The Bee Dialogues

I've JUST begun exploring the possibility of keeping honey bees in our backyard in the past 5 months, and I love sharing my excitement with friends, family, and colleagues.  It's perhaps unsurprising to you that my excitement has drawn mixed reviews, lol. Some of the responses I've received...

"Aren't they dangerous??"  
"Your backyard sounds like a really "kid-friendly" place... [tongue firmly in cheek]." 
"Dude, aren't they illegal?"  

You may be thinking these things too, and that's cool! So I thought I'd answer them here to give you a better idea...

"Aren't they dangerous??" 

Typically, no.  Wasps and hornets are more aggressive than honeybees.  They sting freely.  With reckless abandon. Honeybees, on the other hand, are much more conservative stingers.  Their stingers are barbed, so when a bee gives you a love-tap her stinger becomes stuck in her victim (I say "her" because male bees cannot sting).  Some of the bee's innards get left behind along with her stinger.  Result?  A dead bee and a cussing human.  Generally, honey bees will only sting when they feel threatened, or they think their colony is threatened (specifically, their brood and their food).

"Your backyard sounds like a really "kid-friendly" place... [tongue firmly in cheek]." 

Darn right!  It may not be the norm in 2017, but our kids are loving our adventure into vegetable gardening and the like so far.  Part of what motivates Nat and I to homestead is the resulting quality time together as a family.  Homesteading has led to more time talking, planning, working, playing, and enjoying the literal fruits and veggies of our labours.  Consequence?  More loooooooove in the home. On another note, the bee hive will be placed at the back of the yard surrounded by some shrubs to provide a bit of division from the rest of the backyard. But to be honest, we want the kids to see and (eventually) be able to interact with the hive. I mean, what an amazing learning experience! We also plan on having both kids tested before we get the bees to ensure they're not allergic.

"Dude, aren't they illegal?" 

I have looked into the legality of beekeeping in our city. The answer is yes, they're illegal... BUUUUUUT I'm going for it anyways.  Because it's worth it (I'll chat more about this later).  With my neighbours' blessings, careful planning, and of course the best of intentions, I think I'll be able to prevent any issues.  *Fingers crossed ;) Sidenote: Keeping chickens was illegal for years until this year and people all over the city still had them. Just sayin'. 

The Bee Dialogues I have with others are obviously a little easier if my chat-mate's reaction is positive.  I HAVE had some of these!  Which is sweeeeet!  So exciting!  But even if my friend's knee-jerk impulse is to shy away from bees the conversation still has the potential to lead to topics related to agriculture, food, organics, pesticides, and sustainability.  Again, Nat and I admit this is pretty hippy-dippy, but maybe we should all be a little more hippy-dippy if it's good for our health and good for the Earth.

-Dave