Michael Jordan: Beekeeping Questions and Answers - S2E18

I recently had Michael Jordan from A Bee Friendly Company on the Small Scale Life to discuss bees, beekeeping, small business and mead.  Michael was kind enough to take beekeeping questions from the Small Scale Life audience and followers. Who is Michael Jordan?  Michael is a husband, father, teacher, bee whisperer and entrepreneur, and he is a MVP of beekeeping and award-winning mead maker.  Find out more about Michael Jordan and how he got into mead and beekeeping in Small Scale Life Season 2, Episode 16. Beekeeping Questions for Michael Jordan [caption id="attachment_2092" align="aligncenter" width="960"] Bees hard at work in the yard in St. Louis Park, MN in June 2017[/caption] The following beekeeping questions were asked from the Small Scale Life audience: From Jay in Virginia: What are the basic requirements in terms of money and space for starting a small bee operation? The “small bee operation” is defined as enough to serve the purposes of your homestead. Honey, maybe some to sell, pollination to encourage growth of vegetables and flowers. EDIT: Some of this question is answered in Small Scale Life Season 2, Episode 16, but Michael talks about this question some more in this episode. From Nikki in Wisconsin: Do you recommend for new beekeepers to have a mentor for the first year? From Danielle in Minnesota: What is your preferred bear exclusion fencing system? Do you have a brand and volts recommendation?  EDIT: Michael had some REALLY interesting ideas for this! From Nikki in Wisconsin: I'm working in the school garden with elementary age kids. Can you give some resources for bee activities, worksheets or honey cooking that I can teach the kids. (I took a bee keeping class at the University of Minnesota, and I am working with a bee mentor that had about 12 hives up in northern Wisconsin. I love listening to MJ and he inspires me to be kind.)  EDIT: See the link below for A Bee Friendly Company! From John in Wisconsin: What's his advice for helping a spouse and a child overcome their fear of bees? I'd love to start, but I can't due to their fear. From Captain Lumbersquatch Greg Burns in Ohio: What is MJ's favorite method for making splits? From Dustin in Ohio: You posted a picture of red honeycomb in a recent post on Facebook. What made it red? My question: You were recently out in Arizona, and you made a video about bees needing water. Can you tell the audience about that and give us some suggestions for providing water for bees? My question: Some of the audience won’t become beekeepers, yet they are concerned about the bees and have gardens that need pollination. What are some tips for attracting bees to your yard and gardens? Michael Jordan's Links [caption id="attachment_1984" align="aligncenter" width="754"] Live a little; love a lot! Learn to make meads from the Bee Whisperer. I can't wait to share a drink with this guy at Hogtoberfest 2017[/caption] Michael Jordan is a bee whisperer, mead-maker extraordinaire and a great teacher.  If you want to learn more about beekeeping and mead-making, check out the following links: Permaethos Class on Beekeeping A Bee Friendly Company Facebook Page The Undergound Meadery Facebook Page - Must be over 21 years old Michael Jordan's YouTube Video Small Scale Life Podcast - Michael Jordan's Beekeeping Journey - S2E16 The Survival Podcast Expert Panel - Fridays on The Survival Podcast with Jack Spirko The Sample Hour Podcast - A special thank you to my friend Drew Sample for connecting me with Michael Jordan!  Check out the Michael Jordan on The Sample Hour: Episode 119 - The Bee Whisperer - Michael Jordan Episode 125 - Hogtoberfest 2016 Episode 138 - Getting Started with Beekeeping - Michael Jordan Episode 151 - Spring Beekeeping - Michael Jordan Episode 152 - Spring Beekeeping Continued - Michael Jordan Special thanks to Austin Quinn from Vlog Vibes for the closing music on the podcast.  If you are looking for music for your video blog or podcast, check out Vlog Vibes on YouTube! 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