BEEKEEPING
A hobby you can do into old age
Beekeeping : welcome to this most fascinating farming occupation that starts in the back yard and extends far beyond just keeping bees , but also into the vast , wonderful and beautiful flora of our country and into the pollination of any number of crops imaginible . The beekeeper has all these features at his front door to enjoy . He becomes the friend of every farmer and a most sought after person when he has to remove troublesome bees from odd hidey-holes . In cases where he offers free pollination services to farmers , heisalways “ baie welkom .” Beekeeping is successful and most enjoyable when one , with some knowledge of bees , can work with confidence and determination . This is obtainable by working with and learning from an
Interested in beekeeping but don ! t know where to start ? Here ! s some insight into this fascinating and vital pastime that can become a lucrative business , by Peter Clark , chairman of the Eastern Highveld Beekeepers ! Association
experienced beekeeper . It is this “ hands on ” learning that cannot be attained from books or classroom lectures . As one meets successful established beekeepers , one will find that all of them were taught by an established beekeeper at the outset of their careers . The craft is capital intensive and a very costly outlay to build up to an operating outfit . However it is an undertaking where one can start small and grow at one ' s own pace of development . Mostly the work is outdoors , often into night hours , so one has to be healthy and fit and not be troubled by back ailments . Hard work that can be hard on the back is the order of the day if one is to succeed . One becomes attuned to the demands and requirements of the bees and to discipline oneself to these situations spells great success . Good planning is essential , as goals must be set and adhered to , as one needs to know what will be happening twelve months hence , and then through every month as the year progresses . One learns to observe the various plants that flower throughout the year and what crops will be flowering , and how one is going to get the honey from those flowers in those days . Therefore one has to keep proper and accurate records of honey flows and the amount of honey obtained from each flow . To meet these requirements the bees have to be kept up to strength at all times . Beekeepers are loners and because they have succeeded at a great cost of time and money to obtain good sites for their apiaries , they are very reluctant to disclose their sites and any details of their operations . The value of the bee industry cannot be assessed . By some it is stated as a R20 billion industry and by others far more . That ' s because one needs to consider the value of foreign revenue brought in by the fruit export industry , the fresh juice industry , the cooking oil and the use thereof in the food preparation industry . Then add to that the pollination of crops for the fruit and nut production industries , for
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