Sourcing bees for spring 2022

I'm looking for a good source for bees for next season.  I'm new at this.  I do currently own a 10 frame Langstrom style hive that is new.  I've told buying a nuc is probably the best way to go for a new guy, with a brand new hive.  Bees are the next step to really making things click around here.  I'm in Missouri.

G Brett wrote:I've told buying a nuc is probably the best way to go for a new guy, with a brand new hive.

opinions will obviously vary on this, but I would say the best way to go would be to get yourself on any local swarm lists you can find. my introduction to beekeeping was with swarms, and I think it really set the relationship on a positive course from the get go.

buying a nuc may seem like more of a sure thing, and it might be. but plenty of nucs fail for a variety of reasons. that can be especially discouraging if you've dropped a lot of cash for one.

I will offer this disclaimer: I have never purchased bees, so I won't claim to have any kind of authority on that subject.

I've purchased loads of bees. Both packages and nucs. I'd say buy a package because the nuc made no difference to survivabililty for us and it was way more expensive.  A nuc wasn't easier to install either so just buy the cheaper package.

After our bees died last year I failed to take the hive down and actually caught a swarm this year. So that's exciting free bees.

I suggest locally adapted bees. Perhaps you can find a beekeeper near you via this link.

Put it out on Facebook and social media that you are a beekeeper and when bees swarm in springtime you would like to collect them   I got a couple calls this spring for swarms.     I get several messages about people wanting me to get out of the house or out of trees in the yard