Raring to go? What do you need to be an urban beekeeper?
You’ll need to:
- Have a place to keep your bees and understand how to choose a good spot
- Learn about beekeeping equipment, different hives styles and protective equipment
- Understand how to protect yourself from stings through the use of protective equipment, smoke, timing and gentle frame handling technique
- Learn about the roles and functions of the queen, workers and drones
- Understand the honeybee lifecycle and how it impacts colony population management
- Interpret colony health through frame inspection
- Learn how to protect honeybee health by identifying pests and recognizing symptoms of disease and creating an integrated pest management plan
- Recognize the value of inspection goals and good record keeping
- Understand the process of nectar collection, ripening and honey extraction
- Be able to prepare your colonies for winter
- Be aware of Ontario legislation that covers beekeeping.
So how do you get to where you need to be? We recommend a combination of textbooks, videos, classes, hands on practice and mentoring. Joining a local beekeeping can connect you to all of these things.