The Middle Tennessee Thread

[RedPulletMama]

RedPulletMama where are you located or where was the meeting? We are looking to get into the bee business this spring would love to learn more about it....My grandfather had bunches of hives when i was growing up...But I only went near it once and got stung numerous times...I was allergic so not a good thing...I havent been stung in years so don't know if I still am BUT my DH wants some so would like to learn more.

To get bees in the spring they must be ordered by Nov. 1st!! Don't run out of time We order from Kelley's Bees. Not sure on exact web address, but you should find it easy enough I think. Lots of luck... BTW I live in Murfreesboro.

 

[Penny Hen]

Ok, I had to pass this along. Everyone needs a laugh now and again.


A woman brought a very limp duck into a veterinary surgeon. As
she laid her pet on the table, the vet pulled out his
stethoscope and listened to the bird's chest.

After a moment or two, the vet
shook his head and sadly said, "I'm sorry, your duck, Cuddles,
has passed away."

The distressed woman wailed,
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I am sure. Your duck is dead," replied
the vet..

"How can you be so sure?" she
protested. "I mean you haven't done any testing on him or anything. He might just be in a coma or
something."

The vet rolled his eyes, turned
around and left the room. He returned a few minutes later
with a black Labrador Retriever. As the duck's owner looked on
in amazement, the dog stood on his hind legs, put his
front paws on the examination table and sniffed the duck from
top to bottom. He then looked up at the vet with sad eyes and
shook his head.

The vet patted the dog on the
head and took it out of the room. A few minutes later he
returned with a cat. The cat jumped on the table and also
delicately sniffed the bird from head to foot. The cat sat
back on its haunches, shook its head, meowed softly and
strolled out of the room.

The vet looked at the
woman and said, "I'm sorry, but as I said, this is most
definitely, 100% certifiably, a dead duck."

The vet turned to his computer terminal, hit a few keys and
produced a bill, which he handed to the woman..



The duck's owner, still in shock, took the bill. "$150!" she
cried, "$150 just to tell me my duck is dead!"

The vet shrugged, "I'm sorry. If you had just taken my word for it,
the bill would have been $20, but with the Lab Report and the
Cat Scan, it's now $150."

 

[Chrystal Dawn]

Everybody is going so crazy over them. If I want some blackboned birds I would rather get Yashar's Hustatec (I may have spelled that wrong). There is also the Swart Hunne that while nearly as rare here as a Ayam Cemani, but at least the ones I have seen aren't as pricey. And they look a lot alike. It would be interesting to compare the DNA and see how closely related they are.

I've never heard of them but I'm googling now.

There was a guy in Nashville selling bees and hives on craigslist recently.

 

[cpegram]

To get bees in the spring they must be ordered by Nov. 1st!! Don't run out of time We order from Kelley's Bees. Not sure on exact web address, but you should find it easy enough I think. Lots of luck... BTW I live in Murfreesboro.

Great I need to get them ordered then huh? I will check it out later when I get back in...I live in Eagleville. Yes I will see you there next month cant wait! I have boxes coming down from NY whatever my grandfather has left over, he is not so much into it anymore. I have an Aunt going through for me. My parents will be down for Thanksgiving so hopefully I will be set or at least know what i have to work with.


I think pretty much you can't get bees till spring or that's when everyone sells them...there is a guy in shelbyville too. There is a guy at work who has bees and i believe he told me to get them from Kellys too. I will have to wait till next week to order but I will get them

funny joke LOL

 

[RedRidge]

Quote:
Actually, this is not quite true.
You would be much better off ordering a "nuc" than a "package" and ordering them from someone local.
You will have healthier bees that don't need to adjust to climate, shipping, etc.
Most beekeepers associations have several folks in each one who offer nucs each year when they do splits.
All of our nucs are already spoken for next year, but usually folks still have some not spoken for well into the spring.
Last year was a bad year for beekeeping in TN since we not only had a lot of rain, but many folks who ordered packages had a lot of queen problems, and even those who ordered nucs had some queen problems too, as they were stocked with young queens.
We were fortunate to make some honey... better than average even... but the average in TN last year due to all the rain was down to less than 1/3 the usual honey flow.

So... contact someone to get some nucs... you want to start off with at least 2 preferably.
Existing beekeepers are ALWAYS willing to help new folks... contact anyone on this list and they would love to help I am sure...

http://www.tnbeekeepers.org

 

[TinTennessee]

I have a friend in Arrington between murfreesboro & Franklin that raises queen bees. I'm not sure but think he also sells nuks. Look up arrington creek apiaries. Or I'll try to post s link if my phone will let me.

 

[cpegram]

Thanks for the help y'all

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

Connie, I will eagerly buy honey from you once you get established. My local honey guy has retired.

 

[RedPulletMama]

Great I need to get them ordered then huh? I will check it out later when I get back in...I live in Eagleville. Yes I will see you there next month cant wait! I have boxes coming down from NY whatever my grandfather has left over, he is not so much into it anymore. I have an Aunt going through for me. My parents will be down for Thanksgiving so hopefully I will be set or at least know what i have to work with.


I think pretty much you can't get bees till spring or that's when everyone sells them...there is a guy in shelbyville too. There is a guy at work who has bees and i believe he told me to get them from Kellys too. I will have to wait till next week to order but I will get them

funny joke LOL

Yes, order them now and they will arrive in April or May. My husband drives to Kentucky to Kelly's to pick his up so he doesn't have to pay shipping. In his opinion shipping costs more than gas lol.

 

[RedPulletMama]

Actually, this is not quite true.
You would be much better off ordering a "nuc" than a "package" and ordering them from someone local.
You will have healthier bees that don't need to adjust to climate, shipping, etc.
Most beekeepers associations have several folks in each one who offer nucs each year when they do splits.
All of our nucs are already spoken for next year, but usually folks still have some not spoken for well into the spring.
Last year was a bad year for beekeeping in TN since we not only had a lot of rain, but many folks who ordered packages had a lot of queen problems, and even those who ordered nucs had some queen problems too, as they were stocked with young queens.
We were fortunate to make some honey... better than average even... but the average in TN last year due to all the rain was down to less than 1/3 the usual honey flow.

So... contact someone to get some nucs... you want to start off with at least 2 preferably.
Existing beekeepers are ALWAYS willing to help new folks... contact anyone on this list and they would love to help I am sure...

http://www.tnbeekeepers.org

We've always just ordered packages from Kelly's which is less than 2 hrs from us and have never had a problem with them. They have great service, prices, and bees. Since we drive to pick them up, there is also no shipping to bother with. It works for us, but everyone is different. We mostly catch swarms now. We caught 6 this year! And you don't want to not order bees now hoping to get a nuc from someone in the spring only to find out nobody has any :/