LEWISTOWN — Basic beekeeping doesn’t require vast amounts of money, time or space, and bees can be kept just about any place where flowers bloom.

Plus, for those who like to drizzle amber honey on their morning toast or into green tea, it might be worth a look at the basics of beekeeping — also called apiculture.

“I’ve never taken a beekeeping course,” said Frank Enterline, of Reedsville. “Everything I do is what I think the bees would like to have done.”

Frank has been raising bees for half a century. Currently, he has eight hives at his home along Green Lane.

Frank will share the “All the Buzz About Bees” to the Towpath Naturalist Society of Juniata and Mifflin County at its meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 14, at the Fellowship Hall, St. John’s Lutheran Church, 120 N. Main St., Lewistown. Attendees should use the rear entrance.

Originally from Dauphin County, Frank grew up around beekeepers as his father, grandfather, and uncle all enjoyed beekeeping.

His interest in keeping bees was sparked by a book in a fifth grade reading class. “The kids would bring books to class, and we’d talk about them,” Frank said. “One of the kids brought in a book about honeybees. I read through it and was hooked.”

Frank went to an old hardware store in Hummelstown, hoping to buy some equipment to get started. He was told there might be some stuff in the basement, and sure enough a complete beehive and smoker had been tucked away. The pricing for the equipment came from a 1943 catalog, so the price of the equipment was amazing.

“With inexpensive equipment and a few books from the library I got my first swarm of bees, and I’ve had beehives ever since.”

Frank eventually moved to Mifflin County and continued his love for bees. Over the past four days, he’s picked up two swarms to fill his eight hives. “I took them off of the tree and put them in the bee hives,” he said. “One of the swarms was the size of a horse’s leg!”

For Frank, beekeeping has always remained a hobby, which has been very therapeutic at times.

“I get a chair and a drink and pass the afternoon watching bees,” he added. “There’s so much going on at the front of the hive. That’s interesting to me.”

Frank does enjoy sharing the sweet taste of their honey.

“I enjoy just playing with the bees,” he joked. “In the end, I always get a little bit of honey to spread around to my friends and family.”