Cash Flow & Failure - 2022 Beekeeping Season

[@ME_MeAndMyBees]

Nathan. Tip : For those who are Newbie Beeks or who react badly to Stings. Take an Antihistamine Medication (over the Counter) as Stat, say x12 Hrs before you do Bees. Helps with that ouch and Itch big time. Then you can take it when needed, say when Bees are more Crabbit ! Bounce off you & your Suit like bullets. It happens to us all. 🙃 While at that Pharmacy Store also grab yourself some Wrist Support Straps (Stretchy Material with Hook n Loop type) for Wrist Weakness etc. tThese are great for keeping the Bees from stinging your Wrists ! And : 1) Making those Heavy Box lifts easier on the Hands and Arms. 2) I use Basic 'Builder Rubberised Gloves (£5 Pair) as my Bee Gloves AND with using these Wrist Straps to secure the Bee Suit over the Glove Wrist... No Stings to your Hands or Fingers ! Win, win. 🏆 * Can be bothered with Bee Gaunlets, they Cost, don't fit Smaller Hands, pain to put on and off. So grab yourself Builders Gloves. They last for ages. And you can still 'feel' what your doing / no clumsy gauntlet mashing / bashing action in doing the Bees ! 😎 And Bare Hands with the Bees is not best practice. (Say Disease / Virus Control Gloves prevent this. It's much better "Looking with your Eyes 👀" You learn fast. You do better, "watching and then doing the needed input !" Another Tip : Doing prompt x14 Day Regular Inspections come rain or shine through the Swarm Season : You will catch any 'Queen' emergence before a Swarm might occur. Queens take x16 Days to Hatch. (So x14 Days Covers this and you can Act !) Always have a Spare Nuc Box to hand at all times. Even if its your Tool (Holding) Box ! 😁 Hope this helps. 🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝 Happy Beekeeping 2023 ! 🥳 🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝

[@seanmackey1469]

Hi, for the last 8 years I have been keeping bees as a hobby. I have had great years and bad years, thankfully more good than bad. I stumbled across the bee vlog you posted yesterday and than watched this video. I appreciate your honesty and willingness to share, not only your plans but also some of your finances. I am in Ontario Canada and we are having a very mild winter. On the plus side very little snow to shovel, on the negative, so warm at times that the bees are active and using all their stores. We will have to feed a lot to make it to the spring flow. Sorry to hear about your mom, I know losing a parent is hard. I lost my dad in November. Looking forward to more videos and watching how 2023 goes for you.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Sean! Very different weather up there than here, but bees are bees.

[@stephenaellender7493]

Sorry to hear about your mom. Prayers for your family. I appreciate your Godly stance. 2022 was my first year. I caught four swarms.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Congrats, and thanks!

[@hootervillehoneybees8664]

Really good for your kids selling that honey.. did same with mine now they're all small business owners in they're 20s .. really proud of them.. I can see my mom in my granddaughter like spitting image and the way she acts and moves all like my mom .. good luck sounds like you're doing great for short time been at it ..

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks! My son loves to talk to people, he’ll be the salesman in the family.

[@daveharvey6304]

Great video, thank you for sharing! Very sorry for the loss of your mother.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Dave!

[@Gfthce3426]

God Bless our Mothers! My Beautiful Mum past just a few years ago . It dose seem that the pearly gates are more transparent from her side . Still Ma ,still with me , like right now biscuits , coffee and a new day . Thank You for your videos they are helpful, your about 2 or 3 years ahead of me with where I'd like to go with my bee hobby . Just a couple years ino it . All the best in our New Year!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@rodneyjack3309]

Sorry about mom. Mine past 7 years ago and I didn't realize just how she affected my being and my beliefs. I'm thankful she's with Jesus and I will be meeting up with them someday too. Love the bees and thanks for sharing. I'm currently working with honey producing family that runs 1000s of hives so it's head down butt up work everyday but I enjoy it. It's good to hear of a good record, losses were staggering in Canada in 2022. Seems like you need 2 bee yards to have 1 good one. I'm catching swarms myself. It was a poor year here too for trapping. Caught just 1 late swarm out of 8 sets.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Yeah I heard Canada had large losses last year. Ever figure out exactly what the cause was?

[@rodneyjack3309]

@@DuckRiverHoney no not that I'm aware of. Mite load was heavy in spring survivors though. So maybe treaments in the fall were not as effective. There is a push to open the border by producers for more access to mite resistant bees. So maybe a market if your producing Palmer or Oliver or Comfort Queens.

[@franciscoafonsoferro5568]

Thanks for all your insight... keep up with the good work, and my best wishes to you all

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@lisalaney42]

I'm so sorry to hear about the loss of your mom. Thank you for the video. It's very helpful and answers a lot of questions that new-bees have. Blessings to you and your family!!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

I appreciate it Lisa!

