Getting Involved in Beekeeping

Get Involved

Local Organizations

We always suggest an interested beekeeper-to-be to attend educational meetings at a local beekeeping association- in addition to Trinity Valley Beekeepers Association, aka TVBA (in Lake Highlands in North Dallas), there is also the Collin County Hobby Beekeepers, aka CCHBA, (meets in McKinney), Metro Beekeepers, (Ft Worth), and clubs in Denton, Kaufman, Tyler, to name a few. Visit as many as you can- it is nice to see what other organizations do and where else you may fit in and find new like-minded friends. 

TVBA hosts a Beekeeping Class for Beginner Beekeepers which any Intermediate beekeepers will benefit from- (beekeepers never stop learning). There is no charge and it is offered at 6:00pm before the monthly educational meetings. You can register online for the beginner class, (it is preferred) but walk-Ins are also welcome. The General Educational Meeting is open to all at 7:00p.m.

There are more organizations to engage your interests other than beekeeping-specific meetings.  I enjoy attending meetings of the North Texas Master Naturalist book club.  Their general meetings are great.. they usually meet the first Wednesday of the month and also host nature walks around DFW that I hear are a great time.  I find the book club more approachable for my needs.. it meets the third Tuesday monthly.  

The Dallas County Master Gardeners Association is active in the area and does much more than just host meetings… you can play in the dirt with these folks! I haven’t attended their meetings, but many of their fellows have spoken at TVBA’s meetings over the years.  These groups offer another way to plug in to outdoor, nature-based fellowship.

Get Wired

Online Resources

Be sure to spend time scrolling Trinity Valley Beekeepers Association’s website: www.tvbees.org and click the RESOURCES page for RELATED LINKS and scroll through those- there is a lot of great content and we update it regularly for the association. Links are posted on Rockwall Honey Bee’s website on the “Weblinks” page. There is also a link above.

You will find many links on the Resources page, including the Texas A&M AgriLife portal, as well as links for suppliers with equipment and gear like Dadant Company (a Texas-based supplier owned by the same family for something like 100 years). There are also links about starting a Texas-based agricultural business- useful to support your beekeeping, or for selling honey.  The list goes on and on!

You will enjoy the archives of beekeeping magazines full of articles you can spend hours sifting through. You will also find links to beekeeping forums hosted by non-profits around the country which have their own websites and links to articles on all subjects concerning bees and beekeeping. Bookmarking Rockwall Honey Bee Company's Resources page, or that found on or TVBA’s website is a great idea- we are adding new links regularly, so if you find your own wellspring of wonderfulness, please let us know! 

Get Plugged In

Social Media & Forums

"Social Gross" you say? If Social Media just ain't your cup of tea, so to speak, you can find beekeeping online that are not integrated with a social media platform. ﻿The Classroom Archives, by the American Bee Journal, where experts like Dr. Jamie Ellis answer beekeeping questions, explain complex bee science (like venom composition or mite control), and offer practical advice for beekeepers of all levels, covering everything from biology to hive management. 
﻿
﻿BeeSource is a comprehensive online hub for beekeepers and enthusiasts. It offers extensive forums for discussion, resources on modern sustainable beekeeping, research, technical help, and communities for all levels from hobbyists to commercial operations. Find topics like honey production, hive management, bee health, and even honey-based recipes. It's a go-to place for learning, sharing experiences, and finding solutions related to honey bees. 

Get Friends

Facebook: There are thousands of beekeepers posting questions and answers to subjects concerning bees, matters of the hive and beekeeping practices. You will gain so much knowledge simply from reading posts in local or regional Facebook groups- it is truly astounding and it makes sense.  

Beekeepers all have a common purpose- not to kill their bees but rather to keep them alive! Some folks want to harvest honey, some want to merely help their gardens flourish, or support their local ecosystem by raising pollinators. Others just want a hobby that gets them outside.  

The common denominator for people posting on Facebook Groups on bees and beekeeping is simply having living bees in thriving colonies... not dead bees in boxes. And it is not all too easy to keep thousands of little furry buddies warm, fed, pest-free and in a home, or hive.. of the correct size for the season. 

Crowd-sourcing your questions and concerns makes sense and is easier than flipping through pages or scrolling a web search engine for assistance. So consider joining a Facebook Group or two, or three- why not a dozen? Your feed will quickly fill up with bee and beekeeping-related content rather than pictures of someone's lunch, a political rant or advertisements for gadgets you do not need. Even if you do not use Facebook personally, it is worth your time to join these groups- the wealth of information and support you can find is unending.

Excellent Facebook groups to join for Texas residents include "Dallas Area Beekeepers” and “Texas Friendly Beekeepers” are both outstanding. Also check out “Austin Area Beekeepers,” "Texas Natural Beekeepers," “Chisolm Trail Beekeepers,” “Texas Association of Professional Bee Removers”… there are so many more you can find with a simple search. These are good groups to for Texas-based beekeeping or people located in similar climates.  Texas is large, so keep in mind that some suggestions for Central Texas vary from, say.. South Texas or West Texas. ﻿
There are many more state and national groups on Facebook as  well.  If you’re looking to place bees outside of the North Texas area that’s fine! Bees will be bees, though the needs of a beekeeper vary due to the weather patterns, when the flowers bloom, temperature, etc. of any particular region, so try finding a group of followers living in a region near you.

