Beekeeping in Ancient Egypt

Apiculture was popular in the whole of Egypt but particular in the Delta region. Hives were made of mud or reeds covered with mud. Empty hives were also used as wall insulation of houses. The cylindrical hives were stacked horizontally, sometimes up to 500 together. The harvesting was done twice a year: in spring and autumn. Because of the climate there seem to have been no winter hibernation. The hives were transported to where the flowers were. They had to be moved again when the farmers were clearing the ground by fire after harvest or when the Nile water rose and it was necessary to bring the hives to higher ground. The moving could cause some logistic problems especially when there were many hives involved. It is all written down in queries, prayers and petitions and mercifully kept for prosperity. The drawing is of fields on the banks of the Nile and two huge statues near Luxor

The shopping basket of the worker bee

The worker bee never leaves the hive without her shopping basket. Nature attached it permanently to her hind leg. When she sticks her head into the flower the pollen gets stuck to her head and thorax. With her front legs moistened with nectar, she gathers it up and brings it to the pollen comb. There the pollen is combed, pressed and put into the basket. The nectar gives the pollen in the basket its colour. That’s how the beekeeper knows from which flower or honey source the bee has been foraging from. Once the pollen is in the hive it’s gets stored by the home worker bees. They mix it with honey and pack it firmly into store cells. The mixing with honey has to do with keeping it safe from going off. Photo of the bee with pollen on her hind legs: Timothy Stevens. Drawing by me.

The life and times of worker bees Part 3 Foragers

After the learning stages in and close to the hive the worker bees venture out into the great big world to find the honey source and bring pollen and nectar home. As Timothy the beekeeper already said: the bee is stupid but the hive is clever. And so the worker bees dance the story of the best honey sources to each other generation after generation for tens of thousands of years. They perform tremble dances to let the home front know that foragers are returning with the goodies. Worker bees also scout the ‘nesting’ place for the swarm to go to when the time has come for the queen to leave the colony and start a new one. Photo Timothy Stevens

Rain and Damp

Rain and damp have plaqued these shores for the last 5 weeks. I'm worried about the bees. Are they warm enough? Can they find a honey source? Are the hives thriving? I was very glad to hear that Thimothy the beekeeper was due for another visit. He came late in the day. It was dry but overcast. The bees were still active but not like earlier in the day when they were going in and out of the hives in large numbers. Now the midges were out and for the first time this year they were stinging: much too early for my taste. Apparently when Timothy was here the last time and I was in the Burren, he had discovered that mites pestered the hives. He had put tablets of poison in the hives that he was now taking away again. But there was also good news. The hawthorn had come out in bloom like I had never seen before. Timothy took a photo of one of his bees feasting on the hawthorn blossom.

Bees in Achill Secret Garden

As honey source is the ultimate condition for keeping bees Achill Secret Garden is the place to be. On the last day of April on their daughter’s thirties birthday Timothy the beekeeper installed no less than 4 starter hives in the seaside garden of Pirate’s friends Doutsje and Willem. The garden with all its flowering plants and shrubs is a haven for hungry honey bees. Doutsje and Willem improved and beautified an existing hundred year old seaside garden on the east coast of Achill Island. Since 1967 they have been working non-stop to make this garden the pride of the island. During the past winter they have cleared a section where wind damaged trees darkened the ground. Timothy chose this place for his beehives. It is far from the house and the visitor’s route through the garden.

Quiet is a beguiling word

All looked wonderful with the sun shining and the bees a-buzzing. The sheep were safely put behind bars and forgotten. The next upset came from Facebook of all places. That happens when you make a blog and link the blog to FB every now and then. Lilian Voshaar a Polranny Pirates’ friend and environmental activist in the Amsterdam district called De Pijp wrote: ‘I wonder if there is enough to eat for the bees through the year. Here we try to make the best of it by advising different plants for different seasons to accommodate insects.’ To which Timothy Stevens the beekeeper answered: ‘I shall be keeping a very close eye on stores for the bees. I am not certain that there will be forage in the height of the summer in Polranny and June may prove troublesome. This is one of the main reasons that I have only installed two hives to see if the location can stand that and if it can I shall increase the number. From late this month the hives will be seen every week and inspected every two. I also intend to pay close attention to the pollen coming into these hives and others I have placed close by to see what the bees are foraging on.’ Well! Never a dull day!

Substitute for honey

During hibernation bees do not go out to collect honey. Also their food reserves have been taken away when the beekeeper harvested the honey from the hive for his own purposes. That’s why they get sugar as substitute food. ‘To feed them till they have found their way again to the honey source,’ Timothy said. On the photo you can clearly see how the bees enter the bag with feed from the frames in the Styrofoam starter hive. When the hives were finally closed a heavy stone was put on top to keep the whole thing in place. ‘I’ll be back next week to see how they are adjusting to the new environment,’ Timothy the beekeeper promised.