Beekeeping requires a small capital outlay and minimal management of the hives. It requires little capital outlay, no land, and is not labour intensive.  It has the potential to add to household income and also allow rural people the opportunity to earn extra income.

The demand for honey and its by-products is constantly booming all over the world and all related costs of producing it are extremely minimal. Honey consumption is over 300 million pounds per annum, just in the U.S alone. So you can imagine the consumption in the rest of the world for this extra special food. You can picture yourself and your family positioned to produce enough honey to meet the endless list of bee products. This is a worldwide market ready for you to satisfy. It takes much less effort on your part. All you need is to be equipped with quality beekeeping information. Success in beekeeping requires an intimate knowledge of the biology of the honey bee, as well as  management practices based on colony habits and bee behavior. This necessitates considerable reading and training on bee keeping and, observation of the activities of bees in the hive. A beginner should start with 2 or 3 colonies. More than one colony is desirable because of the opportunity it gives for comparing colony growth and production. After a trial of one season or more, additional colonies can be added with great ease and little expense.

The Benefits of Beekeeping:
 Beekeeping is an activity that anyone can undertake as it requires minimal or no land. Men, women, elderly and youth can participate!

 It takes minimal time and effort in a season. Therefore allowing for normal work-a-day activities to carry on. It has relatively low technology requirements!
 It is a low investment activity which requires only bee hives, bee suits and a few simple tools.

Beekeeping basics are easy to master!
 Bees pollinate the indigenous flora, adding value to wild harvested fruits, nuts and economic trees and plants as well as 1/3rd to any food production through targeted pollination!
 Beekeeping projects can be linked with many other production projects
 Beekeeping provides employment and self-esteem, there is opportunity for quick return on investment, and minimal land requirements!

 Honey is a valuable non-wood forest product thus contributing to the preservation of forests around the world!

 Honey is a commodity that can be traded internationally as well as locally or regionally without special consideration as to storage or loss!

 Honey is a high value product with a stable and lucrative supply versus demand economy.

Honey is very portable as well!

 Honey and its by-products have many healthy benefits for the consumer and are lucrative trade commodities in value addition form!

 Most honeybee products can be consumed as food, dietary supplements or used as medicine. And bee products have a long shelf life and are a valuable food source!

Whether you want to learn to be a beekeeper or just want to master the art of making honey, it is important to have the correct information needed to start your new hobby.

There are several methods of getting started:

1. Starting with bees  : Buy hives with established colonies.  A colony of bees consists of three castes of bee:
·    a Queen bee, which is normally the only breeding female in the colony;
·    a large number of female worker bees, typically 30,000–50,000 in number;
·    a number of male drones, ranging from thousands in a strong hive.

A good queen may be capable of laying 3,000 eggs in one day, more than her own body weight.

This would be exceptional however; a prolific queen might peak at 2,000 eggs a day, but a more average queen might lay just 1,500 eggs per day.

2. Starting with Hives and bait - Buy bee hives with bait and install
To produce Honey, bees will visit the most attractive flowers they can find. It is not possible to direct them to, or away from, specific flowers or areas. Colonies can be moved to take better advantage of crops. Each area of the state will have one or more dominant floral sources that will give honey produced in that section its distinctive smell, taste and color. With experience, a colony should produce about 20kg to 25kg of honey. Production depends on a number of factors, not the least of which is the abundance of nectar-secreting plants. Some areas are better than others. Colonies can be kept anywhere and produce a surplus honey crop. Keeping honey bees can be fun, rewarding and healthful. It is suggested you start small and expand as conditions permit. The most skillful beekeepers understand bee biology and adapt natural biology to their circumstances.

To be continued next week, stay blessed.