Bee A Keeper @beeakeeper

Did you know a queen bee can live for up to five years? Many beekeepers prefer to replace their queens every 2-3 years to ensure that they hive always has a young, healthy queen. As they age they may run out of sperm count to fertilize eggs, or generally become unhealthy.

It's normal for bees to mix their food and eggs in a section of comb, with a stripe of honey up top or on the edges. It helps with temperature maintenance and reducing the distance nurse bees must travel to feed young larvae. It's especially common in hives with less space.

Bees don't mind others creatures hanging around, sometimes. As long as they stay out of the way and don't harm anything the bees will leave them be. Sometimes you'll spot small lizards hanging out; they actually like eating some of the bad bugs your bees don't like.

Bees and ants aren't friends. This hive ended up with a lot of ants because if the type of feeder added to the top. Removing the feeder allowed the bees to reach where the ants were hiding and within a few weeks they were ant free.

A good queen lays eggs in a systematic manner. You can see that the center was laid first and has hatched by now, and the rest of this frame will hatch in concentric circles all the way to the edge. Beekeepers should always look at the laying pattern to ensure healthy queens.

Bees don't always build beautiful, straight comb. Sometimes it turns out in odd shapes like this. If you don't catch this early, it can lead to an entire hive of poorly built comb and a disaster for a beekeeper. It's important to monitor growth so you can keep it healthy.

Fresh, new comb is almost pure white. Over time, and with repeated use, it'll darken and become stronger. Whether it's used for raising eggs or for storing food also determines it's size and color overtime. Brood comb turns a dark brown, while honeycomb stays fairly light.

You know what else loves sugar as much as bees do? Ants! They love trying to get into a hive to rob your bees of their hard earned food. This hive in particular was struggling more than others so a bit of diatomaceous earth around the feet should solve that issue.

During certain seasons, it can be helpful to provide some feed for the bees. We like to use top-feeders. They're easy to replenish and it keeps the food hidden, so pests can't get it! These jars will go in an empty box with a lid placed on top once the inspection is done.

Some beekeepers use a plastic foundation to help bees start building faster, but natural honeycomb is very thin and we're only just recently learning of the importance of it's vibrational qualities in helping bees communicate. We prefer to let our bees build their own comb!

Bees always build their comb directly downward. They do this by exhibiting a behavior called "festooning," as seen in the picture. By allowing themselves to form a living chain, gravity directs them exactly where they need to go in order to start building!

Did you know you can buy bees in packages? A package contains 3lbs of bees plus a queen. The process of transferring them from their package into a hive is very quick and easy. The most important thing is to remember to keep them cool and hydrated while they're all boxed up!

It should be no surprise that a queen bee gets a special kind of cell when she's growing up. In a healthy hive, they'll keep a few "queen cups" in reserve at all times for emergency purposes. These are larger, downward facing cells that look like peanut with the tips cut off.

It's important for beekeepers to perform regular inspections of their hives to help maintain their health. Here you can see a few lines of uncapped larvae, indicating this hive was struggling with Wax Moth's. Through food supplements and care, their issue was overcome!

Can you spot the queen bee here? What a beauty!

Watching bees work is absolutely fascinating. Bees are surprisingly docile and don't mind quiet and gentle observation. The work is hard, so let us do it for you while you enjoy your bees! You can see a very brave customer approaching their new beehive here.

Lot's of people want to help bees. Most people do simple things like planting bee-friendly flowers. The real issue with bees isn't lack of food, though, it's controlling pests and loss of habitat. Get a hive through us and you're helping fight the real issues!

Hives must be finished with a paint or lacquer in order for them to last out in nature. Most beekeepers paint their hives in plain white. Why not make them colorful?! We have some standard options as suggestions, but you're free to pick your own color.

All bees are covered in fuzz, but when baby bees emerge for the first time they're even fuzzier than normal! You can spot them by their lighter coloring and smaller bodies.

Checking the bottom board in a hive can be important for monitoring cleanliness and pests. Every now and then a beekeeper needs to clean off the bottom in order to promote healthy hives.