Gauteng Smallholder Gauteng Smallholder August 2017 | Page 18

BEEKEEPING
How to be a
beekeeper
An article in our ongoing series on bees
and beekeeping by Peter Clark, chairman
of the Eastern Highveld Beekeepers
Association and author of Tales of an
African Beekeeper
N
ot only because they
are a vital link in the
ecological chain,
and are under threat on
many levels, there are a
number of reasons for
humans to keep, nurture and
farm with bees.
The various aspects of
beekeeping:
K To keep bees for honey
production both liquid and
cut comb,
K To provide a very
important pollination service
to farmers who produce
seed for the commercial
farmer to plant,
K To provide a bee removal
service to the emergency
services authorities of the
country, so that bees are
preserved and not destroyed
when they take up residence
in unsuitable locations,
K To venture into the
production of beeswax
alone, where there is a large
market in the manufacturing
of cosmetic creams, special
high quality polishes, and
foundation wax for the bee
industry,
K To breed queens for the
queen replacement to
maintain good strong health
hives, required mainly by
beekeepers who have to
have strong hives to satisfy
the requirements of the
pollination contracts.
A serious beekeeper needs a
special bee proof room to do
all honey work and also
where bee-related equip-
ment can be permanently
kept, such as a suitable
extractor, a honey bottling
tank, and a spacious work
table. There should be a
hand wash basin and geyser
to provide hot water on tap
and an overhead roof-light to
let in daylight is very helpful.
There are two types of
beekeeping, namely
residential and migratory.
K Residential beekeeping is
where one keeps hives on
Continued on page 17
#SAFoodCrisis
From page 15
and grant structure is
insufficient to allow the most
vulnerable South Africans
even the most basic nutri-
tious diet, isn't the cost of
foodstuffs too high? And, if
so, why?
There are many other aspects
to #SAFoodCrisis.
In forthcoming editions we
will look at food production
and why farmers are packing
in their operations and selling
up, why the government's
proposed “1 Household, 1
Hectare” smallholder land
16
www.sasmallholder.co.za
redistribution policy is a
disaster in the making, why
very few South African
households produce even a
portion of their own food,
why charitable efforts at food
parcels, soup kitchens and
helping to establish food
gardens are patronising,
insulting and useless, and
why the real problem lies
deep in the food manufactur-
ing and distribution industry
itself.
~ Editor