Honey Odyssey

Decision 02 of 8

Learning before the first bee

What to learn, from whom, and how long it takes before a beginner in Central Europe buys the first colonies.

Applies to: Beginning beekeepers in Central Europe (DE, AT, CH, CZ, PL); honey bees, Apis mellifera   Region: Central Europe

Decide first: Why keep bees, and how many colonies to start with

This decision fixes: whether you take a course and join an association before, not after, buying bees; who your mentor is, and which widely used hive system you start with; whether a sting allergy has been ruled out or clarified with a doctor before the first season; which season you spend at someone else's apiary before owning a colony

Learning before the first bee
Photo: Nick Pitsas, CSIRO, CC BY 3.0

Courses in Germany, Austria and Switzerland

In Switzerland a basic course is not required by law, but BienenSchweiz strongly recommends one; it runs 18 half days spread over two years and is organised by the regional sections.Confirmed fact, source 1 The Swiss basic course costs about 950 to 1250 Swiss francs per participant (guide price stated from 2020), and the two years are meant to build sound beekeeping practice, not just theory.Confirmed fact, source 1 In Lower Austria the entry training of the NÖ Imkerschule, whose competence centre is the agricultural school LFS Warth, is an 8 hour basic course plus six 4 hour practical courses at the bees.Confirmed fact, source 2 The Lower Austrian basic course covers personal suitability, legal rules, buying equipment, colony management and bee products, needs no prior knowledge, and costs about 110 euros in the 2025/26 programme.Confirmed fact, source 2 In Bavaria the state institute LWG (Fachzentrum Bienen, Veitshöchheim) runs a three day compact beginner course combining theory and practice each May.Confirmed fact, source 3

Courses in Czechia and Poland, and who teaches them

In Czechia, courses, lectures and seminars for beginners are run by the local and district organisations of the Czech Beekeepers Union (ČSV) and also by the training centre SOUV-VVC in Nasavrky.Confirmed fact, source 5 Only a ČSV member can be appointed a teacher of beekeeping, and appointment requires completing the add-on study for teachers of beekeeping at SOUV-VVC, so ČSV courses are taught by members with that training.Confirmed fact, source 6 In Poland's autumn 2025 call for the beekeeping sector interventions administered by ARiMR (24 October to 28 November 2025), aid for beekeeper training can be applied for by beekeeping organisations (unions, associations, groupings, cooperatives) and agricultural advisory units, not by individuals, so a beginner finds such courses via an association or an ODR.Confirmed fact, source 7 A Polish university basic course in bee husbandry (Poznań University of Life Sciences) covers bee biology, hive types, the technique of inspecting colonies and notifiable bee diseases, with workshops in a teaching apiary.Confirmed fact, source 8 In Bavaria the state institute LWG says courses are offered at low cost by the state extension service, teaching institutions and teaching apiaries.Confirmed fact, source 15

The mentor, and a season at someone else's apiary

The German Beekeepers Federation says a beginner is looked after in the association by an experienced Imkerpate with advice and hands-on help; step one is asking the local association for a beginner course.Confirmed fact, source 9 Bavaria funds association 'trial beekeeping' schemes: an experienced member acts as Pate for four months a year, for at most two years, about 100 euros per mentorship and year (May 2026).Confirmed fact, source 10 In Czechia the local ČSV organisation is where a beginner finds people who can advise on the spot or take over a 'patronage'; the ČSV office helps locate the right local organisation.Confirmed fact, source 5 The cantonal training centre Wallierhof (Solothurn, Switzerland) advises having an experienced colleague, the Götti, at the start, and says it is best if beekeeping can even begin at the Götti's own apiary site.Confirmed fact, source 11 Bavaria's institute recommends working alongside an experienced beekeeper to learn practice before starting; the German federation adds that some associations let beginners rent a colony for one bee year.Confirmed fact, source 3

What a local association gives you

In Germany the local association advises the beginner and provides the insurance cover needed for keeping bees; some associations offer colony rental for a bee year.Confirmed fact, source 9 Bavaria's institute course material notes that association insurance packages are included in the membership fee, that honey equipment can be borrowed from the association or teaching apiary, and that associations and teaching apiaries often give beginners free hive sites on association grounds.Confirmed fact, source 4 In Czechia, ČSV membership brings the union's accident insurance, a self-help fund protecting members' beekeeping property, free expert advice, and access to regional start-up grants whose conditions differ by region.Confirmed fact, source 5 Some German districts tie start-up grants to the association: in Landkreis St. Wendel (Saarland, 2023 guideline) the applicant must be a full member of a local association and have completed a recognised beginner course.Confirmed fact, source 12 Bavaria's institute says widespread hive systems make replacement and expansion easier and its course material recommends one uniform system; Wallierhof says older hives are worth taking over only if additional matching parts can still be bought.Confirmed fact, source 15

