Very informative and great for our ecosystem Please keep your videos coming 3:22 Thank you

Excellent Video! I am going to use this method next spring/summer. This method of making nucs is similar to the way Cory Stevens makes splits with virgin queens.

Thank you. I really enjoyed your video.

Hello, Thank you very much for your explanations. it will help me a lot; I try to have the same strategy as you for my small apiary of 5 honey production hives + 2 to 3 nuclei. Many videos on KZbin are made for big producers. I really like learning techniques from small producers. Thank you again for your videos and simple, effective and understandable explanations. 🪰🪰 best regards from Switzerland Europe 🪰🪰

I may have missed it in the video, but are you buying the mated queens or raising your own?

Nice to see another CT beekeeper. Just found your channel. Looking forward to more.

One of the most confusing thing about beekeeping is mite treatment. There are so many! What’s the best? What’s the best treatment to use at which time of the year? This is the one thing that I wish we could simplify as beekeepers.

I wish I would’ve seen this video last year before I started 😊…great video!

If I hear you right and extrapolate things, here’s how I see it. The profit from a small honey bee farm with 4 hives depends on factors such as honey yield, local market prices, and additional products or services offered (e.g., beeswax, pollination, or queen bee sales). Here’s a breakdown to estimate the potential earnings: 1. Honey Production • Yield per Hive: A healthy hive typically produces 40-60 pounds of harvestable honey per year, though it can vary based on the environment, nectar availability, and colony health. • Total Yield for 4 Hives: • Conservative Estimate: 160 pounds (4 hives × 40 pounds). • Optimistic Estimate: 240 pounds (4 hives × 60 pounds). • Selling Price: • Raw, local honey sells for $8-$12 per pound in most markets. Premium organic or specialty honey can go for even more. • Assume an average price of $10 per pound. Gross Revenue from Honey: • Low Estimate: 160 lbs × $10 = $1,600/year. • High Estimate: 240 lbs × $10 = $2,400/year. 2. Beeswax Production • Yield: Each hive can produce around 1-2 pounds of beeswax annually as a byproduct of honey extraction. • Total Yield for 4 Hives: 4-8 pounds. • Selling Price: Beeswax sells for $10-$15 per pound. Gross Revenue from Beeswax: • Low Estimate: 4 lbs × $10 = $40/year. • High Estimate: 8 lbs × $15 = $120/year. 3. Additional Revenue Streams • Selling Nucleus Colonies (Nucs): A nuc can sell for $150-$250 each. Selling 1-2 nucs per year could bring in $150-$500. • Queen Bees: Selling queens can bring $30-$50 each. With proper management, you can produce several queens per season. • Pollination Services: Renting hives for pollination earns $150-$200 per hive per season. • Value-Added Products: Producing candles, lip balm, or soap from beeswax can significantly increase profit margins. Estimated Annual Revenue Revenue Stream Low Estimate High Estimate Honey Sales $1,600 $2,400 Beeswax Sales $40 $120 Nucleus Colonies/Queens $150 $500 Pollination Services $300 (2 hives) $800 (4 hives) Total Revenue $2,090 $3,820 4. Costs to Consider Startup Costs: • Hives: $150-$300 per hive (total: $600-$1,200). • Bees: $150-$200 per colony (total: $600-$800). • Tools & Equipment: $500-$1,000 (smoker, suit, extractor, etc.). Ongoing Costs: • Feeding (if necessary): $20-$40 per hive annually (total: $80-$160). • Pest Control & Medications: $20-$50 per hive (total: $80-$200). • Miscellaneous: Maintenance, hive repairs, and supplies (~$200/year). Estimated Annual Expenses: $400-$600. Net Profit • Low Estimate: $2,090 (revenue) - $600 (costs) = $1,490/year. • High Estimate: $3,820 (revenue) - $400 (costs) = $3,420/year. Scaling Potential With 4 hives, you’re operating at a small scale, but this can grow: • Doubling to 8 hives could double profits with similar management. • Adding value-added products or services (like candles or pollination) can significantly boost income. So, with these baseline #’s folks should be able to put their targets into play. None of these cost account for your time -fyi

Very interesting point of view. In my area many of my hives that had low mite counts all season suddenly jumped up to the high teens in late September and I panicked. Fortunately I caught it and treated in time, but many local beekeepers assumed they were done after their August treatment and had dead hives late October and early November. I suspect it was from robbing out mite loaded hives so I've been trying to come up with a plan for next fall that satisfies the belief that August bees need to be mite free so they can raise healthy winter bees in September, while also fighting the flood of mites that can arrive in September when robbing is at its worst. Sounds like maybe I don't need to treat a early as I thought. Thanks!

