Today we have a two parter. I begin by answering a question I have gotten a lot lately. That is, “what am I personally doing to deal with what will be tropical depression Issac when it passes for all intents and purposes directly over my house”.
The answer is, well not that much different then the typical things I am always prepared for but there is a basic checklist, some travel adjustments and a simple mindset that we are putting in place to be ready for the remnants of this storm. While those far inland such as myself won’t have 90 MPH winds and storm surge we run the same risks of any severe weather event.
Additionally Issac is moving painfully slow (6-10 MPH ground speed) so we will likely have sustained winds in the 2o MPH range for 8-12 hours and heavy rainfall for a lot longer then that. I think anyone in the path of this storm needs to be prepared for loss of power and flooding in low lying areas. If like me you are on a ridge 900 feet above surrounding low lands you might not flood but your access to services may be cut off.
We then turn to today’s main subject, natural beekeeping with langstroth hives.
I think that since the first two bee keepers in our beekeeping series were top bar folks some of you got the impression that I am against what could be called a “conventional hive”, I am not, in fact I am a bee keeping novice to say the least, that is why I lined up a series of people using various methods.
Today’s guest is Mil Apostol. Mil has been keeping bees in her backyard since 2008 when she got her first hive. She studied with master beekeeper Serge Lebesque and keeps her hives chemical-free.
Mil believes in learning from local wild bees about how to be a better beekeeper. She has an organic garden, worked as a chef for many years, and also is an avid forager of wild foods.
She joins us today to answer questions like,
- How do you get started in beekeeping?
- What basic gear do you need to start beekeeping
- What are the start up costs of setting up a system properly?
- How much work is involved in beekeeping over a year?
- How can you be a chemical-free beekeeper?
- How many hives should a beginning beekeeper start with?
- Expected honey yields and pressing equipment?
- Is maintenance free beekeeping an option?
Additional Resources for Today’s Show