When we started keeping North Country bees in April, we knew we had a lot to learn. I just don’t think anybody put "bear knocks over the hive" at the top of the lesson plan.
We began with two hives. Over the season we harvested honey twice from our own bees, which was an incredible experience. There is something about seeing the finished honey that makes you appreciate all those hours of work by the colony—and all the learning you’ve done as the beekeeper.
Nature didn’t read our plans
A bear knocked over one of our hives. We also lost a colony after bees swarmed into a tree and eventually left the area. Those were two real setbacks in our first season. I’m not assuming one caused the other; they’re separate experiences in what has already been a very eventful introduction to beekeeping.
Honey bees can swarm as part of colony reproduction. A group leaves with a queen, settles temporarily—often on a branch—and may move on after scout bees identify another home. University of Minnesota Extension explains the process.
Bears are a different challenge entirely. A hive full of brood, honey and bees is tempting, and prevention takes planning. Appropriate electric bear fencing and regular monitoring are topics every beekeeper in bear country should research and plan carefully.
Why we’re still excited about bees
It’s easy to show the lovely honey bottles and forget the unpredictable part. But this is farm life. We get the harvest, and we also get the wildlife, the weather, and the occasional lesson that arrives much faster than we’d like.
Our raw and unfiltered honey and Bee Wilder hot honey have become part of the Woodland Pantry lineup. We love sharing them, but the two harvests and the hard lessons behind them are the bigger story for me.
We’re still learning, still asking questions, and still glad we decided to keep bees.
Photos from the farm
