Becoming a Beekeeper - Day 1 till Day 365 - my first Honey Harvest - 1 year of Keeping bees 

Thank you youtube algorithm, for making me now super interested in this random guy's bee keeping project.

You just made me watch almost 2 hours of beekeeping when i was never even interested in it great job cant wait for the next year

Hi Alex My name is barney and i just wanted to reach out and tell you you how much you have changed my life i’m 12 years old and i have turned my garden into a huge vegetable patch just like you. I have also started beekeeping and making my own honey and all of this is because of you you inspired me to to this without you this wouldn’t have been possible. It is also nice that we both live in England so the temperature for the plants and bees are the same so i can follow what you do step by step (i live in Essex by the way) Thank you

I watched this several months ago, joined a bee club, took a bee class put on by the club, purchased two nuc’s and caught a swarm, and now have 3 hives! Found my daughter and I watching this again this morning, Love your content!

My uncle had this rather large bell, which the bees thought was thunder. Whenever he wanted them to get back into the hives, he would smash that bell a couple of times and you could literally SEE the bees rush back home from all directions.

20+ year beekeeper here. You did the best representation of what it is like to have a swarm and to catch it. The shaky chest cam, the music, the dialog (with the slightly stressed voice.) all of it.

I’m 20 minutes into this video and it feels like 5 mins have gone by and I’m getting an explanation from a good friend on how to start bee keeping. Awesome video!

I suggested our family start keeping bees and was met with scepticism from my teenage daughter. She found your video and you got her so excited and full of knowledge she forwarded this onto me to watch 😂 Thank you for helping me gain the enthusiasm of my children! I love your videos anyway, I got hooked after your growing mushrooms in your bedroom videos, so I was super happy it was your beekeeping video that sparked her interest. Keep up the great work!

dude, you have the coolest parents. it seems like they support you with whatever you're pursuing. "Dad, can I use your greenhouse?". "Mom, can I set up a beehive in the backyard?" they just seem so supportive.

Excellent video. As a fellow beekeeper, you made me laugh when you said ‘I don’t know what’s going on’ and ‘it’s complicated’ and ‘I am confused’. 7 years into beekeeping, I still say all these things. 😂 I love that you have crafted a video from a whole years worth of video of your learning experience. The novice beekeeping energy combined with your ability to tell a story well with your natural charm is wonderful. Good luck with 2023! ❤ from Melbourne, Australia

For the future reference, you can use a special clip to make sure queen is not going to run away from new hive. All of the bees will follow queens scent to the new hive - you can remove clip after two days. There's still a chance they won't accept new hive, but that technique gives you best shot. Also you shouldn't remove all of the queen cells. If the one you leave gets damaged (it's easier than you think) then you'll leave your bees without a backup. So it's always the best to leave couple of them at different stages of development. Usually bees don't swarm again so soon - they'll stop feed the other larvae royal jelly, or will simply kill it as soon as the new queen will be born.

The most important point i wanted to make here is that you didn't forget to present the first harvest among the neighborhood and relatives. This is the essence of life. Be blessed my dear Alex you are encouraging others world wide to engage in the humane way of bee keeping. 🏵️🌺🌹🌷💐🎄🌲👊👍 Lots of love from Mohammad Aslam/Hyderabad India 🙏🏵️

I have never thought I would watch almost 2 hours of a bee keeping video but i did happily, Great job mate

I'm glad there's still good quality content on YT. I got so immersive into your beekeeping journey that I didn't realize the video lasted almost 2 hours.

Been beekeeping for 12 yrs now and we just rebuilding due to 27% loss of winter. Happy to see new beekeeper find the joy and fun of beekeeping and i wish you success for the future. ❤

What a real brother, helping you out even at the risk of serious injuries or death 😅❤

Hi Alex I'm in Tipperary Ireland where me and husband dude run a tiny, free, food sustainability project. I did a bee keeping course last year, read the books and watched videos and felt more and more confused and overwhelmed. After the latest talk last night I was close the panicking and giving up on the idea until I sat nursing a coffee at 5am this morning and your video popped up. Thank you so, so much. It's by far the clearest, plain english, newbie reassuring video I've watched in over a year. You're totally turned me around. I've realised that mistakes probably will be made and disasters will happen but I can get through them. Wishing you so much joy with whatever you're doing and once again, thank you. Xxx

My late husband always wanted to keep bees again after we were married, but never followed through with it. In his honor, I bought a horizontal hive in December as a gift to myself. I'll be setting it up in the spring, here in Oklahoma, USA, and hope to have the same exciting results you enjoyed in this first year with your bees. Thank you for taking the time to film and share your experiences.

