Beekeeper Job Description
A Beekeeper raises bees to produce honey and pollinate crops: Assembles beehives, using handtools. Arranges with sellers for purchases of honeybee colonies. Inserts honeycomb of bees into beehive or inducts wild swarming bees into hive of prepared honeycomb frames. Places screen plug in hive entrance to confine bees and sets hive in orchard, clover field, or near other source of nectar and pollen. Forces bees from hive, using smoke pot or by placing carbolic acid soaked pad over hive to inspect hive and to harvest honeycombs. Scrapes out parasites, such as wax moth larvae, and removes vermin, such as birds and mice. Collects royal jelly from queen bee cells for sale as base for cosmetics and as health food. Destroys superfluous queen bee cells to prevent division of colony by swarming. Destroys diseased bee colonies, using cyanide gas. Burns hive of diseased bee colony or sterilizes hive, using caustic soda solution. Uncaps harvested honeycombs and extracts honey. Arranges with buyers for sale of honey. May cultivate bees to produce bee colonies and queen bees for sale and be designated Bee Producer (agriculture); Queen Producer (agriculture).