[@sonofthunder.]

thank you ,i always enjoy your videos ,i eat alot of my own honey too,this year i lost my vapirizor kit,respirator,OA, Around 4-500 ,may have been stolen outa my truck was up to 15 colonies,now about 10,and im gunna keep pushing ahead,...heres to a blessed 2023,

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Sorry to hear that Mark, better luck this year.

[@maryanngreen9080]

31:10 Thank you for your very insightful and informative video. My condolences on the loss of your mom and that of the young boy. It’s so hard when you care about others who have lost their children. We lost our dad earlier this year too. Your video gave me some great things to think about, my bee yard has grown very quickly through a co-op of about six other beekeepers. I’m about two weeks away from being a Beekeeper for two years I’ve sold queens, nukes and honey and have 5, 8 and 10 frame hives and two queen castles. I have 85 hives of various sizes and strengths. I’m running about six varieties of queens and ready to get serious about a plan moving forward. Right now we really have to pace ourselves in the heat of Central Texas with heat indexes around 110 so I can only work early or late in the day. I work in lightweight sweatpants, a cotton bee jacket and use 9 mm rubber gloves that I get from Harbor Freight. I put the cuff of the glove over the cuff of the sleeve of my jacket and it seals good which helps protect the wrist and I still have a lot of dexterity in working in the hives. If I have a hive that is a little bit testy at the moment I keep a short pair of leather work gloves nearby, and put them on over the rubber gloves as needed and take them back off when I don’t need them. By putting the cuff of the rubber glove over the cuff of the sleeve, it absorbs a lot of the moisture that builds up when it’s hot. These are black gloves at the back of our store, and the bees do not seem to have any concern about them being black. I have just started on FB and KZbin. What program do you use for your videos? This was a fabulous video for me to see right now. Thank you for your extra efforts to put this information out and share with others. I really appreciate you and wish you and your family all the best as you move forward in your bee business. Hope to meet you some day at a bee conference. Mary Ann Green aka CCBeeLady on FB and KZbin

[@paulp8828]

Keep up your sharing, your helping more people than you know Thank You Thank You. My condolences for your mother may she rest in eternal peace 🙏🏻🐝

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Paul, I appreciate it.

[@joestocker660]

God is good indeed. Your folks did a good job raising a son that kept it together during such a great loss. - Appreciate your transparency and level of detail. That will help new beeks with dreams far more than pie-in-the-sky expectations without learning bees or money management. Also, $950/hive gross is pretty impressive, more so considering it was from honey.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Joe!

[@SidelineBeekeeping007]

Great video Nathan , I’m from central Canada ( Manitoba) and like to watch videos from different parts of North America , always trying to pick up tips and see how other folks are working their honeys businesses. I think your doing it all right , slow expansion to cover all your bases and most of all still have quality family time ! Been their got the t-shirt. Up here things happen extremely fast in a very short period of time !

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Dan! You’ve got a short season, but long days. Neat stuff.

[@davidmiles5626]

Nice video. A lot of good points and general information. Thanks for taking the time to do this.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@solivaguswayfarer]

Thank you for sharing your journey Nathan 😊 Looking forward to learning more about your honey house project. Please accept my condolences. It isn't easy but a mom's love is forever.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@russellkoopman3004]

Such a good a good video Nathan. Sorry about your mom, I lost mine at 93 - we always miss our moms the strength of the family. I'm more of a hobbyist beek. Started the year with 9 production hives and sold one. Ended up with 15 hives going into winter and 1400 lbs of honey. I don't live close to any larger urban areas and have to work much harder on sales but without a big outlay of investments I ended up about 5k to the good. I sold 5 hives this year which helped and I got another 6 honey supers drawn. With our moderate to severe drought we had I would have to say God is good. Take care and we'll see you this week.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Sounds like you had a great year Russell. I’ll bring you a bottle of honey to repay you for that lemon creamed honey you gave me last year. Don’t let me forget!

[@chuckgross6024]

I have to say, you are quickly becoming a favorite channel for me. I did mention the other day on one of your videos how I'm planning on expanding my apiary. I'm on the same path or darn similar to alot of what you listed. You're just a couple years further in than me. What you have mentioned that you will be doing this year is what I plan on doing next year. It's really great to have someone to watch grow from so close to where I am currently. It really makes things make more sense. When you see these bigger guys and all their equipment it makes me envious and slightly jealous, lol, but watching your videos and listening to you talk about some of your Financials and strategies reassures me that I'm doing ok. It feels like all I'm doing is spending and spending with no return. I know that it takes every dollar and a few more to be put back into the business the first few years before I can really start to make money. Keep up the hard work and I'll keep watching your journey as I make mine.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Chuck! It’ll be interesting. Hopefully it all works out.

[@angieh.527]

This video was so helpful! I'm a small time sideliner, but I'm considering scaling up. Thank you for being so transparent in your challenges and successes. I think you'll do very well! I wanted to add that I'm so sorry for your loss of your Mom. Sending prayers for you and your family.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Angie!

