LANDBOU
8 .
cially aware South Africa , the words ‘ black ’ and ‘ white ’ are weapon-grade in nature . To bees , however , black and white are merely colours ( which , according to science , they are not – black and white may be members of the Rainbow Nation , but they are not part of the rainbow ). Bees are more attracted to the non-colour black and less to white . And that is the simple reason white beekeeping protective clothing is white .
“ I always wear another overall under my beekeeping suit and never wash the latter . Eventually , the suit smells very much like the hive and in this way the beekeeper becomes part of the hive .”
Deon and Marelize harvest their honey and squeeze the good stuff out by hand , whereupon the raw honey filters through and is put directly into containers .
“ Then we also scrape off the propolis . As mentioned before , bees use propolis to mummify intruders , but this substance is also the glue that holds the hive together . And we use the propolis to make different types of tinctures and balms .”
Balms are applied to the skin , while tinctures are taken internally – the latter are convenient vehicles for getting the right nutrients to exactly where they are needed in the body and it helps with indigestion , stress , PMS and insomnia . Further-
8 . Visitors can join a tour to see a glass hive and be educated about bees and the myriads of wonders of honey .
34 MARKtoe ! Augustus 2023