There’s a buzz in the air these days…and it’s being caused by the
growing number of bees living in cities. Since the mysterious collapse
of bee colonies a few years ago, an army of urban beekeepers are
striving to rescue the population, one bee at a time, because they’re
worried about the environmental impact of fewer pollinators. Some people
have blamed the colony collapse disorder phenomenon on the large,
commercial beekeeping operations with their overworked colonies and use
of pesticides. Others focus on mites and diseases that the chemicals are
supposed to conquer, in the same way that factory hog or cattle farms
are susceptible to diseases. Other urban beekeepers value the one
hundred or so pounds of honey a hive can produce in a good year and
cultivate bees in the same way they’d grow organic veggies and fruit.
Beekeeping is a relatively inexpensive hobby and is more common in
the city than you might think. It takes up very little space, with
stackable hives that are about one foot square. Urban beekeepers
typically keep their hives in their backyards, but some are kept on city
roof-tops, such as the roof of downtown Toronto’s Fairmont Royal York
Hotel. Bees can travel several miles to collect nectar and pollen, so
they do not need flowering plants close by. As long as you practice good
hive hygiene, your involvement can be as limited as you wish, since bees
are pretty self-sufficient creatures. Then, once a year, you’ll have to
get involved with the honey harvesting process, which is time consuming
and messy. That involves removing the bees from the hive, removing the
honey-holding wax from the frames, extracting the honey from the wax and
jarring the honey.
The Challenges
However, there are challenges. In the city, these include jittery
neighbors, vandals and . . .
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