Beekeeping for beginners

Sunday I had an opportunity to explore beekeeping- hands on. About two months back I joined the local beekeepers association (Mahoning-Columbiana Beekeepers Association). At our last meeting I asked for a mentor and was introduced to Don Kovach. He keeps bees in my 'neck of the woods' and has agreed to be a mentor for the association. He called me on Sunday to visit and look at two of his hives (he has twenty hives!). He showed me how to create smoke for the smoker, how to put the beekeeper gear on with a hood and all the basic tools to get started in beekeeping. Once the preliminaries were understood we approached the hives. He identified the drones, the larvae, and we found one of his queens! He allowed me to open his hive, lift a few frames and showed me how to feed the bees. He suggests to feed the bees until there is enough pollinating plants to support the hive. The sweet smell was divine. I have to remember to move more slowly when working with the bees so I don't excite them. Don is quite knowledgeable and a very good teacher. I am excited to put hives on our farm so I can add the word apiary to our eclectic farm list. This is what I will be preparing to do this fall and winter. Anyone wanting to get me a birthday or Christmas present... I'll create a list of beekeeping supplies that I need to begin this new journey. *wink*