What is your 'buzz' about keeping bees?

[jackbee]

What is your 'buzz' about keeping bees?

I'm feeling good about the world this week so to continue the positive vibes I thought I'd try and drag this forum with me in a feelgood thread.

What is that drives you to keep bees?

the honey?
the wax?
the biology of the bees - social?, physiological?
the excuse to have a shed and tools?
the woodworking?
the excuse to get out of the house / away from the house?
the fashionable suit and accoutrements?
the environmental aspect - pollination?
simply the bees themselves, and watching and listening?

For me it's the bees, fascinated by them, their social structure, biology, pheromone impact - all just astounds me and draws me in further the more I read and understand and discover.

Don't get me wrong, I'm looking forward to some honey but that's not what drives me now. Funnily enough it might have been at the start I think but that soon got overtaken by the bees themselves.

And at the moment it's the buzz, that sound just resonates, it's almost zen-like. I could sit for hours with just that buzz of a hive around me - magnificient.

Ok, over to you . . .

 

[oliver90owner]

All of them except the seventh!

Some not so important (wax came along as a by-product, always had the tools and enjoy woodwork and metalwork). I don't need 'excuses'.

RAB

 

[Outlander]

They are definitely fascinating creatures and again I agree with Olly all but 7 unless it’s in pink but not that nasty light dusky pink they do.

 

[Teemore]

I like bees.

I hope I can always have some bees nearby and if the only thing I ever got from them was the enjoyment of watching their comings and goings, their enterprise and productivity, I would be content.

RAB's comments reflect my own position; beekeeping brings together a number of my other interests and the social aspect is entertaining, namely the interplay between beekeepers - this forum is a fine example!!

 

[parkranger]

The Buzz

For me, it's definitely the bees. I marvel at their industry, their social structure and the fact that we are allowed to share it with them. An added bonus is the wonderful smell in my garage and car (not sure that my wife shares this thought!)

 

[Luminos]

Pollination

 

[BeeBus]

Yep all those things listed plus the wonderfull smell of smoke/wax combination in my car, not to keen on the stings though

 

[Queens59]

The fascination that you can never know everything, that each time you work with a hive you learn or see something new. Endless fascination

 

[flemage]

At first it was honey and environmental issues.

Then it was the bees the smell of a hive seeing a new bee come out all furry, good excuse to be out in a field in the country side (even if its raining).

Then it was the learning…. whoa....... I think I have learnt more than I did in my degree. Then putting that knowledge together to be able to start to problem solve.

I would like to point others to the list of old posts, what I have done is gone back to the old posts at this time of year and then followed them through the year and you see the issues coming through as they happen in the really world. Very helpful indeed. Then picking up on bits of info in the threads like whats AMM? then following that through to the orgainisations that suport AMM etc etc

Oh seeing the bees do well is the best thing

 

[oliver90owner]

... plus the wonderfull smell of smoke/wax combination in my car,

Definitely don't agree with that one - well not after my experience of approx 53 weeks ago!!! (look back to June 25)

 

[scuttlefish]

It's the "free" honey... well, just about everything apart from the "getting out of the house" bit of your list. It's probably a close call between the whole bee biology thing and the excuse to have a shed (the "make do & mend" aspect of small-scale hobby beekeeping).

 

[Shabro]

For me its the downtime, being able to get away from it all for an hour or two, being able to just sit there and watch and let the minutes/hours tick away.
The honey is just a by product, if and when I actually get any.

 

[verney]

Living the sweet life.

 

[jackbee]

ah, the aromas, I missed those - cedar and wax - lovely

I haven't smelt any honey . . . yet

 

[thorn]

Definitely not the woodworking, nor the science stuff.

I thought it would be a nice, relaxing hobby as I drift toward and into retirement. 20 minutes a week during the busy months, they said on the course. Oh yeah!

And then there's the honey, well, what's left after the swarms, and provided the weather allows the bees to make any. They didn't tell me that I'd be feeding bees in July.

But just sitting watching them coming and going makes up for all the problems.

 

[village girl]

definatly the bees and lerning something new every day ( well nearly every day) oh and the realy trend setting clothes lol
i hate the smoke though

 

[VEG]

I do it cos I like a nice suit

 

[REDWOOD]

I was asked this on my first day of my beekeeping course and it was just an interest of bees, know it is my reason for living so to speak, I just love everything about beekeeping I only wish I had found it earlier in life

 

[enrico]

When the honey is running into the jar I just can't help smiling. And licking my fingers!

 

[Sadders]

I have a daughter with Aspergers. When I am with the bees I am not thinking about anything else other than the bees. It's an escape. After inspecting, I sit on the grass in front of my hive and watch them. Thoroughly absorbing.