Look for a local beekeepers association. Contact them to ask for advice. Likely they have monthly meetings where you can acquire info and perhaps develop a friendship which will develop into a useful mentor (or two).

And contact your county's Extension Service office to ask about additional local resources. (Find your county's office with this interactive map: http://npic.orst.edu/pest/countyext.htm)

Linda, I'm a beekeeper in Pennsylvania but, as Jean mentioned above, a lot of your questions are best answered by local beekeepers because there are important issues that locals will know best.

On the question of whether it is too late to start this year, it isn't just the weather but also the forage availability that determines the answer to that question. This map https://honeybeenet.gsfc.nasa.gov/Honeybees/Forage.htm will give you some information about sources of nectar and pollen by month. Usually in the hot part of the summer there isn't a lot of nectar around, though that may be different for you in Texas. When there's no nectar, a new bee colony would have to be fed sugar water in order to be able to build up. If they're taking sugar water, though, you won't be getting honey. They can only make honey from nectar.

Another thing to be careful about in Texas is Africanized bees. They are very aggressive and need to be handled differently than "regular" honeybees. Again, local folks can tell you whether this is an issue. Even if you start with non-Africanized bees, your queens will mate with local drones that may carry the more aggressive genes.

Wax moths are fairly easy to control with proper hive management. Fire ants are, fortunately, not something I have experience with.

Good luck with your foray into beekeeping. It is a wonderful activity for a hobby or a profession.

Alison

I am a beekeeper in East Texas. Jean has some great advice - finding a local beekeeper's association can be very beneficial. Plus, they may have classes which you can take to learn about beekeeping and get used to being in the hive.

As for your specific questions, these are my opinion (and every beekeeper has one! ha!):

Is it too late to start a hive now? Well, most people here order their nukes in January or February, and get them in April or May. The biggest factor on starting now rather than in spring is availability. Most beekeepers that raise queens will have already sold theirs by now. If you are able to get some now, I would be careful of the source. If they are queens that have been shipped around the country, they may get you through the year, but in that case, in my opinion, I think it would be best to start in the spring. You may, however, be able to find a great source, and in that case, you could certainly start a hive now, if you have no expectations of getting honey this year. You also have to realize that it won't be as strong a hive going into winter as it would be if you had started two months ago.

Winterizing is not as much a problem in Texas as it is in the colder areas of the country. I make certain to leave my bees plenty of honey to eat (and that the honey is close enough in the hive for them to get to it). I do worry about them when it gets cold, but even in the 13 degree weather we had last year, mine were fine. Mine are, however, sheltered from northerly winds, so location and orientation of your hive is important.

I, too, have lots of fire ants. I suggest you do as I have - place your hives on landscape cloth on top of cinder blocks. When I see ants around the cinder blocks, I sprinkle diatomaceous earth on the landscape cloth around the blocks. Having the landscape cloth under the blocks is a big help (and studies have proved this) in controlling hive beetles. I have not had a big problem with wax moths, but I do freeze my extra frames during the winter. I also treat my hives for varroa mites with oxalic acid. They have not been a big problem for me, but I do occasionally see one in the drone larvae.

I do not have skunks around that I know of (and I assume I would know it), but I do have lots of raccoons. I had a strap that wrapped around the hive to keep the raccoons out, but they never seemed interested, so now I don't even bother with the strap.

Most of the Africanized bees are in South Texas; however, there is always a chance that your queen would have mated with one. Usually if your bees are mean, wait six weeks and they should calm down as she uses up all that particular drone's sperm. If they continue to remain mean, you would need to replace the queen. I have not had any problems in that regard, and hope I never do! I have heard of beekeepers that have had a problem, though, so it is something you have to be aware of.

Anyway, hope those answers helps somewhat. Good luck with your beekeeping!