Just awesome, Alex! I'm 58 years old and just learning about bee keeping. Yours is a very inspiring story and you have a very entertaining and enlightening way of telling it. Thank you!

Hello Alex : my name is Margaret A, at Tapalap Jalisco , in a ranch. and the bee keeper left me 30 boxes and im starting to learn . your your youtube . is helping me out. step by step.

2 hours of enjoyment i never knew i needed, keep it up!

Don't have bees, don't want bees but couldn't stop watching. Great video Alex

I’m still here trying to process all that you shared, and feel all of the emotions your journey has imparted on my soul. Your video is such a blessing! When you came back from holiday, and your bees had gone away, and taken their honey with them, I was so sad!! I just knew sticking around for the second half of the video would be worth it, and you certainly did not disappoint! Thanks again! I’m still in awe of all you had to go through!

This video is amazing,I love the format you chose. It’s exactly what I’ve been looking for. I am currently at day 1 myself and have become overwhelmed with all of the information. Watching your real time progression has helped me to better understand how to apply the information I’ve been learning. Thank you so much for posting this!

Awesome job Alex. I’m a beekeeper in Northern California. I’ve been keeping bees for 10 years and have watched 100’s of beekeeping videos and this kept my interest for the entire time. I enjoyed seeing your excitement as well as your disappointments. It reminds me of my first year of keeping bees. I too started with 1 hive and grew from there. Now have 100+. Next spring you’ll be able to make some splits and you may even want to try to rear your own queens. Rearing queens and making my own splits/nucs brings me as much satisfaction as a nice honey crop.

Seven year beekeeper... I wish I had seen this video before I started. Smile. It is a very common belief that a swarm of bees will attack in a group if you disturb them. In fact, they don't. The guard bees will actually warn you off if they feel threatened. And a real swarm (moving to a new location) is very docile. Great video.

Thank Alex!!!! I joined your channel just because of this video and I love bees and am trying to start my own in my garden. I am so grateful for your advise and journey. Truly Grateful!!!!🥰🥰🥰

This is a fantastic video journal of your first year! I'm getting in to beekeeping and am expecting my first nuc in a couple weeks, so it's incredibly encouraging to see another beekeeper go through their first year with the trials and tribulations of launching this crazy hobby and makes me that much more excited to start my own adventure! Great video and thanks for sharing!

You know you've got a good brother when you can ask him, who is allergic to bees, to go out and film you during a swarm without protective gear.

Congratulations Alex for what your doing and the views you are receiving. Today is my father's 95 birthday. We watched a portion of this video together. He was a migratory beekeeper in the late 1950's and early 1960's. He was in charge of 1000 hives. He would drive a truck loaded with bees from California to Nebraska twice a week. He enjoyed seeing the bees and your hives. Thank you for your content. Wishing you well and much success.

Found your channel this morning, watched your vegetable planting which led to me watching loads. I've just watched this one in it's entirety and it was amazing. You are a truly inspirational young man. It's so nice to come across such positive and informative content. Great channel, keep posting and all the best in your endeavours my friend.

Just starting and have a mentor so am very lucky , after watching your vlog I’m even more grateful for bees 🐝 and inspired! Thank you 👍

I've always wanted to be a beekeeper, I'm 14 and this video is really encouraging me to follow my dream of keeping bees! it was really instructive but I will obviously need to do a lot more research about this amazing topic. I have quit a few neighbors that have bees as-well as family, its nice to know that other people are so willing to get you started in this cool hobby. that's again!

Dude I just watched almost 2 hrs of your bee keeping journey when I don't even plan on keeping bees nor was I looking for a bee keeping video. My daughter just happened to play your video and just watched it till the end. I was also overjoyed when I saw the honey. awesome job and keep it up. cheers mate!

