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Photo by Mike Kieffer via Bees from hive Local beekeeper helps learn his art May 28, 2017, 3:28 pmHe has now taken to beekeeping in full force. "I retired from active duty military back in 2000 after some 29 years and moved to Eagle Mountain in January 2002. I became a beekeeper that same year to have a healthy productive garden. In 2003, I joined Utah County Beekeepers Association. After a few years, I found myself as president of the association. After a few years, I stepped down from that post and since then I've been on the board of directors of the association. I still remain an active member of UCBA and teach beginning beekeeping and other classes for the association. I have taught beekeeping at other locations as far north as the Ogden Nature Center. A few years ago, I had about 40 hives in the Utah Valley area, but I am getting older and I have cut back to about five hives to keep locally." For almost the last 10 years, Briles has made a trip to Northern California for his love of beekeeping. He returns to Utah with 50 packages of bees from a supplier that has been in business for more than 110 years. Those packages are for his hives, members of UCBA and local people who wish to purchase them. I purchased two packages from him this year and have purchased packages in the past as well. A package usually consists of two to three lbs of bees; each pound contains roughly 3,500 bees and a queen. Briles is not like all suppliers; he takes it to the next level. "I noticed that some people were loosing their bees shortly after buying them from other suppliers. New packages are fragile and if there was a cold snap, they would freeze. I therefore started to bring them in during the first week in May, about three to four weeks after other suppliers, as there was less of a chance of a good freeze. The bees have a better survival rate due to warmer weather and more nectar sources. To add to that, I furnished a protein patty as part of the package price to insure better nutrition and faster buildup. Since most of my customers are fairly new beekeepers, the packages include a marked queen. This allows the newer beekeeper to identify their queen. To my knowledge, I am the only Utah bee supplier that furnishes these two items to their packages at no additional costs. I want my beekeepers to be successful." He continued, "I take great joy in helping others get started in beekeeping and have mentored many people that wanted to be a beekeeper. I have also supported the Be A Beekeeper program of the UCBA. It is a program that starts junior beekeepers (ages 8 to 18) in beekeeping. For more than 10 years, I have furnished the program with materials for building hives and all their equipment. This is totally free and is funded from my profits selling bees and hives. Again, it is great watching these kids learn and grow raising bees and reporting at meetings and talking to people at various fairs." Having hives in Utah County can have be a challenge. "The biggest problem in preserving bee population is lack of flora in our areas," Briles said. "Some of this is natural but much comes from the way we garden, trying to kill every weed we see, keeping lawns a green desert without dandelions or clover, which used to be normal in lawns 50 years ago. Today, modern flowers are bred for beauty, not nectar as with older flowers and plants. Treating everything with chemicals is also a threat to bees. Laws and ordinances suppress beekeeping in many communities. There are several diseases and pests that also weaken the hives. With that said, the number of beehives actually stays fairly stable because beekeepers replace lost hives and create new ones. We need to encourage people to become beekeepers and to plant good diverse gardens. We are losing older beekeepers so we must look to younger generations to take up beekeeping. I don't buy the thought that the earth will end if we lose bees. First, we are not going to lose bees as we continue to start new hives and we improve the bee we raise through better breeding programs. Still, increasing good forage for bees is very important and something we all can do." So, as you enjoy the blooms of spring, remember that those bees you see could be a direct result of beekeepers in your area. Since I moved to Eagle Mountain, I have kept bees. But last year I was unable to do so. I had neighbors comment that they could tell a difference in their gardens the year I did not have a bee hive. This year, one of my neighbors purchased one of the packages of bees for me because she sees the value of having local beekeepers keeping the bee population up. Keeping bees has been a fun hobby and has had its many returns. It helps the garden to produce as well as gives beekeepers a steady supply of local honey. The community news source for Eagle Mountain Utah, Saratoga Springs Utah, Lehi Utah, American Fork Utah, Highland Utah, Alpine Utah, and The Cedar Valley, including Cedar Fort Utah and Fairfield Utah. Copyright 2024 The Crossroads Journal LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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