Archive for December 2011
Beekeeping With Honey Bees – This Isn’t The Only Type Of Beekeeping
Beekeeping With Honey Bees – This Isn’t The Only Type Of Beekeeping
Article by Mclean Dearth
Beekeeping with honey bees is the usual type of beekeeping done all over the world. In the United States, North Dakota, California, South Dakota, and Florida are the states responsible for producing the most honey every year. An average person consumes 1.3 pounds of honey every year, which is the nectar taken from at least 2 million flowers. Honey is used for a variety of uses such as a cure for ailments, as an energy booster, and even to add shine to one’s hair. Based on these facts, one can see the importance of honey bees and beekeeping.Beekeeping with honey bees isn’t the only type of beekeeping. Two other types of beekeeping involve the raising of queen bees and pollination beekeeping. The latter involves raising bees to help in pollination. Usually the beekeepers who do pollination beekeeping work hand-in-hand with farmers to help improve the growth of their crops. The traditional beekeeping with honey bees involves producing honey either as a stand-alone business or with major distributors. Aside from the types of beekeeping, there is a classification of beekeepers. Commercial beekeepers handle not just one bee colony, but thousands of bee colonies. These beekeepers are able to produce millions of pounds of honey every year, and are the main sources of the honey which can be found on supermarket shelves. On the other end of the spectrum are the hobby beekeepers. Unlike the commercial beekeepers, hobby beekeepers only keep bees and their beehives in order to study natural science and even the ecosystem. Honey is a sweet reward for their efforts. The sideline beekeeper is stuck between the two kinds of beekeepers. This beekeeper keeps about 300 bee colonies and produces a modest amount of delicious honey. Unlike commercial beekeepers, he/she only uses beekeeping as a way to obtain extra money or income.Here are some facts about honey bees. It takes only an ounce of honey to give a honey bee enough energy to fly all over the world. One can imagine how much energy it can give to a person who eats honey for breakfast every day. A honey bee usually visits 1,500 flowers just to get one load of pollen, and it would have to fly 55,000 miles to get one pound of honey. Based on this trivia, it isn’t surprising how the old adage of “busy as a bee” came about.
About the Author
Want to learn more valuable information about Beekeeping? Visit my website here www.BeekeepingGuideInfo.com. It’s no secret that to start or learn anything new the first thing anyone has to do is gain momentum. Get that first push here, by learning more about the Honey Bees Beekeeping.
Essential Beekeeper Supplies
Article by Michael V. Taylor
If you are looking to dive into beekeeping, you have probably got a lot of background by now about the bees, their environment, their nature, and everything that is required to get started and get the best results. One of the things that will eat away into your thoughts is the beekeeper supplies and where to get them.
Before you make the jump, you got to have the right kind of beekeeping supplies to ensure that you are adequately prepared. Here are the basic things you need:
First, you need to have a beehive. Bees are social insects and live in large colonies of tens of thousands of bees. Naturally, they occupied hollow tree trunks and even treetops where they build nest like structures. All these are called hives. Domesticated bees live in artificial or man-made hives which are basically the same structures.
There are several types of beehives available but the two most common ones are the Langstroth hives and the Top bar hives. Langstroth hives are by far the most common ones owing to their basic setup. They are simply made up of four sides with a roof and a floor at the top and the bottom. They have some frames where the bees make their combs. Most commercial beekeepers prefer these types of hives because a lot more honey is harvested as compared to many other beehive types. The Top bar hive consists of bars secured at the top and the bees build their combs hanging on the bars. It is cheap to build as it has no foundation and the bees have to make fresh combs after every harvest.
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Next are the bees. Though there are about 20, 000 known species of the bees, there are just about a dozen species considered to be the true honeybees. The western honey bees are considered to produce the best honey, and in larger quantities. Have a preference for these species of bees when you visit your local or online store. This however does not suggest that other bee species do not produce honey, they do. The suppliers will mostly give you about 10, 000 bees so you’ll need to work to grow that number by proper tending.
Next is protective clothing. Bees don’t really get domesticated in the sense of the word like we know it. This means they will attack you whenever you try to work around them or during harvesting. You need to have adequate protective gear way before hand. The most basic of these is the beekeeper suit which is designed to keep the stingers away from your skin. It comes complete with a hood and veil though there are other types where they can be detached. It comes in mostly lighter colors like white so as to prevent provoking the bees. Complete your suit with a pair of gloves and boots for optimal protection from the stings.Finally, get the right tools to assist you. Among the key tools consist of the hive tools, frame patch and cleaner, excluder cleaning tool and the bee brush. Don’t forget to get a beekeeper guide to always refer to.
These should get your beekeeping experience started on a high.
About the author:
His newest book,”The Ultimate Beekeeping Guide,” teaches Beekeepers everything they need to know about, used beekeeping and caring for their bees. http://www.keystobees.com/
Is Bee Pollen a Good Source of Vitamin C?
Article by Tara Mathews
One of the most popular supplements available is bee pollen. Is there enough of a bee pollen vitamin C content to make this substance a good source of this vitamin?
One thing for sure is that this amazing natural substance is a source of many different vitamins, minerals and nutrients. In fact, many health food experts consider it to be a super food as it contains practically everything needed for life. However, it is recommended that you do not live on bee pollen alone.
Vitamin C is one of the most important vitamins our body needs. It is a key element to the overall health of your immune system to help protect you from illness. Other foods can give you a higher vitamin C content, but they will not have all the other vitamins and minerals that are found in bee pollen though, which is why it is such a great choice as a natural supplement.
Other Important Vitamins Found in This Natural Substance
Vitamin A is important to your vision. A diet lacking in this vitamin then choosing a good natural pollen supplement could be beneficial to the health of your eyes.
Another vitamin found in this substance is vitamin B. In fact, it is a great source of complex b vitamins. This vitamin plays a major role in your health as it helps in the formation of blood and cell development and metabolism.
Vitamin D is another essential vitamin that you can get by taking this natural supplement. If you are not getting enough sun; and let’s face it many people are avoiding the sun due to the potential for skin cancer.
Will Any Bee Pollen Supplement Do?
The fact is, you may not be getting any benefits from bee pollen vitamin C or any other vitamin for that matter if you are consuming a poor quality supply. Not all pollen supplements are the same. It completely depends on where the substance was harvested.
What this specifically means is that the quality or purity of the pollen depends on the specific flowers that the bees visit. So, if they are visiting flowers in an area that is close to heavy industry then the quality of the pollen is certainly in question. Not only that but it could also be contaminated from air pollutants.
Choose your pollen products from areas that you know are environmentally clean. One such area that we recommend is New Zealand. You can be sure that pollen sourced from this country is the purest found in the world.
In conclusion, to enjoy the most effective bee pollen vitamin C benefits then make sure you choose the purest natural pollen supplements available.
About the Autho
Tara Mathews runs a series of health related websites and her latest is http://bee-pollen-nutrients-source.com/ Bee pollen that is sourced in New Zealand is the most natural and pure source we have come across. If you looking for a boost to your immune system using an all natural substance then visit my website to find out more about NZ bee pollen today.
by Tara Mathews
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