I can’t begin to tell you how helpful this video has been. I have 2 hives on order for Spring and I’ve been trying to learn as much as I can. Your video has been one of the easiest to follow and understand and I feel so much better about my adventure now!

Thank you. I have been thinking about having some bee hives on my homestead when I retire. You were so informative with information but also how you felt, which I enjoyed. I was all ready to plan mine, then yours swarmed. Not sure I could do what you did, but I think I want to learn more. I hope I can be successful.

I’m not sure why this popped up on my feed.. but it was a well produced and interesting journey.. thanks for taking the time to put it all on film and assemble it to share.. best of luck next season!

I have never been a beekeeper but I find it so incredibly fascinating it's like a little mini city in a box they all have their own little jobs to do it's amazing how such a small little insect has all these instincts programmed into it. Alex you made a great video !You're very good at this and I hope you keep making them. You're very enjoyable to listen to and I like your accent 😀 Good luck I'm going to keep watching your channel!

I don’t know how I ended up here, but I’m glad I did. I just spent almost 2 amazing hours watching your journey. An amazing first hand documentary of you starting out, learning, experimenting, experiencing challenges head on, overcoming obstacles and an amazing ending to all your hard work by being able to harvest your own honey. I hope you keep up on it and bring us all along with you! I’d love to try that honey from your hive when you’re able to share with your subscribers! Best of luck to you all the way from Phoenix AZ In the United States.

I have been in a deep dive while starting my first 2 seasons as a beekeeper (I have captured 2 swarms). This has been the most informative video for a beginner. As an educator in Virginia, US I commend you on your teaching ability. Well done!!!

I didn't think I would last 3 minutes and I stayed the whole journey. Wonderful straight up video

I must say your demeanor and voice are both soothing and captivating....you're not over the top as some do, nor are you flat and boring. You'd do great as a National Geographic or other Documentary film Narrator. Watching/listening to this video was both inspiring and interesting! Good job and good luck in all that you do!

I can not tell you how awesome this video has been. You are simply explaining it for someone like me who hopes to start bee keeping soon. Thank you for simply talking about everything and actually showing stuff.. wow! Great video! This is about the 8th bee keeping video I have watched and everyone else has just talked about everything and gone through their boxes like I know everything already, I literally have notes stacked 20 papers high trying to educate myself about what they were all talking about! Then there is your video! My stack of notes are in the trash, this is so clear.. ok 👍🏻

I love this video it's really well made and you really show the beginning to end of it all. You might have lit up a spark for me. I'm going to show this video to my parents and hope they are willing to have some bees with me we have loads of flowers and fruits in the garden so I think bees would love it . Thanks for making this and good fortune with your hives.

In one day I absorbed both, your brother’s full Koi Pond build, and your twice as long year in beekeeping. What wonderful videos the algorithm blessed me with today. You guys have some fantastic wholesome content. So relaxing and interesting. A real pleasure to enjoy while on my own holiday vacation. Great job! I’m now very interested in honey bees!

Hello, Just Alex! What a great video you've presented here. I'm so glad you've found your path in beekeeping and are also inspired to share your experiences with RU-vid viewers. I wish you all the best in beekeeping and hope you'll continue to share what you're learning and have found useful along the way. Thumbs up! Excellent!

So incredibly inspiring, Alex! I found your RU-vid channel tonight and watched your 1 year gardening video whilst looking for tips and stumbled upon this video. This one in particular fascinated me, made me feel so proud and happy for you! I just wish I lived in the countryside already so I could help you with the bees 🐝😄 I also love seeing such young people like yourself being so knowledgeable and curious, never stop sharing. Lavinia from London xxx

Thanks for sharing your journey. I started getting really interested in bee keeping a year or two ago. I played with the idea of getting a hive. Boy am i glad i didn't yet! Your video showed me i still have a lot more to learn in order to be a responsible hive minder. Great work!

Went in with a open mind when i started watching it. Came out with a lot more knowledge about bees and i'll probably start with this when im older. Seems like much fun!

“Us bee keepers”, you’re in, heh, heh…good on ya. Love that you’re so generous with your honey. You’re learning so much, so fast. Way to go , man.