Stings, allergy and protective clothing

Germany's federal health portal says about 2 percent of people react to insect stings beyond the sting site, and that beekeepers and their family members are at higher risk because they are stung more often.Confirmed fact, source 13 Germany's federal health portal describes the local sign of an allergy as a swelling often over 10 centimetres across that lasts more than 24 hours; when complaints go beyond the sting site, skin and blood tests follow, the blood test showing whether the body has formed antibodies against the venom.Confirmed fact, source 13 Austria's public health portal describes the systemic, anaphylactic reaction building within minutes of a sting, lists beekeepers among occupations stung more often, and says allergic people should always carry an emergency kit.Confirmed fact, source 14 Wallierhof (Solothurn) tells people with a known bee venom allergy to clarify their plan with a doctor first; Bavaria's institute warns that a rare life-threatening allergy needs immediate medical help.Confirmed fact, source 11 Bavaria's course material lists the basic kit: a beekeeper hat whose thin black wire mesh is held off the neck by a second ring, a light coloured blouse with tight cuffs, and gloves of soft, dense leather, with latex gloves from the care sector as an alternative.Confirmed fact, source 4

What to read, and what to be careful with

Bavaria's institute recommends specialist literature on the basics, notes that many public libraries now carry good beekeeping collections, and that some associations run their own libraries.Confirmed fact, source 15 The Czech union names the collective textbook 'Včelařství' by Veselý and colleagues as probably the most comprehensive book, includes the free monthly magazine Včelařství in membership, and runs a lending library in Prague.Confirmed fact, source 5 The Czech union warns that in translated beekeeping literature some technical and technological measures may not match local conditions, a caution that applies to any beginner reading across borders.Confirmed fact, source 5 In Switzerland the sections' basic courses are backed by the association's own online course, and the Wallierhof centre names 'Das Schweizerische Bienenbuch' as reference reading for beginners.Confirmed fact, source 1

The chain of decisions

  1. 01Why keep bees, and how many colonies to start withthe first decision
  2. 02Learning before the first beeafter: Why keep bees, and how many colonies to start with
  3. 03Where to put an apiaryafter: Why keep bees, and how many colonies to start with
  4. 04Choosing the hive and the frame: a decision for yearsafter: Why keep bees, and how many colonies to start with; Learning before the first bee
  5. 05Where the bees come fromafter: Choosing the hive and the frame: a decision for years; Where to put an apiary
  6. 06Equipment and the first budget: what you need and what it costsafter: Choosing the hive and the frame: a decision for years; Why keep bees, and how many colonies to start with
  7. 07Registration and the law: what must happen before and after the first beesafter: Where to put an apiary; Where the bees come from
  8. 08The first season: what the first year looks likeafter: Where the bees come from; Registration and the law: what must happen before and after the first bees; Equipment and the first budget: what you need and what it costs

Sources

  1. BienenSchweiz (apisuisse, Deutschschweiz). Imker/-in werden. bienen.ch, read 2026-10-21. Link
  2. NÖ Imkerschule / LFS Warth. NÖ Imkerkurse 2025/26 (course programme PDF). Landwirtschaftliche Fachschule Warth, 2025. Link
  3. Bayerische Landesanstalt für Weinbau und Gartenbau (LWG), Fachzentrum Bienen. Bienen in der Schule: Grundüberlegungen und Vorarbeiten. Link
  4. Bayerische Landesanstalt für Weinbau und Gartenbau (LWG), Fachzentrum Bienen. Bienenhaltung: Basisteil (course material). Link
  5. Český svaz včelařů, z.s. Jak se stát členem ČSV / Začínáme včelařit. vcelarstvi.cz, read 2026-10-21. Link
  6. Český svaz včelařů, z.s. Směrnice ČSV č. 2/2023 pro činnost učitelů včelařství a přednášejících odborníků. Link
  7. Agencja Restrukturyzacji i Modernizacji Rolnictwa (ARiMR). Interwencje w sektorze pszczelarskim, nabór 24 października - 28 listopada 2025 r. gov.pl, 10.10.2025. Link
  8. Uniwersytet Przyrodniczy w Poznaniu, Katedra Zoologii. Sylabus: Hodowla pszczół, kurs podstawowy (Zootechnika, studia I stopnia). Link
  9. Deutscher Imkerbund e.V. Wege zur Imkerei. deutscherimkerbund.de, read 2026-10-21. Link
  10. Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Ernährung, Landwirtschaft, Forsten und Tourismus (StMELF). Merkblatt: Imkern auf Probe. Stand Mai 2026. Link
  11. Bildungszentrum Wallierhof, Kanton Solothurn. Tipps für Neueinsteiger (Imkerei). Stand 07.01.2022. Link
  12. Landkreis St. Wendel (Saarland). Richtlinie zur Förderung von Jungimkern, Fassung 2023. Link
  13. Bundesministerium für Gesundheit (Germany), gesund.bund.de. Insektengiftallergie. Read 2026-10-21. Link
  14. Öffentliches Gesundheitsportal Österreichs, gesundheit.gv.at. Insektengiftallergie. Read 2026-10-21. Link
  15. Bayerische Landesanstalt für Weinbau und Gartenbau (LWG), Fachzentrum Bienen. Wirtschaftliche Aspekte für Einsteiger (Was kostet mich der Start?). Link

Last checked: 21 October 2026. Every statement in this article was compared with the source it cites. Spotted an error? Report it.