Good friend of the Great Lakes Bee Company Larry Hasselman once told us “the hardest part of beekeeping is lighting the smoker!” Beekeeping novices and veterans alike may find themselves needing to refamiliarize themselves with their beekeeping equipment as spring rolls around.
Let’s walk through the basic and most essential equipment to help you get started!
Hive Tool
- Hive tools are an essential and versatile piece in your beekeeping toolkit. When bees glue everything in the hive together, the hive tool allows you to detach the combs from the sides of the hive, cut and scrape propolis, and even remove nails or take apart boxes.
Smokers and fuel
- Bees are naturally aggressive creatures, which is why beekeepers use smokers to make their bees docile. Smokers mask the pheromones let out by guard bees, which minimizes the defensive reaction from the colony, allowing for effective and safe hive inspections.
Queen clip
- Queen clips are used to pick up or hold a queen bee. The clip acts as a cage that contains the queen, but the bars still permit worker bees to pass through and attend to the queen’s needs. The clip helps protect the queen during any work that needs to be done inside the hive.
Feeders
- Feeders are convenient for feeding bees and checking on your sugar syrup levels without needing to open your beehive. Typical entrance feeders have a jar filled with syrup that drips onto a tray, which is inserted to the front of the hive.
Protective gear
- The most important equipment in your arsenal will be your protective gear. Veils and gloves protect your head and face from any arrant aggressive bees, and prevent stings.
All of this equipment and more is available in our online store!
AND … If you’re looking to purchase bees, we still have 5 Frame Nucs and Mated Queens available for purchase online!
Our 2025 Spring Bee Pick-Ups dates are:
- Packages & Queens: Tentatively scheduled for Saturday, April 19
- Nucs: Confirmed for Saturday, May 10
- Location: Great Lakes Bee Company, 5973 S. Warner Avenue, Fremont, MI 49412
- More info: https://bit.ly/2025_GLBC_BeePickups