Thank you for sharing your whole journey into beekeeping. I've been interested in it but wasn't sure if the hobby was right for me & if seeing lots of bees would put me off but it's done the opposite & I find it super interesting. Was so satisfying seeing the whole process of making honey, including the wax. Bees are wonderful little creatures & the hobby looks so rewarding. I'm lucky enough to have a decent sized garden & a friend of a friend has some land which she may not mind me using in return for honey & gardening jobs. Just need to learn more & start the journey 😊

Hey man! My grandfather had like 30 or even more beehives in his life, i remember helping him and when he tells me all about the bees. Watching you remind me of him, of the passion he had. Thank you man! Good luck to you!

Rent a bee, is a really big thing here in the states, because the bees are dying off. But basically what it is, is you rent out your hives to farmers so they can pollinate their fields. Of course it's expensive to rent a hive. And you'll still get the honey from the boxes. And you'll still have to tend the boxes. But yeah you can totally make money from your hives

Alex.... I'm just as proud of you as if you were my own son! I'm fascinated by your bee adventure and love everything about this proper bee-keeping documentary! You are just a pleasure to watch and listen to and seeing your trials and victories are such a joy. I'm so sorry you lost half your bees while on holiday but I have to say, for someone who didn't really know what he was doing at first, you literally & legitimately (at the very least!) DOUBLED your hive in just a few months... your bees are so healthy and industrious - so YOU are actively contributing to the propagation of one of our most necessary and treasured universal resources.... BEES!!! Thank you for bringing us along on yet another of your wonderful enterprises! (LOVED your garden video, too!) Looking forward to anything else you have to say & show us! And PS.... all the best of luck w the girl! She couldn't do better!!!

Wow I watched the entire video. You are very watchable. Thank you for sharing the beginning of your beekeeping journey. I found your channel when I searched for honey harvesting. Its a shame I have missed out on your 2023 honey Harvest, I would love to try your honey next year. All the best with your move and also have fun on your adventures. ❤

You are doing a great job, explaining what's going on for all us bee keepers. I'm new and my bees arrived today. Its amazing , good luck

I can’t believe I watched this whole video. (4am U.S. time) 😂 I actually enjoyed it. Felt like we were learning together. Congratulations on your first honey harvest! Definitely looked fulfilling. Good luck on this beekeeping journey of yours 🤙🏾

As someone who's family working full time as a beekeper and i'm the third generation now who's working with bees all i can say is thank you and enjoy your hobby and ofc welcome in the beekeeper community.

This is a fantastic video. I watched this and your Mushroom video and I loved both and was super invested the whole time. I knew very little about bees or mushrooms before finding your channel, but it was super cool learning about them through you. Keep it up! :)

This was incredibly exciting to watch. It randomly reminded me of being a little fella 30 years ago and my grandpa had some hives. I might actually try this now having my own land. 🙌🙌

While watching this long video I would get to a point where I’ve decided I have watched my fill of Alex’s bee keeping adventures. Then suddenly, oh wait I want to see how Alex manages this and here I am at the very end. Completely satisfied with my choice to keep watching Alex as I usually am. Thank you Alex and thank you for your lovely bees 🐝🐝🐝💛love and respect from Calgary, Alberta, Canada 🇨🇦 💘

This was a fantastically paced and edited documentary, thank you for doing such a good job of filming your journey into beekeeping!

Hi Alex, I don’t comment often, I live in the caribbean and started beekeeping a few years ago. I took 6 week local course, and have been out there fumbling my way through. I learned more from your video than I did taking the course! Thank you so much for being so very transparent as you go about learning how to bee-keep, I have a renewed energy towards my beekeeping and will be referencing your videos to get my bee boxes back on track! Thank you 🙏🏽

This video is unbelievable. Thank you for taking so much time in imparting all that you've learned along the way. Really.

The best RU-vid video on bees I have seen. Very educational from a super humble dude. Loved it thanks for doing this!!

I've been through two beekeeping classes and learned more from you than a beekeeping expert. You're a great teacher!

Alex, thank you for letting us follow your journey. I have sparked an interest into bee keeping but didn't know what to do or where to start and your video has given me the information I needed to try this. So, I know I have a lot of work ahead of me but in the end it will be worth it!

Oh my goodness. Thank you for your video of a first year. I have wanted bees for a long time but I just seem lost as to how to go about doing it. Watching you go through your whole first year all n one place was amazing. I can’t wait to get started. Have my hive just need to get it out and get some bees.