[@leslierowell392]

Thank you for sharing. It’s appreciated.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Leslie!

[@RyanMcDonnough]

These season summary videos are very helpful. Thanks for sharing.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Ryan!

[@echo3347]

Appreciate the video and all of the details. As someone just dabbling into getting bigger this is great info.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@rodbeckstedt8588]

Sorry to hear about your mom. Stay strong my friend. It was great to talk to you and meet your wife at the Hive Life Conference. Loved the video and your transparency. Keep up the good work and you'll meet your goal. God Bless.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Rod!

[@ToBeeOrNotToBeHoney]

Wishing you well for 2023. Be careful hoping to get stung. Bee venom allergies can spontaneously occur in people who had no allergies before. I typically inspect with nitrile gloves which don't stop stings except for the fact that you feel bees through them so you crush fewer resulting in fewer pissed off bees. It also keeps the sticky stuff on the gloves which makes the wife happier. Having a sound plan is a great idea. For me it has always been just for fun, but I could benefit from doing what you do with a written list. Sorry to hear of your mom's passing. My mother died a year ago in November and my wife's father passed 5 days later. It definitely changes how you view the world and your remaining time when that happens.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks, and sorry for your loss as well. It’s tough.

[@DavidWilliams-wr4wb]

I was told by my mentor 50+ years ago that it’s not if you develop a sting allergy it’s when , you get stung enough you will develop an allergy, now I have to suit and glove up for everything, even to watch landing boards but my love of bees makes me not mind that much

[@sharonc.2207]

I'm so sorry for the loss of your mom. ❤😢

[@marysteinfeldt3937]

Nathan, this is a great video! It added some real insight into my own bee operations and gave me some guidance on how to approach this coming year. I’m in the middle of planning for 2023. Sorry to hear about your mother😢 I appreciated your comment that “God is good“ that’s absolutely true! I think that most beekeepers would agree and feel that we have been a stewardship to keep these important insects. Hang in there and keep up the good work!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Mary!

[@dougmclelland572]

Great video! I really love these yearly updates and helps me plan for the future. You are very inspiring and I hope 2023 is your year.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Doug!

[@dougmclelland572]

@@DuckRiverHoney if you ever need a hand with anything down there just let me know. I'm just up in Metropolis Illinois and would enjoy learning from you.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Doug!

[@Mike_squarebeefarms]

Great video! Thanks for sharing. I'm in Michigan and in just about the same place you are with my business and expansion. Funny watching this, we have similiar goals for this upcoming season. Love the videos! Thanks

[@DuckRiverHoney]

ThaNks Michael! I think the problems facing growing operations are pretty common and universal across locations. How do you produce it, handle it, and sell it?

[@farmermike7052]

I always appreciate your end of the year summary videos.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Mike!

[@rehmangusandapiary9024]

Nathan, I'm sorry for the loss of your mom. I really like your outlook on life and your belief in God! Thanks for your videos. Philip from Arkansas.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Phil!

[@RCSimRacin]

I’m loving listening to your story. I’m sorry for your loss brother.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Bobby!

[@meloneycrews]

Wow Nathan that was an awesome video! I know a lot of hard work went into making it! Thanks so much for sharing! My husband retired last month so we’re hoping to go from about 25 to maybe 50 hives this year and make our own queens! Nathan I’m so so sorry about your mom. I know what a terrible loss that was to you and your family! I’m 65 and my mom passed away 2 years ago, and even though I saw it coming and I obviously had her for many more years than you did your mom, it’s incredibly hard still! My mom had an awesome full life and she was ready, I just wasn’t! Selfish I know but we just don’t want to be without our moms. Again I wish I could give you a big hug!! But just know that my prayers are with you! And I know you know this but just try to remember that she wouldn’t want you spending time wishing you still had her but instead remember all the wonderful memories you were able to build with her and your family! Gods warm comfort is there for you also! That’s been my only saving grace is his grace! Nathan I pray that you, your family and your bees have a marvelous 2023!! God Bless my friend!! See you in a few days!!💞

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Meloney, I appreciate that very much, especially your prayers.

[@bradleysmith1487]

Thanks for sharing ! Happy New Year!!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Bradley, Happy New Year!

[@hopesadler4000]

Great video and information Nathan. Your videos are always professional and full of good information. Every colony I had, 17, swarmed last year and caught all but one. With that, honey production was low. I took some fall loss and 4 dead outs after the vortex ending with 24. My plan is to sell 24-30 nucs with queens I graft, make 800 lbs of honey, and grow to 40. God Bless.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Good deal Hope! Luck to you next year

[@drjmarkrodgers1428]

Great insight. Appreciate your perspective!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Mark!

[@billboelter7994]

Good video bud Touched on questions I had in all areas !! Keep it up God will provide !!! Thx..

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Bill!

