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sgtmom52 said:
Also be cautious of any honey listed as Organic ~ as if is not impossible to have organic honey it is improbable. The term Organic honey is not regulated in the US.
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True, but there are a lot of variables in the methods of the beekeepers with regard to what treatments (aka chemicals) that they use to manage their hives. A couple of years ago, I had a discussion with someone from Penn State who was on the committee to establish possible National Organic Standards for honey. I don't think any consensus was reached, exactly because it's not possible to control where the bees forage. That being said, sometimes I think that that argument is used by those who use commercial miticides and fungicides in their hives as a way to deflect attention away from those who don't use those treatments.

Wing, if you're interested in getting bees, check out this local group. http://pennapic.org/ They do seminars and educational events. If you want contact info for the Lancaster beekeepers group, i can track it down for you. They have a lot of their meetings on a farm right off of rt 30 on the other side of Mt. Joy.
 
beaglady said:
True, but there are a lot of variables in the methods of the beekeepers with regard to what treatments (aka chemicals) that they use to manage their hives. A couple of years ago, I had a discussion with someone from Penn State who was on the committee to establish possible National Organic Standards for honey. I don't think any consensus was reached, exactly because it's not possible to control where the bees forage. That being said, sometimes I think that that argument is used by those who use commercial miticides and fungicides in their hives as a way to deflect attention away from those who don't use those treatments.

Wing, if you're interested in getting bees, check out this local group. http://pennapic.org/ They do seminars and educational events. If you want contact info for the Lancaster beekeepers group, i can track it down for you. They have a lot of their meetings on a farm right off of rt 30 on the other side of Mt. Joy.
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Excellent group ~ I am a member and friends with the founder Mike Thomas. Mike is also a member of the York County Beekeepers www.ycbk.org Mike also owns Bjorn Apiaries in Franklintown near Dillsburg. http://www.bjornapiaries.com/
 
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Sgtmom, do you belong to the York beekeepers group?

I've had up to 11 hives in some years, but went into winter with only one, due to a summer of bad management and swarming. It doesn't look like they made it, though they were a small group and I didn't really expect them to winter over. I'm hoping to get a couple nucs and start over. No chemical treatments here either. I've always done either small cell foundation or natural comb and have been lucky/successful with low mites, though I have all the usual other problems.
 
sgtmom52 said:
Quote: might be why I see lots of hives available on craigslist...many do not want to replace them.
beaglady said:
Quote: I wish I could but hubby is very against having bee's,,,,,,such a shame cause the whole process fascinates me, and we use alot of honey......I even tried to convince him to let someone else put the hives up in exchange for honey, we would not have to touch them.....there's someone from lititz looking to establish hives and we have the spot that he is looking for...
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beaglady said:
Sgtmom, do you belong to the York beekeepers group?

I've had up to 11 hives in some years, but went into winter with only one, due to a summer of bad management and swarming. It doesn't look like they made it, though they were a small group and I didn't really expect them to winter over. I'm hoping to get a couple nucs and start over. No chemical treatments here either. I've always done either small cell foundation or natural comb and have been lucky/successful with low mites, though I have all the usual other problems.
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Yes ~ I have been a member of the York County Beekeepers' Assoc. for 7 years and am the current President of the Assoc.

We use mostly natural was foundation ~ we were started out with Pierco foundation when we were introduced to beekeeping but I don't like it. We are researching the most natural mite treatment we can find for possible use this fall. Hop Guard looks promising ~ it is a treatment made from the hop plant. Unfortunately it not approved for sale in PA yet ~ although it is approved in MD.

Swarming is also a good mite control as it breaks the brood cycle ~ but not good for honey production.
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wingstone said:
might be why I see lots of hives available on craigslist...many do not want to replace them.
I wish I could but hubby is very against having bee's,,,,,,such a shame cause the whole process fascinates me, and we use alot of honey......I even tried to convince him to let someone else put the hives up in exchange for honey, we would not have to touch them.....there's someone from lititz looking to establish hives and we have the spot that he is looking for...
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We recommend using caution when buying used hives ~ make sure you know why they are getting rid of them. A hive infected with American Foul Brood is deadly and should be burned.

We have hives on 2 local farm (as well as at our house) The farmers give us the location, we give them pollination and some honey in exchange. Works well for us.
 
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