BEEKEEPING
It’s all about the honey, honey
T
he heatwaves this year
which have been a trial
for bees in hives
standing all day in the hot
sun, should have provided a
lesson for beekeepers to place
their bees in shady spots,
especially in the afternoons.
During a heatwave one
observes bees working
frantically to bring what one
thinks is nectar, but is, in fact,
water to cool the hives, and
How bees make honey, and keep the
hive cool in a heatwave ... another in
our series on bees and beekeeping by
Peter Clark of the Eastern Highveld
Beekeepers Association
bees will be noticed fanning
at the entrances of the hives
evaporating the water to cool
the bees inside.
Distressed bees will also sit
outside near the front of the
hives. These are usually
young bees that have not
started to work yet.
But this is also one of the
indicators that the bees are
about to swarm off.
This is due to congestion in
the brood chamber and
overheating of the hive by the
sun.
Beekeepers can help by
gently smoking the entrance
of the hive and lifting off the
lid. You will notice the bees
that come to the tops of the
super frames, fanning their
wings in thanks for your
efforts to cool the interior.
The heat and the rain
showers that followed have
produced a good crop of
honey this summer season
that will close in May, as the
blackjacks and cosmos
continue to flower until the
frost starts.
But what is honey made of?
And how come different
honeys have different colours
and flavours, sometimes so
sweet and sometimes rather
“sharp” tasting?
The sources of the bees' raw
material are very wide
indeed: from the nectaries of
flowers and a juice secreted
from trees such as Acacia
elata, that secretes nectar
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from pores at the base of its
leaves, and from any source
of sweetened liquid, including
dregs from discarded
cooldrink cans, even washing
water from sweet factories
and anywhere else that sweet
juices are to be found.
F