[@BrownAndDaughters]

Man, my mom passed suddenly back in 2014 during my second year of medical school. It wasn't possible to slow down to mourn and still keep up with the workload. Not a great idea, but that's life. I miss her everyday and I can feel the pain in your voice. I wish you healing and good mental health. Please take time for yourself, talk to a professional, and be well. - Conner

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Conner, I appreciate that.

[@nszucs1]

I grew from 2 to 22 hives this year. Looking forward to trying to get to 50 next year. Thank you so much for sharing how your year went. Sorry to hear about your Mom. Sometimes life just happens and we can only accomplish so much. Looking forward to seeing what happens in 2023.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Nick!

[@lizrd4me2]

I appreciate you sharing this information. Yes, it was a rough year for sure.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Elizabeth

[@sheldonreimer8432]

Nathan l appreciate your methodical approach. It is inspiring. It’s necessary to plan and schedule in this industry it’s our road map. Life does happen though , and will sometimes throw us a curve ball that flips the schedule on its head .And at times the plan goes into limp mode for a while . But, once the good Lord has propped us up long enough to get back on our feet the plan is still there to help us get our bearings and move forward. And sometimes change the heading a little. Thanks for your honest sharing! God is good , may He bless and keep you and your family in 2023 ! Happy New Year!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Sheldon!

[@michaelshelnutt3534]

Nathan, I am sorry to hear about your Mom. I lost my Dad back in 2017, and I understand the impact losing a parent has. Praying for your family as you learn to continue. Thanks for sharing all you are doing and experiencing.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Michael, I really appreciate that.

[@janahamilton9588]

Your videos inspire me in so many ways. Keep it up. Can’t say how much i appreciate all of your content. Down to the personal. I learn something each video. So organized. So precise. So neat. Love it!!!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Jana! I do try, I can say that honestly.

[@billymiller1954]

Thank you again for another very informative video. I am so sorry to hear about your mother. God does have a plan and faith in his plan keeps us going. Following your beekeeping journey, I think has helped me be more prepared for my first year coming up. I plan on starting out with 3 hives and hope to get to at least 20 by the end of the season. I plan to focus more on honey production in the second year. I hope your 2023 year is phenomenal!! Take care. Billy

[@DuckRiverHoney]

I think you’ve got reasonable goals Billy. I don’t expect honey until a hive is mature, unless you can give them drawn combs.

[@soakedinsaki]

Sorry for the loss of your mom. We lost my dad in December. I went from 8 hive to 35 hives last year. 3rd year if doing this wanted to try queen rearing this year and see how I do. Knowing bees and my old eyes I might be buying local queens to fill my nucs again this year. Keep up the good work and keep growing.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Kelvin, Happy New Year!

[@LawsonsCreekApiary]

Great video! Your transparency is commendable. I know it taught me a good bit and I know it helped many others. Side note, try latex or vinyl gloves if you haven't already. The bees can still sting through them, but seem less likely to in my experience. When they do, you can pop the stinger out immediately just by pulling the glove away from your skin. Also, don't have to deal with sticky hands at the end.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@bethkellogg6502]

Just wanted to say I love your videos and attention to detail. Can’t wait for more videos.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Beth!

[@dustinnyffeler8624]

Nathan, thanks for these. I've been watching lots of videos on beekeeping, yours included, for several years now. I appreciate your takes as your situation looks similar to what I expect mine to be. I got a hive for Christmas and am looking forward to getting started.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Dustin, good luck!

[@tfeerst]

Thanks for sharing your success and failures. We had a goal of less swarms in 2022 but mistakes were made and had just as many as past years.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

They’re hard to prevent sometimes.

[@jhulin9018]

Very helpful and instructional video. You set the bar pretty high with your topics, detailed format and teaching style. Praying that 2023 will be you positive cash flow year !!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Dwight!

[@BrianCooper901]

You approach your craft in a very well thought out way. Thanks for sharing and Happy New Year!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Brian!

[@GEEZBEEZ]

Appreciate the information and you sharing it. Always good to set new goals. Happy new year. Take care and God bless you and yours.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Happy New Year!

[@flowerstreetfarmbees]

Thanks for taking us along your journey of growth. The numbers don't tell the whole story. You've grown a lot and had a lot of successes.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks, that’s kind of you.

[@mattkersten1928]

Loved the video and hearing a bit about the business side. In south central Wisconsin we're only getting ~$8/lb. I had a couple people reach out wanting to buy 5 gallon buckets for $180. From 9 hives I extracted around 1150lbs of honey last year. The rain was timed almost perfectly.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

That’s a good season for sure. What are your major flows?

[@mattkersten1928]

@@DuckRiverHoney I think most of it is clover mixed with some basswood. Last summer a light switch turned on in a week into July and it was almost hard to keep up (great problem to have).

[@DuckRiverHoney]

That was probably basswood then. Does it have a minty taste? Our basswood flow is very variable. They only bloom every few years.