Beekeeping is a great hobby and it can quickly outgrow hobby and turn into a small business. My dad started with a few hives in the backyard, and a year later had 300 hives, spread all across the county (because people growing plants love when you have bees nearby and will often let you keep them on their land for the price of a jar or two of honey each harvest.).

This video was incredible to watch , thankyou for filming the journey and well done on seeing it through!

Thank you documenting your bee keeping journey. It has been extremely helpful to me - an aspiring bee keeper.

You're so brave to just get out there and get on with it. It's not easy to learn beekeeping on the job because of the adrenalin that pumps through you when you have your hive open, but you did fabulously, especially with the swarm! Thank you for sharing, I really enjoyed watching

If you're worried about your bees and the weather, you could always put a tarp roof over the top of your bee hive. Of course you'll have to build a frame over it, and make it tall enough for you to walk under it. But that's a way to protect your hive from the rain. You can also stack straw around the sides in the winter, obviously not where the opening is, but the straw will keep the heat in . Just a suggestion, of course, take it or leave it.

Well done with the swarm! Brave and decisive even though it seemed scary!

Thank you, thank you, thank you! You so brilliantly narrated this and explained things from the exact perspective I'm starting my beekeeping journey from. For as long as I can remember, I've always wanted to keep bees, and tomorrow, I'm going on my first taster course with the local beekeeping association. I'm so grateful I found your video so I'm going in with a bit more knowledge than I otherwise would have! You've really got me excited. Thank you again (great editing by the way!)

I had the opportunity to watch what I consider to be the best video about beekeeping I've ever seen. The video is simply fascinating and presents a wealth of information about these amazing insects and all the work involved in their cultivation. What struck me the most about the video was the careful and respectful approach of the beekeepers towards their bee colonies. They showed a deep knowledge and respect for the nature of these insects and how to work with them safely and effectively. I was also impressed by the way the video presented the importance of bees to our ecosystem. It showed how bees are responsible for the pollination of many crops and plants, making them crucial to the maintenance of life on Earth. Finally, the video was very well produced, with impressive images and an engaging soundtrack that kept me engaged from beginning to end. I strongly recommend that everyone watch this video as it teaches us a lot about the importance of bees and how we can work in harmony with these incredible insects.

OMG that was truly EPIC. Thank you for going to the effort of filming/narrating/editing etc.......to share with us!

I’ve never become SO invested in something I had fairly minimal interest in, SO quickly! I’m legitimately inspired to do this myself. THANK YOU!!!🤗 🐝

Just watched your video and enjoyed your journey. After watching a couple of beekeepers on RU-vid I can understand the draw. Seeing your first honey harvest was so cool. I hope you continue to develop and enjoy your new hobby/vocation.

Very educational, covered so many things that I need to know. I got my first April this year, hopefully I can harvest the honey this summer. Thank you for the video!!!

Alex, this has been a fascinating video. I'm really impressed. Shout out to your parents for bee-ing cooperative, (hee hee), and to Carl for his support. Tell Carl it's good for him to eat the honey...it might even help him with his allergy as it helps his immune system not to over react to the specific types of bees in your area. Also...if your business grows in leaps and bounds, you can make unbelievable skincare with honey, propolis, pollen and even some wax mixed with essential oils. I sometimes use Honey Girl Organics from Hawaii, and it is awesome! Check out their story. Honey is anti-bacterial and the propolis (in the right amount which I don't know) is anti aging. 🌺🐝 👋🏼 Cheers.

Hey Alex, I just finished watching your video and I must say it's way better then some of the documents from big companies out there! Really interesting informative and enjoyable to watch! I'm planning to start beekeeping this coming up spring too and your video just move even more forward! Thank you and I wish you a lot of luck with your bee's!

