Natural beekeeping is slightly different to conventional beekeeping and has it's own approach and practices that differ slightly, natural beekeepers follow 4 shared beliefs:
Allowing and encouraging bees to construct natural combs and not interfering with them and allowing bees to be ‘independent’.
Treating bees primarily as pollinators for the eco system rather than honey producing insects.
Non-chemical usage in caring for bees, to allow for bees to be protected as much as possible.
Supporting hives to reflect the needs of the bees as a main priority.
By sharing these beliefs, beekeepers stand back and encourage the bees to construct their own comb. This means that they will not inspect the hives as often as conventional beekeepers and most importantly beekeepers will refrain from over harvesting the honey.
Is beekeeping cruel?
Long story short, sustainable beekeeping is not unethical or cruel. But there are instances where bees are exploited for higher profits and all of the sustainable practices are forgotten. A good example of this is exploiting the honey bees for higher return: harvesting almost all of the honey in the hive. Natural beekeeping practices stop this from happening.
Lets rewind a little
Conventional beekeeping as we see nowadays is much younger than some may think and dates back to the 1800’s. Beekeeping dates back to the ancient Egyptians and British records indicate Scots were producing honey as early as 300BC. A famous figure in shaping and developing beekeeping that we see and love today is Lorenzo Langstroth. Langstroth created a moveable comb hive which would allow beekeepers to inspect the hive without harming bees, the comb and protecting the eggs, larvae and pupae contained within the cells. This hive is the Langstroth Hive.
The purpose of a Langsgroth hive is to provide a man made structure (frame) to help bees construct a straight comb.
This is a vertical modular beehive consisting of vertically hung frames and a bottom board with an entrance for bees to enter. This method of conventional beekeeping comes with some controversy though as it does not allow bees to construct their cells within the hive to the size they require for their need due to the almost planned structure of the hive.
Man made hives also contain chemicals or coatings which can be distressing to bees and also attractive to mites which can have a negative effect on the hive/colony so choosing a hive is important. As a natural beekeeper these hives can still be used but research is needed to ensure that the hive is suitable in terms of materials etc to minimise the impact on the bees.
Image credits:
'Bees on a frame' from Pexels, royalty free images.
Hive picture credit: Lee Honey bee.
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