Video: Day in the Life, Beekeeping Pt. 1

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STARKVILLE, Miss. – (WCBI) Honey has been used for centuries for its healing properties and its natural sweetness. Now that we are coming into spring, the air is buzzing with busy bees, and a demand for honey.

One bee expert offered me a crash course in beekeeping.

Audrey Sheridan has dedicated her career to research. As a research associate for Mississippi State, Audrey is a part of a team who focuses on honey bees and breeding for commercial grade bee keepers. They are hoping to breed bees that are more resistant to mites, have a high reproduction and can produce large amounts of honey.
In order to study bee behavior, they have several apiaries, also known as bee yards. An apiary is place where beehives of honey bees are kept. In order to safely study the bees, we put on loosely fitted suits.

“You want your bee suit to loose. This is loose enough on you, and you are wearing clothes underneath, you will be fine. It is not sting proof, persay. It is a thick cloth, but if you have it pressed up against your skin, the sting can go through the cloth.”

While the suits aren’t guaranteed to protect you from stings, Audrey advises using smoke as a protectant.

“It is kind of a deterrent. Some people say that it makes them think that their hive is on fire, and they go into the hive to fill up on honey, to prepare to leave. It definitely puts them in an alarm phase, it doesn’t actually relax them. You’ll see when I puff them with smoke, that they don’t get calm, they run away.”

A bee vail will protect your head, neck and face. We’re equipped and ready to approach the controlled hives. You’ll have to wait until next week to find out what the buzz is about, but until then this has been just one more day in the life.

Categories: Local News

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