BEEKEEPING (apiculture) plays an important role in sustainable agriculture, environmental management and enhancement of livelihoods in rural communities.

It is an ideal, eco-friendly and non-land-based enterprise, which does not tax farm resources. It spans through sectoral divides including forestry, horticulture, agriculture, the natural environment, animal husbandry and entomology.

Keeping bees is an amazing experience and rewarding with most people engaging in the activity as a hobby. Most importantly they produce honey, wax and propolis which are economically lucrative to the farmer, providing alternative sources of income and benefiting communities living in and around forests.

Raw honey from bees contains many nutrients and minerals that have antioxidant and antibacterial properties.

Research suggests that raw honey is a healthier sweetener than sugar. In traditional medicine, people use honey when treating a wide variety of conditions such as bronchial asthma, throat infections, hepatitis, haemorrhoids and wounds.

Beeswax is used in several skincare products, ointments, waterproofing and as a wax base in candles and polish.

Other bee products which are important to human health include propolis, bee bread, bee pollen, royal jelly and bee venom. These have cultural value in many societies and may be used in religious and customary rituals.

Bees have environmental importance as pollinators that control the growth and quality of crops and vegetation.

They strongly influence ecological relationships, ecosystem conservation, stability and genetic variation in the plant community.

Without bees, there would be no flowering plants, crops and trees. This could lead to nutritional deficiencies in the human diet, as they are essential sources of vital nutrients

Bees pollinate most of the crops we eat and fodder for livestock.

The yield from bee pollinated plants is significantly higher by even up to 200 percent as compared to the same plants in the absence of bees.

This applies to all kinds of fruits both indigenous and exotic, oilseeds such as sunflower and soyabeans, and all kinds of vegetables. All this makes bees vital to livelihoods whether one is a beekeeper or not.

Zimbabwe’s forests and woodlands have a favourable natural environment for beekeeping. This is evidenced by the presence of wild bees and wild honey in most communities. Despite this, the potential for beekeeping in rural areas often lacks the necessary financial, extensional and technological support that is required to fully exploit its potential in conserving forests and reducing poverty.

In Zimbabwe, most of the honey is produced by smallholder farmers, with beekeeping mainly being practiced at a small-scale and limited to a few people. The bulk of the honey is produced from traditional hives with an estimated annual production of 420 tonnes.

However, hive occupancy is very low at less than 30 percent due to a lack of skills in advanced beekeeping techniques such as colony transfers; bee handling techniques; queen breeding and manipulation. In some cases, failure in beekeeping is also caused by negligence, miscalculation of the site selection and improper handling of bees during hive inspections.

This results in low production and wastage of resources. This state of affairs is not conducive for farmers and other entrepreneurs to significantly invest in the beekeeping sector.

It is important to realise that for beekeeping to become a sustainable and profitable activity, beekeepers need to be trained on best practices. Beekeeping also presents a potential risk of being stung by them hence the need for one to be trained and acquainted with the protocols of handling bees safely.

If anyone wishes to venture into beekeeping it is also highly recommended that they work with an experienced beekeeper for at least one year. The finer skills of beekeeping can only be learnt through experience and mentorship.

Beekeeping can be an important practical tool for sustainable forest management and ecologically friendly agricultural practices thus improving biodiversity and livelihoods.

This is because where beekeepers have set up their apiaries, they protect them from veld fires and discourage people from cutting down trees. Only a few people pass near apiaries for fear of being stung by bees, consequently, this preserves the environment of the area by enabling it to develop into prime forests.

However, a rise in factors like deforestation, veld fires, climate change and excessive use of pesticides means that bees are currently in decline, negatively affecting the ecosystems, agricultural yield and livelihoods.

Improper practices such as when honey hunters burn synthetic materials like tyres and plastics to “drunken the bees” and killing the bee colonies by burning to enable them to harvest honey contributes to the depletion of bee populations.

Furthermore, honey hunters do not hesitate to burn and or cut down big trees to gather honey from tree cavities.

This is a direct threat to the bees and the loss of all benefits that come with the presence of bees in an area.  Besides a significant proportion of veld fires have been reported to originate from hunting bees, destroying large parts of forests and parks.

With an ideal site and motivation, starting a beekeeping project is easy. The following steps need to be followed;

1. Acquire knowledge through reading and training.

2. Identify a mentor or experienced beekeeper to work with.

3. Pick an ideal apiary site (place for keeping bees).

4. Create a plan — Finances: costs, sales, cash flow, profit and loss. Consider costs of initial set-up and equipment.

Plan on how beekeeping will complement other farming activities like reducing the use of pesticides and security.

5. Get a beekeeping starter kit — beekeeping equipment, beehives, tools, protective clothing and extraction equipment.

6. Set up apiary — treat hives for baiting bees or hunt for bee colonies or buy bee colonies.

7. Complementary activities — plant bee-friendly trees and upscale organic farming around the apiary to support bees and increase productivity.

The Forestry Commission promotes beekeeping by training beekeepers as a strategy for sustainable forest management and socio-economic improvement.

Fortunes Matutu is a forester with the Forestry Commission and has a special interest in social forestry.