[@richardnoel3141]

Happy new year Nathan, See you later this week! 🙌💪

[@DuckRiverHoney]

It’ll be good to meet you Richard! I don’t envy your travel…I hate flying. Safe travels.

[@richardnoel3141]

@@DuckRiverHoney thanks Nathan. At the moment it looks fairly ok. All running fine now after your big winter storm has cleared. It’s always a lottery!

[@nancynolton6079]

So sorry to hear of the loss of your mom - I lost my middle (younger) brother unexpectedly in May. Can appreciate the slowdown and adjustment that follows. On the solace nucs, I've found they have to be put on drawn comb and to make them strong if you want good success. Asking them to draw comb and grow in size is asking a lot - you will still need to feed. I love overwintering 5x5x5 medium nucs here in Pennsylvania (south central). They've all survived the artic blast we just went through just fine. LOL Those feisty hives of yours gave your a real workout on sting numbers! I've got gloves that fit so nice and snug that its like not wearing gloves at all. Got stung on the ring finger once almost had to cut off the wedding rings the finger swelled so much... ice, Benadryl, elevation finally brought the swelling down. Only get a pimple at sting sights now and I wear capris pants, jacket and gloves when inspecting. Over 40 hives and growing will be an endeavor in scheduling and timing things right not to mention having plenty of supplies on hand and ready to use. Looking forward to seeing your efforts on the honey house. Get yourself a queen rearing wheel from Better Bee they are worth their weight in gold for timing queen emergency and mating timelines and so easy to use. Do some grafting for fun to get an idea of how you want to fine tune the process (cell builders) you'll use in the future for larger scale production. I do grafting before making those summer solace nucs so I have capped cells ready to emerge... if any fail I just paper merge the nucs with one of the other successful nucs for a stronger colony. Lots to do before March!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Nancy I’ve got a pallet of frames waiting to be assembled, and I have to pick up a pallet of woodenware after hive life which will need to be assembled. I need to put together my wax dip system, install panels in the ceiling and walls of the honey house, get the floor drain installed, septic hooked up, inspection, storage shelves….my to-do list is longer than my free time right now. If you want to come down and warm up I’ll put you to work! 🤣

[@TexasBeekeeper]

Sounds like we're at similar points in our beekeeping venture. If you want to have swarm management, make splits and still get a Honey harvest, I recommend C.C. Miller's splitting method. I went from 12 to around 48 colonies in 2022. The colonies that I split from are booming. Starting with only 12 colonies in 2022 made it a little difficult to have adequate brood frames to pull, but with you (and I) both being at around 40 colonies now, it should make finding donor brood frames no problem. I've got a video series on it, and have to say it worked well for me. I'll try it again this year, but not sure I'm ready to expand that fast (mostly short on woodenware). Good luck in 2023 and keep it up!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks! I’ll check out your series.

[@rbell4201]

Is that what’s referred to as the Miller Method?

[@TexasBeekeeper]

@@rbell4201 I would guess that's it. I haven't really heard much about it, but if you've heard of "Miller method", that would be my guess. It worked really well at managing swarms and expanding my apiary.

[@anne-pierredepeyronnet3204]

Interesting. Tjs for sharing.

[@kirkhlavaty6564]

Great video, Nathan. I'm sorry to hear about your Mom. Our businesses have some similarities. This was the first year I did not expand my apiary and finally turned a profit. Maybe slowing down your growth will help cash flow. Start small with queen rearing. You can easily create 20 queens. Use those queens to make splits. You will suddenly find your Apiary growing without trying. Good luck 2023!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Kirk!

[@marywickenheiser2628]

Love this video - it is a very good presentation of what beekeepers need to think about. I am inspired to write down some goals for 2023, including a honey house. Thanks for sharing the good, the bad, the ugly of beekeeping, and the beauty of your river!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Mary, Happy New Year!

[@noahG82]

I have to say our situations are pretty simillar. I took 7 colonies to 55 last year with purchased queens. I managed to go into winter with 40. I am counting on around 30 making it through and plan to use 20 as production colonies. Im hoping to expand and go into winter next year with 100 (50 being over wintered nucs) I also have a full time job (50hrs a wk) so its difficult. I plan to hire some help this year. 2023 Should be my first profitable year! Thanks for the information sir!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Noah, I think the 60-80 range May suit me well from a time perspective.

[@jimwalters840]

Thanks for the video. Thanks for opening up about the the business side of bee keeping. I hope to talk to you at hive life again.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Jim, hope to see you there.

[@aidanquick3151]

This is the genuine stuff. I appreciate you sharing it mate.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Aidan! Happy New Year to you.

[@RobinCoolidge]

Thanks for reviewing your year. I appreciate learning from your experiences!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Robin!

[@honey_bee_live]

Good Job! From a fellow TN keeper.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@lambbrookfarm4528]

Nathan, you had a rough year for sure, you have grown, and you have a plan. My hopes in beekeeping are somewhat smaller. I have learned much from information you presented in your many videos, thank you. May you have a great year! Brice

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Brice, Happy New Year!

