A Hive Smoker is your best friend! 

Honey bees use pheromones to communicate, and when you open the hive they send out the intruder alarm. The smoke interrupts that communication, keeping the hive calm. This means you are less likely to be stung and the bees won't perish from stinging you!

• Use only clean, natural, dried materials in your smoker. We like pine straw because it is readily available in some of our bee yards! 
• It make take a few times to get it properly lighted. The idea is keeping it smoky, but not on fire. Take a look at this instructive video.