Get Screen time

YouTube:There are many great YouTube channels to subscribe to or visit periodically.  Save your favorites. It’s always fun to see bees and their Keepers in action. Many channels are dedicated to educational content while others simply post for fun. Suggestions provided above are for your entertainment purposes only- Rockwall Honey Bee Company has not reviewed all the content of every channel nor endorses the activities in the videos posted, and does not sponsor nor receive contributions from the listed providers. Your suggestions are welcome! 

Literature in Print

Get Reading

Books: If you are a reader of the written word, consider a book on bees- whether it’s a how-to book or memoir on someone’s beekeeping journey, there are plenty of insightful, fact-filled, captivating titles to choose from.

The Beekeeper’s Handbook, by Diana Sammataro (an extensive guide).

Top-Bar Beekeeping, by Les Crowder (an incredible book for Beginner and Intermediate-level beekeepers describing every aspect of Beekeeping, as well as working with Top Bar Hives. You won’t regret reading this treasure-trove of beekeeping knowledge from the O.G. Hippie Beekeeper that has left his mark on the industry and its best teachers and workers.

For the Bees, A Handbook for Happy Beekeeping, by Tara Dawn Chapman of Two Hives Honey in Austin, Texas (a gorgeous, down-to-Earth read).
Beekeeping for Dummies (so many people mention this as their first book to read).

Honey Bee Biology and Beekeeping, by Dewey M. Caron; Lawrence John Connor (a true textbook of bee and beekeeping education). 

The Mind of a Bee, by Lars Chittka (delves into bee behavior and personality).

The Honey Trail, by Grace Pundyk (a cultural study on beekeeping around the world).

Many books (particularly older copy) can also found free online as a pdf which can also be listened to. The Internet Archive, a non-profit library of millions of free texts, movies, software, music, websites, etc. The Smithsonian Library also has an online books archive. Dig deeper into articles and more as well.﻿
Don’t know where to start flipping pages? If you are local to the DFW metroplex in North Texas, sit in on Trinity Valley Beekeepers' monthly Book Club for Bee Enthusiasts, held every 2nd Tuesday of the month at the Half Price Books Flagship Store in Dallas, Texas. Hosted by Ryan Giesecke, the past-President of TVBA, Kirby Jay Carmichael, owner of Rockwall Honey Bee Company, and TVBA's current President. The image displays the first twelve books we read.

Subscription Magazines: Archives can also be found online via the source links below or find more links on our Weblinks page.

﻿The American Bee Journal, is considered the oldest English language beekeeping publication in the world and is under the stewardship of the Dadant family, whose forebearer’s articles filled its pages and helped spread beekeeping practices across America more than 100 years ago. We stand on the shoulders of these beekeepers every day with our "modern" practices of honey bee management and care.
﻿Bee Culture Magazine, first published in 1873 as “Novice’s Gleanings in Bee Culture” by A.I. Root, (one of the Grandfathers of American beekeeping), also helped keep beekeepers “in the know” as they spread across the North American continent and abroad.  Relevant information, new practices and innovations that still affect us today could only be found in periodicals such as this. 
﻿Texas Beekeepers Association Journal, is published bi-monthly with current information about Beekeeping, Association events, Honey Queen activities and much more. You can access past copies of the Journal without a TBA membership. 

BuzzPulse	BeeLab	FlowHive
David Burns	Bob Binnie	Mike Barry
Frederick Dunn	Kamon Reynolds	Woolie B’s Apiary
Charlie Bee Company	Rockwall Honey Bee	Richard Noel
Duck River Honey	Texas Beeworks	Michael Palmer
Barnyard Bees	BeeMindful 1027	Barnyard Bees
Beekeeping With Nathalee	Don The Fat Bee Man	628 Dirt Rooster Bees
Canadian Beekeeper’s Blog	Jeff Horchoff Bees	Jerome Bee Farm & Homestead
Collin County Hobby Beekeepers	Philip Chandler: Barefoot Beekeeper	Jason Chrisman Bees (JC’s Bees)

Finding Beekeeping Resources

A bee enthusiast's guide to finding beekeeping resources

Page 2, A Bee Enthusiast's Guide

Finding Resources: In-Person, Online, Printed & Social Media

Get Involved

Local Organizations

Get Wired

Online Resources

Get Plugged In

Social Media & Forums

Get Friends

Get Screen

time

Literature in Print

Get Reading

Page 2, A Bee Enthusiast's Guide to Finding Beekeeping Resources

Continue to the final page: Experience Live Bees then Get Your Own

Return to The Guide Introduction

-Kirby Jay Carmichael, Owner

Rockwall Honey Bee Co.

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