[@nikbirkby287]

I can recommend using non-sterile examination glove for inspections. They are thin enough that you get almost all the feel you would if you were using bare hands but as you leave the yard you bin that set. Your hands are clean to drive and there is no disease transmission between yards.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Nik, they sweat me to death. I do like the no disease transmission though. Biosecurity is something I want to pay more attention to.

[@seananderson6958]

Thanks for posting this Nathan, and hello from the UK. You seem to be doing really well, congratualtions. I hope that the new season is good for you. I need to sell more of my honey at a higher price, you seem to be getting a pretty good price for yours.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks, I appreciate it. Happy to hear from you.

[@lindseyhomesteadfarm2653]

I really love the way you broke it all down. This breakdown will definitely help me now that I can start to focus on my bees again. I completely know how you feel with working full time on top of beekeeping. Plus my wife and I have a piece of commercial property in Dandridge, Tn that we bought to move our business to. Talking about working all the time that is all I do. Sorry to hear about your mother sir. Prayers your way sir. See you at Hive Life.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks, I appreciate it. Dandridge is a nice town.

[@pondimek]

Hey Nathan, Thank you so much for sharing your year (season) retrospective. I find it absolutely fascinating, especially as my beekeeping journey is only slightly trailing yours. The challenges you face, the insights you share, the tips and tricks, the successes and failures, all have helped me in my progress from IT nerd to side-line beekeeper, and eventually, independent apiarist. As you said, 2022 has been a struggle at times - life has thrown up some massive curveballs it seems for everyone this year. That you have shared these challenges is both heart-wrenching and in it's way evidence that no matter what challenges we face, life must go on. We are stronger for the challenges and obstacles we overcome, AND the people we surround ourselves with. For me, the 2022 season is only half way done. I'm located in SE Queensland, Australia; so we have another 4 months of beekeeping to go. My goal is 50 hives by ANZAC day (25 April) to overwinter into our 2023-24 season. So far, 300kg of honey, and aiming for about 800-1000kg by end of season. Like you, aiming to start raising queens properly in 23/24 season. Honey house, workshop, and "work / life balance" all on my to-do for 2023! Again, thank you so much for sharing. Keep sharing, and I will keep watching. It's amazing to see your progress as time goes by. Wishing all the best for you & your family in 2023. Cheers, Keith (creeksidebees)

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Keith, it's very good to hear from you. It sounds like we're in similar places, although on opposite sides of the earth. It's funny how the desk job makes you dream of working outside, doing your own thing, and begin to try to figure out the how. Good luck to you, and if you want to talk further shoot me an email - [e-mail]

[@akbeal]

Sorry about your Mom Nathan. You were really blessed bee wise this year. I came out of spring with 15 hives and you did way better than we did. I did get to try grafting and let me tell you I prepped for grafting by watching every video imaginable and carefully studying larvae size to use. Then came time to do it and convinced my 16 year old son to help me. I grafted one 15 cup cell bar and he did another 15 cup bar. Only thing is he had no intensive preparation like me. I quickly showed him a pic of a 3 day larvae but didn’t have much hope his would amount to anything. He barely looked at the pic and seemed to rush through it more than my liking. Well 14 of his 15 were successful cells but none of mine were not even one. Sometimes life is strange that way.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Sounds like he has young eyes!

[@russellkoopman3004]

LOL Probably all luck on his side. I've seen some grafters wear like jewelers glasses with lights on. I saw them on Amazon for less than $30. I don't graft but I would need some high powered lens to see those little buggers.

[@fergalmcdonald]

Hi Nathan, I’m watching from Ireland 🇮🇪. Firstly I’m sorry to hear about your mum. I loved the way you have broken your season down with facts and figures. I love my bee’s but I don’t have a great head for business! This video has made me think that I need to refocus and start being more ambitious. We have quite a short season where I’m from but with more focus I too might break even one year!😂

[@DuckRiverHoney]

🤣. That’s great! What are your main flows? I’ve read a little about Irish beekeeping. Cool and rainy weather is tough.

[@fergalmcdonald]

@@DuckRiverHoney Depends on the bee’s. I’ve been using the native Irish black bee (Apis Mellifera Mellifera) they are obviously more suited to our climate so can forage early spring to late summer. Unfortunately the buckfast bee and Italian varieties are becoming more common, they don’t tolerate the cold weather very well.

[@rusticlifefarm6264]

Blue surgical gloves, the cheap ones... keeps the hands free of sticky. Tip: IF you can double up on them do it. Lets you take the outer one off if it gets too much propolis on it ;) Sorry about your Mum :( Lost mine in 2014, then Dad in 2017- Just remember she's with God and looking over you ♥

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@srae1503]

Great video and willingness to share the good and the struggles. Hope you have been videoing the honey house build and will share that also. Sorry for the loss of your mom. Prayers

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks! I’ll do an update on the honey house soon.

