Homesteading with bees. Do they bother your chickens?

[cgmccary]

I live on an acre and a half, though a lot of it is wooded. I've been researching bee keeping for months now and can't seem to find anything about how far from the house the hives should be. I have a spot down the hill from my house, but it's still close enough to the coop that I wonder if they will bother my chickens, or if the chickens will bother the bees.

Have any of you kept bees on a smaller lot and any issues with your fowl?

I have honeybees and chickens. No issues between chickens and bees. Neither bother the other. Honeybees are rather docile. I face openings of the hives due South -- you want the sun on them). Place them as close to the house as you want. In the city., I had them on my back deck & they were fine. Now I live in the country and put them near my pond in the pasture. I found my cows would scratch themselves on the hives and knock them down so I put a portable 4 ft fence around them to keep the cows off them.

 

[rosewellfarm]

We've got 2 hives about 300 yds from our chickens. The hens chase the bees sometimes trying to get a nibble, but I've only rarely seen them actually get one. We have a bunch of white clover growing around where the chickens are, so the bees hang out there a lot for the nectar.

 

[oldbird1]

Hi mate regards to the bees , if your garden is close to your house theres no problem as Bees fly 5 kilometres foraging for pollen etc so when your garden plants flower the Bees will definatly find them just one suggestion try to keep a supply of water in the vicinity of your hives as Bees drink frequently specially on hot days my hives are about 20 yards from our back door in the chook yard and the only problem we have had is at night when we put the lights on the Bees that are late returning to their hive are attracted to the light and my wife has been stung twice from this which believe me wasn't appreciated so a screen door was fitted, problem solved hope this helps as I love my Bees and 8 Rocks oldbird1

 

[neatyardian]

Very important ! Place your hives in a corner of your property with least traffic. In fall time bees more likely to sting you if you close by. Like others I would recommend 100 feet away. Again , in a corner with least traffic. I keep my bees in wooded area as well . I keep them two cider blocks high off the ground. Have fun!

 

[neatyardian]

Oh, forgot to mention. Bee are more likely to sting playful kids and dogs . Chickens,not so much.

 

[CSWolffe]

I live on 0.13 acres, with 5 hens and two hives, and have had no trouble at. During the day my hens range free in the yard, right up to my hives, and they just ignore them, and ignore the bees. My kids and dogs play in the backyard too, running and cavorting through clouds of fall foraging bees, and in three years have not had a single sting.

 

[irischick]

We are thinking of getting a hive or two this spring. We were planning on keeping the hive(s) in a 10x10 chain-linked fenced in area that used to be either a dog pen or small vegetable garden from prior owners. I keep the compost in there now. It is a tad shaded by trees. It The opening of the hives would face south or West depending where we put them. Any suggestions? The hives would be about 35 feet from the coop.

Thanks,
Karen

 

[Deb B]

We are thinking of getting a hive or two this spring. We were planning on keeping the hive(s) in a 10x10 chain-linked fenced in area that used to be either a dog pen or small vegetable garden from prior owners. I keep the compost in there now. It is a tad shaded by trees. It The opening of the hives would face south or West depending where we put them. Any suggestions? The hives would be about 35 feet from the coop.

Thanks,
Karen

Facing south is better than facing west.

 

[Life is Good!]

We are thinking of getting a hive or two this spring. Any suggestions?

1. "thinking of getting a hive or two" leads me to believe you're new at beekeeping. Please read, read and read some more! There is a fairly large learning curve with bees - mostly to do with hive set-up, maintenance and other 'realities' of their lives in our confined spaces. Did I mention you should be reading? Find forums on-line like this one (there are many) and read!

2. If you're truly interested - locate a local bee club and go to their meetings faithfully. Often, groups will mass order items (equipment, supplies, bees themselves) and have lower costs. To start up this hobby, can be low cost or really really high cost - depending on your hive set-up and method of management.

3. You may be too late for this spring's bee orders. With the wacky weather, there is a serious shortage of bees available. A 3# package of bees with a queen is about $120 (what my local bee group is getting for rate). And because of die-offs, the group has been warned the supplier may not be able to fulfill the entire order! And there's still 3' of snow on the ground here with the order delivery date for 4/20!

4. Did I mention reading?

Good luck! It's an amazing experience - this is something I'd never thought I'd be getting into...but my orchards and garden need the bees. By the way, did I mention I'm slightly terrified of the creature on the whole? A field bee is nothing to be concerned about - it's those guard bees in the house that make my stomach do flip-flops as I work their home. Thus far, we're all doing well!

 

[Avlana]

We had a wild bee hive on our property at the house where I grew up. They never bothered us and we walked right by them every day. And we were rough and rowdy kids. The only time I got stung, was when I stepped on one on a clover flower. I'd love to have honey bees myself one day.