BEEKEEPING
Ensuring that bees are well-fed year round
D
espite the heatwave
and dry November
and December,
Gauteng's bees survived and
the honey was of good
quality, with an average
“flow” for this time of year.
Then the rains came and the
hives were soon bursting with
Another in our series of articles on beekeeping for flows from these weedy
lands.
beginners by Peter Clark, chairman of the
In driving around we notice
Eastern Highveld Beekeepers Association
young bees, new queens, and
many swarms came forth.
The heat brought out the best
in the Acacia Karoo, (sweet
thorn or soet doring) with a
great and magnificent
Bees being artificially fed a sugar water mixture when other food is in
short supply
abundance of yellow pompom flowers, loaded with
nectar and pollen, the best in
years, and the bees took full
advantage.
The bloom of the pink, red,
white and purple Pride of
India trees, although later this
year, was the best in years.
Gauteng's Jacarandas put
down their purple carpet, and
from these fallen flowers the
bees gather the nectar (so be
wary when walking on this
carpet as one can pick up a
sting or two).
Because of the drought some
farmers had not ploughed
their lands and the abundance of weeds that have
sprung up after the rains, are
more goodies for the bees.
One must not underestimate
the nectar and pollen that
19
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more patches and even fields
of the weed pink Pom-pom
spreading rather rapidly in
some places and the bees are
busy gathering the nectar and
pollinating the flowers to
produce more pink Pom-pom
plants next year, the
Khakibos, and blackjacks are
looking good, promising more
feed for the bees and honey
in the bottles.
Continued on page 21