Keeping Bees and Producing Honey
Beekeeping can be an interesting activity and a potential source of income for Fijians. This website explains the most basic aspects of beekeeping in Fiji, to help prospective beekeepers understand how to start.
Beekeeping is an activity that both Fijian men and women enjoy. For many, beekeeping is a family activity.
Bees produce honey, beeswax, pollen and propols, all of which can be collected and sold by beekeepers. Some beekeepers produce bees for sale.
Beekeeping is not for everyone. It is often uncomfortably hot wearing a bee suit, involves some heavy lifting, and bees do sting. Successful beekeeping requires self discipline to regularly check that the bees are healthy and well-fed.
A Three-Step Guide to Start Beekeeping
Step 1: Learn
It is best to learn beekeeping basics before acquiring hives. During this period, a new beekeeper learns how to care for bees properly, which usually requires hot work while wearing a bee suit and enduring and occasional bee sting. They learn:
- How a bee colony behaves, the three bee castes, how bees build honey comb and pro duce honey
- How to work with bees while avoiding stings
- How to inspect a hive, seasonal manage ment, and how to harvest honey
- The up-front and recurring costs of beekeeping.
- Criteria for selecting an apiary
- Where to buy hives, bees,and equipment.
How to Learn
There are many resources available to Fijians to learn beekeeping. The best ones are:
- Nearby experienced beekeepers .Invite your self to join an experienced beekeeper when they work with their It is an opportuni ty to be introduced to bees with individual attention and to have many questions an swered
- Training classes or workshops . These are offered by several Fiji Beekeepers Association certified instructors and also by Ministry of Agriculture. t is best to take a class after first visiting hives in an apiary a few times.
- The There are many good websites and videos that can help new beekeepers. For example, search youtube.com for “how to inspect a bee hive”
- Beekeeping association Fiji has several local beekeeping associations and a national association that conduct learning events.
Step 2: Acquire Hives and Equipment
A beginning beekeeper will need:
- Hives & hive stand
- Bees
- Protective clothing (suit & gloves, boots)
- Tools (smoker, hive tool)
- Honey harvesting equipment (optional). Many beginning beekeepers share harvesting equipment because it is expensive and only used a few days each year.
Experienced local beekeepers are usually the best advisors on where to buy hives and bees. We recommend starting with between 2 and 6 hives
Step 3: More Learning
Beekeepers learn to breed bees by dividing their colonies to replace those that naturally die. They also learn advanced methods to increase honey production.
