay fields I'm sure are sprayed.
Excellent review! So appreciate you doing this...and good luck as you go forward.
Thank you so much 😊🙏 I'm glad you liked it
The cost thing in Beekeeping is only temporary thank God! and thats why getting into Beekeeping is awesome man
I wish you grow more in Beekeeping with Good Luck!
Certainly the startup costs are scary, but the maintenance (especially if you don't expand all the time and need new boxes) isn't bad.
I spent $500 on lumber alone just to build my 8 hives (granted I built 5 supers for every hive since I live in a very pollen and nectar rich location) , another $1500 on the bees and around $500-$700 on the rest of the tools and suit. Cheapest hobby I have😂
Looks like you are getting off to a good start, keep up the good work!
Thanks 😊 I'm shocked you have 5 supers on each. You must put your hives on the ground, yeah? That's tall!
@FaewoodAcres they are on a pallet, so pretty much on the ground, just raised a couple inches for better air movement and to keep water from getting in during heavy rain.
Very informative.
Glad it was helpful! 😀
Thanks for info 👌
You're very welcome 😁
Great breakdown!
Thank you 😊 thanks for watching
I got 4 nucs in July and am beekeeping in Lampasas. Started on getting a ag exemption. It is very expensive. But man is this interesting. Hard to know if cost is justified. But well done getting it out there.
I'm also doing it for the exemption. It's very interesting and very challenging, and I'm hoping next year, very rewarding. I guess we'll see 😂
@@FaewoodAcres I see you use Bee Supply in Round Rock, Good people!
I like supporting local Texas businesses 😊
@@FaewoodAcres so how will you split this spring?
@@phillipriggs3375 No idea! 😂 It's on my list to learn more about it in the winter. I know I'll make a trap with my 2 nuc boxes.
But I am worried about my existing hives (varroa) so I'm not even sure I'll have anything to split in spring 😢
Start-up costs are crazy when people just want a little honey.. You can buy hive bodies with frames and add a bottom and migratory cover at a more reasonable cost than many starter kits. I grow nucs out all year because during the summer dry season, many hives fail to requeen, get robbed out, or start to fail because there is almost no pollen to thrive.. Insulated hives are a great option as less feeding is required in both summer and winter as their resources are conserved.. Some people do not feed and its a mistake to save money only to have a weak failing colony, a double brood nest will save on sugar costs with less in the honey supers.. Most bees need a new queen every year because she gets tired and/or swarms for reproduction.
Great info! In the beginning I needed hand holding, so I accepted the higher costs. Next year, as I expand my hives, I'll do it much cheaper. Thanks for watching 😊
Hi from southern New Zealand 👋😃 great little video. I don't charge for teaching 😂 i have four beginning hobbyists that im teaching and mentoring in beekeeping this year and beginners can pick up some really crazy stuff especially from TH-cam, 😂 however TH-cam videos can be helpful if you get someone that actually knows what theyre talking about, there's some fantastic beekeepers in north America, with great TH-cam channels and tutorials, guys like kamon Reynolds, bob binnie, Jeff Horchoff, Peter cowin, Brian of castlehives, and girls to like Natalee of beekeeping with Natalee to name a few off the top of my head. I started at 14 and apprenticed under a incredible mentor im now 54 and it's still amazing, every year is different and theres always something new to learn about beekeeping, i think the main difference between a novice and a expert is a novice wonders if they should have done something whereas a expert spends time going "damn, i should have done that already" or"damn, i shouldn't have done that yet"😂 glad you're enjoying your experience beekeeping and yes, its expensive 😬 but so are horses or cows or dogs, cats,chickens,pigs,cars,boats, jet skis or anything else if you sit down and do the maths😆👍
Wow that's many many years of experience! You must have seen it all!
I heard varroa mites aren't bad down there, is that true?
🐝🐝🐝🐝
❤️ 🐝🐝🐝
It’s kind of like keeping horses….you can spend tons of money or you can spend a little
@@eddybarker5072 I know very little about bees and even less about horses 😁 They always sound expensive though
More then you expect, then some more, after that maybe a little extra.😂
Well done video.👍
😂 truth! It was way more than I thought
Then when you catch the "bug", it's worse than an heroin addiction. That can be very $$
@@kushytooshybees 😆 I'm not addicted! I can stop whenever I want! 😆
Please adjust your hive stand blocks so that they are not on end. Speaking from experience, the stand can topple resulting in a pretty rotten experience for the bees and beekeeper.
Good advice 👍 I think I'll do that. Look for the change in upcoming videos.
I took your advice in my latest video. I'm really glad I did it before the winter too. Thanks for the tip!
th-cam.com/video/rNUyOiB1SAg/w-d-xo.html
We’re are you from ? I’m in Canada I hope you have a good outcome my friend
I'm in Central Texas, very hot compared to Canada. Are you a beekeeper or want to be? Thanks for the well wishes. 💙
@@FaewoodAcres I’m a beekeeper I keep 20 hives and 10 nucs
Wow that sounds like a lot of work 😃 Hope your girls are doing well 👍
@@FaewoodAcres yes lol it was only supposed to be a hobby when I had 3 but that did not last long it’s alote of work if you don’t make a plan lol took me a few years to get my system set up a cold front
Has entered and it will be snow next week I have all hives wrapped and insulated now thanks you too
😂😂😂 "it was only supposed to be a hobby"
I really felt that 😁
I tell other people beekeeping is like owning a boat bust out another thousand.$$$. Also for others is selling the equipment supplies they make the money, it's not in the honey.
Seems a bit like a pyramid scheme doesn't it? 😂 The way to make money is by recruiting new beekeepers like myself 😃
lol it cost too much things are way over priced 200 for a poly hive in Nova Scotia Canada and I have 20😅
Oof. It's definitely more expensive than I expected. I only have 2 hives, but aiming for 12.
@@FaewoodAcres it’s not to bad after you get set up and you can sell some nucs queens and honey threw your season it pays for seasons cost
Those startup costs are shocking. Hopefully I can keep it cheap by capturing bees and making splits, but I will still buy boxes because making them is time consuming.
There's no money made from 2 hives. Get yourself 200. I bought 25,000 lbs of sugar for my bees.
That's a crazy amount of sugar 😧
Good for you
I fed 69 colonies this fall and had about 2500 lbs of sugar that I fed them
@@noahG82 I had a lot of syrup leftover. Fall flow was better than expected. The average I fed was 1 gallon per hive. I went into winter with 500 colonies.
This dude wasted a TON of money.
If nothing else, for your smoker, do not BUY burnable material. Grab the dry stuff lying around.
If you care more about honey than you do bees, then yeah all this grabage is necessary. If you'd rather have healthy bees and do a LOT less work, look into natural beekeeping and horizontal hives.
I'm a first year beekeeper, so I definitely didn't go the cheapest route. As I said in the video, I was happy to have someone holding my hand through the beginning since I didn't know much. My second time around will be much cheaper :-)