[@tomahawkmissile241]

Happy New Years! The best part of being human is knowing how to work out tough senerios.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks! I finally got a comment from you that wasn't deleted... 🤣

[@haroldmarsh716]

Love the INFO. I'm trying to grow my yard.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Harold!

[@R_an_D]

Thanks for the thorough, helpful information. We learn from your inspirational insights. As an alternative to gloveless beekeeping, try using commercial grade dishwashing gloves. They're more durable than disposable gloves and allow fine movement. Stings are minimal like the ones you get through clothing.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks, I’ve tried nitrile and a couple others, but they sweat me to death!

[@deeware6862]

Great video. I recently found you and subscribed. I'll be following your journey as I'm starting mine. Thanks.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@nkapiariesjeffbeezos796]

Nice breakdown on your operation. Bummer that they are trying to sting you thru the suit. I’ve tried to eliminate colonies that are aggressive. Good look on queen rearing. I’ve been able to raise 15-20 queens a week without grafting so I don’t think I’ll be grafting 2023

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Jeff!

[@theboonecountybeekeeper]

Great video Nathan! I hope to meet you this week at Hive Life. God bless you my friend.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@lindafox4065]

Awesome info. Thanks for sharing. Goal setting is my goal this year. LOL!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Linda!

[@wesleydickerman3814]

Good to hear the nuts & bolts / basics of where it's at.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Wesley!

[@jamesdavis3600]

Hi Nathan, Happy New Year to you and your family! I’m one of those who has benefited from your videos this past year and listening to this one has been so helpful for me even now. I look forward to seeing how your operation grows in 2023. Looking forward to seeing you at the Hive Life Conference in a few days.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks James, Happy New Year!

[@johnemmenecker4859]

Just so you are aware we are and have been at the exact place in our beekeeping. Interesting to watch our growth side by side, youve had a lot more start up cash, and Ive got a lot more start up capital

[@johnemmenecker4859]

And I post these comments before I watch the whole video, sorry for your loss, its greatly appreciated what youre doing here and I would love to chat sometime.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks John, shoot me an email sometime if you like. [e-mail]

[@gregdunn6422]

Very informative video Nathan. I got several ideas from it that will enhance my operation. Thanks & hope to meet you at HL.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Greg, hope to see you there.

[@jeffreynast4063]

Thank you Nathan, for another year of videos. I really like your thoughts and ideas and the way you present them. I checked my hives yesterday. One dead-out, which was expected. I needed snowshoes to get to them. :-) Hope to meet you in person at HL23 in a few days! -Jeff and Diane

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Jeff and Diane! I like snow, but it gets to be a lot of work after a while. And then mud season! Hopefully we’ll meet up at Hive Life.

[@mriley528]

Thanks for sharing! I think the great thing about this type of agriculture is if you put the money into infrastructure, you can grow organically and sustainably. I lean more on nuc sales because I like the 200 dollar pops vs the labor intensive 14 dollar pops but know I need to do some larger capital investments to make it efficient. Started because of honey but generally just love the bee work and making queens. 5 year plan is to write letters to local farms to increase my out-yards because I just don’t see 100-200 being sustainable on one block of land. Then in 5 years look at North Carolina cotton runs or something similar to chase other nectar flows.

[@mriley528]

If we didn’t have a 2 year old, and twins on the way I would come say hello at hive live, I think I have a good idea but also know there is value in being around like minded sideliner/small commercial outfits

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Twins! Congrats, and sleep while you can.

[@mriley528]

@@DuckRiverHoney I’m prepared to be sleep deprived and broke, but on the plus side, 3 fresh backs in the coming years haha

[@DuckRiverHoney]

We’re out of diapers now, if we can get past the napping stage on the little one I’ll feel like I’ve got it made.

[@jordanf.8715]

I enjoy your videos. I had big plans last year to boost up my hive counts. Started 2 hives last year and wanted to go to 40 range this year. But that all changed, I was getting pretty confident and started using just a vail. Well come to find I’m allergic to bees stings. They would hurt pretty bad but I was moving off one of my deeps and they buzzed my hand really bad. Ended up passing out in my house and my gf called 911. I still plan to keep bees but probably won’t be doing it as a large production like I had planned originally. Hate when I make plans to do something through the year and end up not being able to do it by running out of time and things taking longer to do. I think failure is too harsh sometimes it’s just not enough time in the day and family time comes to be important. Sorry to hear about you mom.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Jordan, sorry to hear about your allergy. That's tough, and something we can't control.

[@jordanf.8715]

@@DuckRiverHoney sorry that wasn’t written very good and didn’t proofread it. Guess that’s what I get for writing before I drink my coffee

[@Lsmith-ly2cm]

Good video thank you.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@TheBradtri]

I work without gloves and have found that alcohol based sanitizer does a good job of removing propolis/honey/wax from my hands when I’m done working the bees.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

That’s a good tip, thanks.

