> As for the pop [pup?] swarm, I took it as a last minute supercedure and a
> few workers going out with queen and accompanying her to make sure she
> returned and this certainly is written about in literature as being seen.
Maybe. I wondered at the time if it was one of those small AHB invasion
swarms -- "and this certainly is written about in literature as being seen"
-- but that is maybe just my cynical nature.
> > Does anybody who makes a living from bees or science give this any
> > credence? Has anyone done a controlled study?
> since writing and doing the presentation have had many out to see for
> selves, and some from Europe I would call capable of making a living from
> beekeeping.
OK. If so, I'm sure they won't mind being named and giving testimony if
asked. We're waiting -- patiently.
> But, as for controlled study? ................here we go again, for where
> is the money for it, for short term quickie won't work here for seeing
> over the life of a normal halthy laying queen in a hive, say 3 years, and
> with a full beeyard or more to verify with.
What you cannot measure, you cannot know. If it is so important and so
obvious an effect, it should be a cinch to prove. Or maybe we need to take
it on faith? Why should we do that?
> > I think you may be the world's biggest hobbyist. 700 hives
> Your opinion, but still 300 plus is commercial in USA unless criteria
> changed for noting.
Says who? I know that the IRS thinks differently. Reasonable expectation
of profit is the criterion I have heard. A lot of beekeepers do not wish to
raise the issue, though.
>> Only if you can get a positive cash flow and return to capital and
>> labour out of it, averaged over a past five-year period.
> You mean I pay my bills year to year and show profit every 5th which
> sounds average for agric doing?
Nope, not quite that simple. Net _operating_ income from beekeeping,
_averaged_ over any five year span must be positive -- after return on
capital and labour. Not just cash flow, or totals including extraordinary
income.
> Last profit was 2004 with S. Korea and two sea containers. Now when will
> next one be????? Geeh, wonder if my paying bills will average out that
> way? Guess we'll have to wait and see
Which size? http://www.freightraders.co.nz/containerspecs.html If the large
ones, that would be almost 150 lbs per hive, which is not bad if from one
crop, but I had containers that took 40 drums, so that would be less, and
you did not say from how many crop years.
Anyhow, good question. I don't know. Maybe you are making good money, but
it has not appeared that way from what you have told.
> Allen...How about you by the way? You still got bees, or did you sell out
> or how you doing for your 5 year run?
Actually, very well, thank you for asking. After I gave up quixotic
idealistic notions some decades back, and got with the programme, we did
fine. I was probably as nutty as anyone, starting out, having been
influenced by respected writers who made more money by writing books than
from bees. All my reading of the literature proved no substitute for a few
hours spent talking to successful commercial beekeepers.
We did sell out, starting in 2001, since we had grown to the point where we
could see that we would have to invest a lot of money to meet increasingly
tough standards. Good help was getting harder to find and keep, and we were
getting too old to write that investment off over the next fifteen years.
Besides, my wife and business partner had had enough and wanted to pursue
her art. Otherwise, I'd still be at it.
That having been said, I miss the fun -- and the regular income.
More questions? Ask away.
allen
http://www.honeybeeworld.com/diary/
---
Where is there dignity unless there is honesty?
Cicero (106 BC - 43 BC)
****************************************************
* General Information About BEE-L is available at: *
* http://www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/default.htm *
****************************************************
|
