Hello fellow Washingtonian beekeepers! Figured I’d start a thread for our state so that we can discuss all things beekeeping related to our neck of the woods.
We are located in Everett, WA, just north of Seattle. This is our 2nd year of bee keeping and we have 2 hives set up. Our first year was great, we only had 1 hive and we harvested 15-20 lbs of honey. Hoping this year is better yet.
We are really looking forward to getting our complete Flow Hive and getting it set up for next year!
Hello, we are just a bit south of you down in Edmonds. We are not yet beekeepers, only in spirit, but are eager to start with our flow system later this year!
Fantastic! Have you looked in to joining any local Beekeeper associations? We go to the Northwest District Beekeepers Association in Snohomish. Great source of information for beginner beekeepers.
Hello. I am on the Olympic Peninsula and started one hive a year ago which did well even with two swarms. I’ve ordered one Flow hive to start another stack in 2016. I’m learning there are about as many ways to keep bees as there are beekeepers! From mites to feeding and now to extracting honey, there seems to be little consensus of “best practices” in a field that’s thousands of years old and in just about every country. Makes it very interesting hobby.
Great to hear you had some success in your first year as well! And I agree, there is basically no consensus on best practices. You can have 100 beekeepers in a room who have been keeping bees for years and years, and they will all give you different answers to the same question!
Good morning, We keep 2-3 hives in West Seattle (3 this year) for the last 9 years, had 2 great hives last year 40lbs of honey. They were doing great all thru the fall and i did a check in January and both haves were empty with only a hand full of dead bees in them. This is the 3rd time in the 9 years we have had hives this has happened, we do regular mite checks and never had a problem with them. hive collapse we assume. Fresh start again this year and so far doing great, checked them yesterday and there is excellent brood and honey patterns in all three. We went with 2 Carniolan and 1 Italian to see if there is any difference this year.
Hello Washingtonians. I’m in Snohomish county and am hoping to attend the Snoho beekeeper club for the first time this month. I’ve taken several classes and just got my first bees last week. They are busy building comb and collecting pollen in the two hives I have set up in the backyard.
@Arkved Are you going to the next Snoho meeting? Maybe I’ll see you there. What set up are you using? I was going to do all 8-frame mediums but then this flow hive came along and requires deeps so am thinking of doing mediums for brood and deep for the super which seems kind of backwards from what most people do.
@gapey I am not sure if we will be making it to this month’s meeting. We have a LOT of things happening this month! If we can squeeze it in though, we will definitely make it.
We use the standard langstroth hives, 2 deep boxes for brood/food for the bees, then stack 2 supers (mediums) on top of that. We do 10 frames per box. We want to make sure there is plenty of food in the boxes come winter time, so we let them fill the deeps up completely with brood and food and only ever harvest the supers themselves.
We ordered a complete Flow hive set up, so it will be our 3rd hive next season.
Hello there! Spokane, WA here. I am not yet a beekeeping, but expecting the arrival of my Flow Hive this December, and starting my first colony for the 2016 season. Beekeeping seems a little intimidating, but I’m hoping this forum (as well as the local beekeeping group) will be of great resource.
@Pinkforestcalling Beekeeping is a very rewarding hobby for many of us. There’s a LOT to learn, but I am sure between this forum and your local group/association, you will be able to learn everything you need to know before next season rolls around. Good luck with your first hive!!
I will be lurking to gather all the info I can get. New to beekeeping here in Lacey and awaiting delivery of my complete Flohive.
Hello fellow Washingtonians!! I am totally new to bee keeping… I have listened to my friends talk about it for a while and decided to give it a shot. I ended up purchasing one of the complete Flow Hive systems, so this will give me some time to learn before I purchase my bees for the 2016 season.
I live out in Graham Washington (Pierce County), I live on 20 acres which luckily has lots of wild blossoms that I know the bees will love, and borders a lot of other large lot farms, so this should be a fun adventure!! I have not joined any associations or anything as of yet, but will be looking into it to see what is around the area. I am going to start with the one hive, see how things progress (hopefully I will not mess it up too much) and then grow from there… hard telling how many I might end up with if it all works out… haha
HI! I’m Dawn, and I’m learning rapidly as I go with my first two hives. Enjoying the process. My bees and I live on Capitol Hill in Seattle. I haven’t ordered a flow hive yet, but I’m thinking about it!
Went to my first Puget Sound Beekeepers Association last week and appreciated the excited beekeeper buzz and an excellent talk on swarm prevention and capture. Looking forward to learning more from those fine people.
Hello, here from the Clark County Bee Club in Bush Prairie Wa. That’s near Vancouver Wa. I have a couple of hives where I live in East Washougal. If your in the area our club has meeting on the 2nd Thursday of the month. July and Aug we will not have a meeting as we will be working at the Clark County fair grounds getting the bee barn ready for the Aug fair. Dena
Thank you for starting a Washington discussion. I’m moving north of Spokane spring 2016. Bee keeping will definitely be a part of our farm operation. Much to learn. This Flow Forum will be very helpful.
Hi there. I’m moving north of Spokane spring 2016. I’ll be very interested in keeping up with you and your early experiences. You’ll be getting started sooner than we’ll be able to. Thank you!
Hi GrantA. Where are you on the Peninsula? We have been CA beekeepers for about a decade and are in the process of moving back to the Peninsula, 18 miles south of Port Townsend…building a house this summer. We set up a hive last year hoping some bees might come by and move in, but that has not yet happened. We have only caught swarms for years and don’t really want to buy a package, but I have a feeling it won’t be as easy to get swarms there. I ordered a Flowhive, though most of the experienced beekeepers in our very active guild are very leery about it and taking a wait and see attitude.
Hello, we are on Capitol Hill as well. No bees. No hives. But high hopes to learn more and get prepared for our flow hive. Suggestions about meet ups and resources? Thanks.
Ecosanda, there are good sources of swarms on the Penninsula. I think the Olympic apiary is in Sequim. They specialize in catching and selling locally adapted swarms. Check the Seattle Craigslist, too. This time of year you can buy nucs from all over the region.