Assume $400.00 - $500.00 to start.
You can save $$ by capturing a swarm of free bees or joining LCBA & getting bees by participating in a carve-out (see our Swarm Capture & Colony Removals page); you can also buy used equipment, but be careful - find out why the beekeeper is selling gear. Disease spores can linger in equipment for many years. If buying used woodenware, it's wise to flame it with a propane torch or to scrub it in bleach solution.
(Alternative: 2 Langstroth 10 frame Deep Boxes & 20 deep frames, plus 2 Langstroth 10 frame Medium Deep Boxes & 20 medium frames – commercial, unassembled. Some beekeepers prefer the efficiency of using 2 deeps instead of 3 mediums for brood boxes; others prefer lighter weight of medium brood boxes. Unassembled boxes should be primed & painted with non-latex paint.)
BEEKEEPING BASICS: Click here to download a free PDF file of MAAREC's excellent handbook.
Howland Blackiston, Beekeeping for Dummies, 3rd edition. New Jersey: Wiley Publishers, Inc., 2015. Like other "Dummies" books, Blackiston's is clearly written, easy to follow, & has helpful diagrams & illustrations.
Dr. Dewey Caron, Honey Bee Biology and Beekeeping. With Larry Connor. Wicwas Press: revised 2013 with color photographs.
Keith S. Delaplane, First Lessons in Beekeeping. Dadant & Sons, 2007. Dr. Delaplane, University of Georgia entomologist, has also produced a series of helpful videos with the same title.
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