[@davidhewett8898]

Hi Nathan. Happy New Year and thanks for the very informative video. I also like the idea of going bare handed, but struggle with getting stung on the hands. I wear just a veil and gloves, long sleeve lightweight shirt and pants. I do get stung through the clothes from time to time. I’ve tried neoprene, but they get too sweaty for me. My strategy is to wear my gloves for those nastier hives (we all have them) and take them off for the friendly bees. I don’t mess around with marking queens in the nasty hives, and if I accidental squish a nasty hive queen with my clumsy gloves - it’s no great loss.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks David. I think I’ll end up wearing gloves for fast / rough work, especially spring stuff. Maybe go without if I’m looking for queens.

[@michaelfike7542]

Hopefully you reach all your goals this year. Got some plans in the works myself but we will just have to see what the new year brings. ❤️🐝

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks Michael, luck to you.

[@morgansmith9955]

Awesome video!

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Thanks!

[@ericfrance3241]

Congratulations Nathan on a good year. Looking forward to introducing myself to you at Hive Life next week! I'm curious about how big you want to get? I manage 20 hives in Denver while working full time, two per neighbor's backyard so lots of travel for a small number of hives. I sell 1,500 lbs of honey, 20 overwintered nucs and the occasional queen. Forty hives sounds like a lot of weekends, particularly with honey harvest and bottling on top of it. Do you have a goal for when you stop expanding? Beekeeping has a way of taking over and being out of balance in life is a risk. I'd enjoy a video on your long term goals and how you plan to get there.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Eric, beekeeping was supposed to be a small hobby! I LOVE it, and the demand just keeps pulling me bigger. There’s a lot of difference in selling 1500 lbs and 3,000, 5,000, 15,000…will demand hold up, or will it saturate? I don’t know. After I get the honey house done I can legally go as big as I want. What I expect will happen is I’ll get to 60-80, make honey, sell some queens and nucs, and have decent work life balance. Any bigger and I’d probably have to double or triple and go full time. I’m blessed to work full time from home on a 4 day a week schedule or this wouldn’t be possible.

[@3Beehivesto300]

Glove 🧤 less lol You can only do it certain times of the year. Like when making nucs during the nice spring weather when the bees are busy working.

[@babybeeapiaries8667]

Try using nitrile gloves. I still get stung but I usually don’t take a full sting through them. Also I can feel so much more as I am working, which helps a lot.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

I’ve tried them, but the sweat prunes my hands.

[@babybeeapiaries8667]

@@DuckRiverHoney lol, I'll take the pruning. The sweat I produce without gloves causes me to be stung too much. That's the only reason I use them.

[@nutsandboltsbeekeeping6413]

I'm impressed that you are getting $14 a pound. I'm getting $8 in my local area and $10 is the highest I've seen near me.

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Different markets. In the bigger cities I’m underpriced. At the festival I went to most people said it was a good deal, even had a couple tell me I was priced too low.

[@sporkintheeye]

Regarding gloves: I use disposable thin nitrile exam gloves. You get lots of dexterity and they almost never sting through them. It's as if they don't understand what nitrile is. (I actually got stung more through leather gauntlets than I do through exam gloves.)

[@DuckRiverHoney]

I’ve tried them, but they make me sweat something fierce!

[@sporkintheeye]

@@DuckRiverHoney they do me, too. I get pretty pruney

[@DuckRiverHoney]

I look like I’ve been in the pool for 4 hours after wearing nitrile gloves to work bees in. I sweat through leather, but at least it goes through 🤣

[@sporkintheeye]

@@DuckRiverHoney Same here. I find that it is when my leather gloves get sweaty that I start getting hand stings. When I do have an ultra spicy hive, I end up putting leather gloves on top of the nitrile to limit the leakage.

[@daverowden-RowdyBeeFarms]

I tried the gloveless approach and didn’t like it because of sticky sticky everything. I switched to neoprene gloves. I still get stung in the hands but the gloves pull the stinger out almost immediately automatically. See you at HLC

[@DuckRiverHoney]

Dave do they sweat you really bad? That’s why I don’t like nitrile gloves.

[@daverowden-RowdyBeeFarms]

@@DuckRiverHoney yes they do sweat me. I decided the sweat was better than the sticky on everything

[@DavidWilliams-wr4wb]

I’m commenting on the statement you made about getting stung more to build immunity, now I will tell you from experience, I’ve been stung thousands of times, and have had bees .since 1971 ,I used to keep bees commercially with the family and maintaining 500 hives at a time , the fact is you should avoid getting stung at all costs, I started developing an allergy to bees from being stung too many times , the reason is honeybee venom is toxic on a different level and your immune response is affected and the more venom you are exposed to the more likely you will develop an allergic response which gets worse the more you get stung , I would work with a allergist to come up with a plan if you are starting to react worse to stings