Veteran beekeeper Wally Blohm, 75, says he must have been stung by bees thousands of times during the last four decades, including inside his nostril. Stings, he said, are inevitable part of the hobby.
But the head beekeeper at the Queens County Farm Museum in Floral Park says that despite occasional pain, there is no sweeter pastime than tending honey bees.
Beekeeping, he noted, has a number of benefits, including having your own honey, which beekeepers can sell and turn into cash.
Honey, Blohm claims, can also help battle allergies and bee stings. It's even used to fight certain diseases, such as arthritis.
“I consider a beehive as a medicine chest,” he said.
The hobby, Blohm said, has been gaining popularity among New Yorkers ever since it was legalized in the city in 2010.
The interest has also been spurred by the population of bees declining in recent years, Blohm noted.
“People just want to learn about them and help,” he said, adding that “35 percent of all the food that we eat has to be pollinated by bees.”
Currently, Blohm estimates, there are several hundred beehives in backyards and on rooftops around the city.
Blohm, who lives in Jamaica, considers himself “an oxymoron,” since his full time job as an exterminator and his beekeeping hobby seem to be contradictory. He owns 35 beehives, each containing approximately 40,000 bees.
The best way to begin flirting with the hobby, he said, is to take a class about beekeeping.
Several workshops are offered throughout the city, including at The Voelker Orth Museum and the Queens County Farm Museum.
Beekeepers organizations, including New York City Beekeepers Organization, also hold such classes.
Those interested in making beekeeping a more serious hobby should make sure they have a decent sized yard (rooftops and community gardens are also an option) facing south-east, Blohm said.
Bee enthusiasts should be prepared to invest about $300 to $500 to get started, which will cover both equipment, including a beehive, jacket with veil and smoker, as well as bees (a queen and about two pounds of bees, at about 5,000 bees per pound).
Usually supply catalogues offer a beginners kit, Blohm said.
New beekeepers also need to file a notice with the Department of Health and make sure the bees won't disturb the neighbors.
Blohm also suggests finding an established beekeeping mentor who can teach you how to run a hive.
New beehives, which are usually set up in spring, should yield their first harvest next summer.
In one season beekeepers can usually get about 60 to 100 pounds of honey from each hive, which can easily bring several hundred dollars, Blohm said.
But for him, he said, beekeeping is more than just a way of earning extra cash.
“I can stay in front of a hive for hours,” Blohm said about his passion. “They are so calming and so industrious ... It’s just wonderful to watch.”
