Smoker Practice

Keeping a smoker lit during hive inspections will hopefully make things easier.

Being a new beekeeper, I realized I would need some practice getting my smoker running consistently and long enough to inspect my hives. Having an unseasonably warm February day a couple weeks ago let me have a little practice before spring arrives.

After a couple false starts where I packed in too much fuel too early, I was able to get the smoker running on some pine needles that fell last fall and a little newspaper to start the fire. I'm hoping for a couple more warm days before late April so I can refine this skill a little more.