This is great! Thank you!

I really like this idea! Can I ask where you got your lasagna pan? I've been looking on Amazon and they bane several, but they don't come with the rack. They also have roaster pans that do have racks, but I think they may be too big.

OAV has been shown to be ineffective when brood is present. Spring treatments don't do much unless you cage the queen first.

I'm cruising through your content and i like what you putting out there. I do admit i would not suggest to start with 1 colony. I did, it didnt go well and i have leard to recognize problems in a colony and how to fix it using others. I also wanted to touch base on the glue being used. You suggested tighbond 3 but tightbond 2 is the one that is acceptable for indirect contact with food. Hope all is well and thank younfor contributing to the industry.

Great video! Very detailed and realistic.

Nice beek-splation it's refreshing to see backyard breakdown. Comb is as good as gold! As well as protect your equipment! Make the decision to rotate modestly used equipment out with your NUC sales. Constantly investing in equipment (pick up sales at the correct times of year 😉👌). Thanks for sharing!!!

Apparently over 80% of honey tested in the UK was fake.

I had a swarm this year it was big on sept 1 I’m up in Canada I’m curious to see if it makes it they do a a nice population and it has a full medium super will see

I really like the wound I find it killls less bees then the vaporizer instavapes I never made any money but I made honey a shit load 😅

Great analysis

My story first years of beekeeping I had bees move in to the west wall of my detached garage and I live in the Texas desert it gets over 115 degrees most summers, I got an estimate on removing them and it was over 150 dollars, I thought for that price I get a bee box and remove the bees myself their is a shade tree near by and I don't go around that side of the garage except to mow. I got a complete 8 frame medium box and cheap bee jacket and gloves for less then 200 this was back in 2014 and with the help of rubber bands i moved them into the box and moving the box a couple feet a day i had em in the shade in a week and a half. The bees survived the first winter and became crowded so I built a 8 frame medium with foundationless frames and put it on top i checked in a week and it was a disaster they were cross combing everywhere so i cleaned that up and placed the new box on the bottom this time, i checked in another week and they were building comb down perfectly so now I knew never to top super foundationless frames. The bees survived their second winter and again became crowded so I built another 8 frame medium box and painted it and was letting it dry for a few days the bees swarmed and landed on a small easy to cut branch i had no lid or floor but I had some truck mud flaps so i arranged some sticks on one mud flap leaving an entrance space i got 2 frames with comb from the old box and placed inside the new box and shook bees inside then placing the other mud flap on top, the bees stayed so i now had two hives, yes i made a lid and floor over the next couple weeks. It was the 4th spring and both hives survived winter the beehives were 4 feet apart and I find myself setting in a chair between the bees drinking my morning coffee this is the day i became a beekeeper, the years before that day the bees kept me. I have never made a cent, I don't feed sugar water, I never put poison in the hives and i get around 4 medium frames honey a year and that's pretty good for this area.

I really enjoyed this. You are right, im abiut to do my qst winter and im full of anxiety lol. I think im good for the winter though. I think where i am is a little tiny bit warmer but definitely just as long of a winter as you. I am excited and anxious for spring to come lol. Thank you for sharing how you find success

Very informative Thank you from the Great State of Texas

🤔I believe in doing what ya do, so you don't have to do what ya don't. 🤨Hmm never had much problem with Tolls on beekeeper channels, don't let them bug ya most of the Modern Day Troll have very low skill levels.😂Good advice on stay out of the catalogs.👍Thanks for sharing your time with us. Blessed Days...

Hi Kurt, or is it Kirk? Subscribed to you last night while watching the stream team. Dont sweat trolls. Getting a troll is a right of passage for any KZbinr. I build almost everything I use, including frames. Its not about the money, its about the experience. It took me about 3 years to start making a profit - so long as I don't pay myself! Hahahaha. Looking forward to seeing more videos.

New sub here. Nice meeting you on the Stream Team!

Lots of reasons, investigate and determine after. Lack of food and resources, too many hives in area. How long you been keeping bees? Sounds like you need an experienced beekeeper longtimer to have a look. Could be a whole variety of reasons why.

I am thinking most of the dark honey is from knotweed and goldenrod

You should transfer the frames before you shake into and empty box

This is how I prepare my hives for winter kzbin.info/www/bejne/d4vQomWXYrh0Zs0feature=shared