>Has anybody made a detailed study of the do's and dont's of suburban
>beekeeping?.
 
1.  Keep quiet bees - requeen with queens from a breeder you trust every 2nd
year.
 
2.  Asking that neighbours should be able to mow 5 yards from a hive is a
little difficult.  Whilst we do whipper snipper right up to the hives with
nothing more than a light net in case of accident, we do choose the weather
carefully.  Hot humid weather does bring out aggression in bees and I have
been hassled by the odd bee well out of line of sight of the hives when
thunder storms are building.  The fumes from mowers are offensive to bees.
I would suggest place the hives as far as possible within your own
boundaries, having in mind the following points:
 
3.  If hives are placed facing an obstruction such as a high hedge or shed
wall, bees leaving the hive immediately rise above the obstruction and
maintain this as their flight path coming and going.  They are unlikely even
to be noticed by people at ground level.
 
4.  Bees require adequate supplies of good quality water and will return to
the same source.  If a water supply is removed, bees will continue to check
out the area for at least 6 weeks (possibly the life of the bees who have
obtained water there).  I strongly recommend a continuously monitored water
supply closer to the hives than any alternatives on neighbouring properties.
I keep an ice cream container with hessian over the side down into the water
in my verandah amongst pot plants.   Bees will suck up the moisture from the
hessian or use it for firm footing.
 
Betty McAdam
 
HOG BAY APIARY
Penneshaw, Kangaroo Island
J.H. & E. McAdam<[log in to unmask]
http://kigateway.eastend.com.au/hogbay/hogbay1.htm
 
Why not visit the South Australian Superb Websites Ring?
http://kw.mtx.net/sawebring/sawebring.html