Beekeeping Gear We Recommend

We've been through a lot of gear over the years. Here's what we actually use and what we recommend to every beekeeper we deliver bees to.

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Protective Gear

For beginners, start with a full ventilated suit. You can move to a jacket once you're comfortable.

Once you have a year or two under your belt, a jacket with veil is lighter and faster to put on.

Leather beekeeping gloves with gauntlets. Goatskin gives better dexterity; cowhide is more durable.

A 4x7 stainless steel smoker is the workhorse. Larger (4x10) if you have 10+ hives. Use pine needles, burlap, or wood pellets for fuel.

You need at least one. We prefer the J-hook style for prying frames. Keep a spare — you WILL lose one in the grass.

Makes pulling frames much easier, especially deep frames full of honey.

Sit inside the hive in place of a frame. Easy to refill. We use the Pro Feeder style with cap and ladder.

For larger operations — sits on top of the hive, holds a gallon or more. Less disturbance when refilling.

A 2-frame hand crank extractor is perfect for hobbyists. Upgrade to a 6/3-frame stainless once you have more than 5 hives.

An electric uncapping knife or cold uncapping fork — you need one or the other to open the wax caps before extracting.

Glass or plastic jars for bottling your harvest. We sell honey in both.

Call or text us at (701) 809-0153. We're always happy to help, even if you didn't get your bees from us.