Che Guebee Apiary: First Encounter of a Top Bar Hive Kind

Sunday, September 30, 2012

First Encounter of a Top Bar Hive Kind

I met Patrick several weeks ago. He is the first Top Bar Hive beekeeper I ever met in person and he lives only a few miles away from where i study self-sufficient householding. What a concidence since Top Bar beekeeping is not popular in Sweden and there is just a handful of beeks practicing it at this time. I made sure to pay him a visit and thats what I did today. He keeps the Nordic Black Bee. His farm is high up on a hill facing south and the view is awesome. The whole area is pure woodland. Dream land for a bee colony. He kept bees in top bar hives for 4 years now with great success.

Patrick uses duvet as winter insulation with good results :)

two beautiful Kenya Top Bar Hives coated in Linseed Oil and Wax.

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What is Natural Beekeeping?

"Natural Beekeeping" is a concept, an idea which springs from a human mind and as such will differ from one person to another, from one culture to another, depending on our limited and conditioned perception about what it IS being a Honeybee. Since natural beekeeping is an idea and not the actuality it is not to be taken rigidly. Instead it is to be directly inspired by the Actuality. But let's avoid going too philosophical about it and let me simply describe how I see "natural beekeeping" benefiting honeybees (these are only guidelines not a dogma);

- free wax comb construction resulting in clean wax and various cell size

- bees overwinter on their own honey stores (feeding sugar syrup ONLY if absolutely necessary)

- lots of peace (low interference from the beekeepers part)

- treatment free (The only way to have a sustainable system of beekeeping is to stop treating, instead making splits from survivor colonies seems the most natural way to me)

- bees are allowed to raise as many Drones as needed (no drone culling)

- natural Queen selection resulting in the strongest Queen (no queen cell culling and only working with local Queens or my own)

- pesticide free bee zone and supporting organic farming (this is a global issue and must be dealt with locally first through environmental organisations and by buying and growing organic food/clothing, etc ...)

- expanding my apiary every year by making splits using Queen Cells from my own strong survivor colonies or catching local swarms. This is the best way to counteract winter losses.

- planting for the bees flowering trees, bushes and plants covering all seasons. Biodiversity is the best healer for the bees and all other creatures.

Natural Beekeeping

Sunday, September 30, 2012

First Encounter of a Top Bar Hive Kind

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Catching my very first Prime Swarm