My first time to see video of beekeeping and I finished all the way through the end. Congratulations on your first year of beekeeing. 👏 👏 👏 Prayers for the success of your beekeeping journey 🙏🙏🙏

Just found your channel and this is so cozy to watch. I put on these long videos while sewing and it’s very relaxing and inspiring. I hope to get a garden for myself soon and also start some projects.❤

I have been a beekeeper for years, but due to lack of time I unfortunately had to give it up. I have been retired for several years now and have just been watching your youtube movie. What a great film, I'm now thinking about picking it up again and keeping bees again. It may not be a profitable one, but it is a very satisfying hobby. Thank you for your enthusiasm and keep it up. Greetings from the Netherlands, Jan

bro, your brother is insane. allergic to bees filming your adventure with the second hive. mad lad

I can't bee-lieve I've just watched a long video about bees and beekeeping and was enthralled all the way through. Good luck on your venture! I am now a big bee fan - not that I didn't respect them before. But, I now have a love and fascination for them. Great video and thanks for sharing your experience. Really enjoyable.

I joined my local beekeeping clubs. Started reading books and then came across this video! I will be starting two hives this year! Thank you for the confidence booster!!!

I'm shocked! This has been an interest of mine for a long time and seeing him start just like that makes me wonder if I should start thing about it. Of course it would take some studying and research but I might just try it. Loved the video and the trial and error! Best of luck to everyone reading this!

Absolutely fantastic! Thank you. I have been trying to get my head around "beekeeping basics" and you have managed to answer darn near ALL my questions! Really excellent presentation, really informative. Well done!

im starting out as a beekeeper and I am very much nervous about getting my first set of bees but your videos have laid some of those nerves to rest. Thank you its a very informative and great video for a new bee keeper!

Just discovered this video, could not stop watching it. Wonderful job and well put together. Congratulations on your successful! Hope to see more from your bee keeping journey.

Randomly came across this video. As a person who doesn't have bees but has been interested because of the need of pollinators and helping bees, this was an incredible video. I'm from the USA, I'm schooling in Agronomy (crop science). And this was a cool, educational, inspiring experience you've shared and now I want bees. Thank you!

I'm no bee keeper but I do know about felting roofs. The corners of your hives roof will alow water to gather in the fold (eventually leaking) , you need to reverse the direction of the fold. So the overlap fold is in a downward direction allowing water to run away. Anyway awesome video, I never knew bee keeping was so interesting 💚

Fantastic, not only for the information but for the time and effort filming and editing. I have learned more from this than many 'expert' beekeeping videos, some of which can be a bit preachy..I started last with a hive that swarmed and unfortunately lost all bees. Just got more bees last week and will have another go. Well done

Alex, I buy honey from our local farmer's market. I live in Minnesota, USA. If I could, I would buy some of yours too. I love honey. I use a lot of honey in the summer for the dressing. It's Kelly's Special Summer Salad." You chop chicken in cubes, cut up green pepper, green onions, grapes (cut in half) oranges (peeled, wedged & cut each wedge in 3 pcs) slivered almonds to taste. The dressing is as follows: 1 cup canola oil (not olive), 1/2 cup honey, 1/4 cup red wine vinegar (to taste), salt & pepper to taste. I use my kitchen aid metal whisp to blend together. Sorry, the US isn't metric, so you'll have to convert. Mix together & serve over salad greens. Major nummers, everyone I've made this for loves it. Next time you want to impress a date, make that. Serve with warm French bread. You are a great young man. Your parents are wonderful. Couldn't imagine walking into my kitchen with bees on the floor and a sticky mess. I'm sure one smile from you & you were fine. If you were my son, I'd be proud of you. Good luck in the future. Bees are amazing. I had no idea the worker bees make queen bees.

that was 1:43:07 worth of great watching. not only watching you make mistakes and learning but actually enjoying yourself. and you could seriously see how proud you were of what you had done. well done mate, hope to see more long form of videos. keep it up

First content creator i found that made me sit through a 2 hr journey without even realizing the video was actually 2 hrs long it was really fun watching your bee keeping adventure. I've always wanted to keep bees and grow my own food but sadly we don't have land for it and same as your area housing is getting pretty insane so its harder to move out, so im just gonna have to live vicariously through your journey :>

This was such a great video to watch! I aspire to keep my own bees in the future. Thanks for going through the whole process. It really have a good insight into what life will be like with bees.

I've just started watching your video, (12 mins in), and this is already amazing. I'm interested in keeping Bees (but jot ready to take the plunge yet), and it's just so enlightening to see a novice like you take the plunge for the 1st time and to sure with us all how it's going and in particular how you feel and what you learn. It's amazing. 👏🐝