The Buzz on Natural Beekeeping

So, here’s the sweet scoop on natural beekeeping—it’s the fresh way to nurture our buzzing friends. 🌼

As a natural beekeeper, you:

Team up with your bees.
See yourself and your bees as part of nature’s grand plan.
Work in harmony with the systems and cycles that keep life buzzing on this beautiful planet.

And guess what? It all boils down to two simple principles:

Let the bees handle everything inside the hive.
You manage everything outside.

Easy peasy!

Compared to traditional beekeeping, natural beekeeping is:

Wiser.
Healthier.
Simpler.
More cost-effective.
And more sustainable.

It’s not just about honey; it’s about beekeeping within a broader context. It’s building intelligent relationships and owning up to responsibilities, not sticking to a rigid methodology.

Beekeeper’s Dance

As your bee buddies’ partner, your mission is to:

Comprehend.
Sustain.
Collaborate with.
And minimize harm to the natural systems and cycles that keep your bees happy.

Through this, your bees thrive, and your beekeeping becomes both sustainable and fruitful.

Harmony and Cooperation

Natural beekeeping is a journey of perpetual observation and growth. And that’s a good thing because, let’s face it, understanding and syncing up with all the natural systems influencing bees takes time.

The beauty? Bees are adaptable and resilient wonders of nature. They’ve thrived without much human meddling for eons, and they’ll continue to do so when kept in harmony with nature.

Start by focusing on the external aspects. Nature and your bees will be your teachers. With an open mind and keen observation, you’ll learn what you need to know. Over time, as your experience deepens, you’re likely to assist rather than interfere with your hive’s well-being.

On the upcoming pages, I’ll share some real-world applications of these principles.

Why Choose Natural?

Beekeeping has been a lifelong love affair. Both my grandparents were beekeepers, and I’ve been in the bee biz since the ’60s. But things took a nosedive. Bees were pushed beyond limits for maximum production, exposed to pollution, and ended up on a pesticide rollercoaster. The result?

Declining bee health.
Lower production.
Reduced winter survival rates.
Rampant disease and pests.
Sugar feeding became a necessity.
More bees died in winter than were born in spring.

In the late ’80s, feeling the frustration of where modern beekeeping was heading, I set up a test yard. I started experimenting with alternative beekeeping methods like soft treatments, small-cell, and eventually organic approaches. At every step, bees got healthier, and my beekeeping got simpler.

But the real breakthrough came when I realized that my beekeeping issues weren’t due to a lack of some alternate method but stemmed from a focus on commercial, production-oriented goals. Digging to the root of the problem, I went natural.

Since then, my beekeeping, while not glitch-free, has moved in the right direction. It aligns with what I always sensed was necessary.

As a result, the passion I lost for bees during commercial beekeeping has returned, and my beekeeping has blossomed.

Who’s Buzzing with Nature?

I’m not alone in these revelations. Check out these natural beekeepers:

Ready to Bee Natural?

So, what’s your take? Are you up for the buzzing adventure? If yes, you’re in good company. Natural beekeeping is the beekeeping trend of the 21st century. As smart, spirited natural beekeepers join the ranks of a graying, industrialized, method-based beekeeping community, beekeeping will get a dose of revitalization—just like our bees. ✨

Buzzingly yours, D 🐝🤠