Beekeepers needed
The money you are able to generate from beekeeping could turn out to be very sweet.
This is according to a beekeeper of 62 years and author of Tales of an African Beekeeper, Peter Clark.
Clark was invited as a guest speaker at the University of the Third Age (U3A) meeting, at the Northmead Tennis Club, on July 22.
He told the City Times after the talk that he and fellow beekeepers are looking to grow beekeeping in the country, to reduce the amount of honey which is being imported.
Clark said there are few youngsters who are entering the field, due to the start-up cost involved and travelling time to attend to bee hives.
The Springs resident, who has 200 hives, said the number of commercial beekeepers in Benoni, Boksburg, Springs and Nigel has dropped significantly since 1980.
This is disconcerting, as the industry is trying to up production to limit imports of honey which can contain impurities.
Clark added that beekeepers who sell honey directly to the consumer can generate a steady income.
People who would like to enter the field of beekeeping, would have to fork out around R1 000 for a hive with bees and another R1 000 for the equipment needed.
Hives are usually located on people’s plots and farms.
Clark, who offers an eight-month course on beekeeping, revealed these facts about bees at the talk:
- There are three types of bees, all with their own tasks. They are: worker bees, drones and the queen bee.
- All worker bees are female and are able to sting
- Worker bees use all four their wings to fly when loaded with pollen and only two when they aren’t carrying a load of pollen.
- Drones have only two wings.
- Worker bees live for a month in working season, and about three months in their off-season.
- Drones’ function is to mate with the queen bee. Drones aren’t able to sting
- Drones don’t participate in gathering pollen.
- The queen bee produces more eggs which will hatch into drones when she wants to leave the hive to start a new one.
- The queen bee can live for up to three years.
- The queen can lay up to 2 000 eggs in her prime.
- Worker bees feed the queen; she can’t feed herself.
- Honey should not be heated as it loses its properties at a certain temperature.
