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For DVD's and Books about Aquaponics and Permaculture. HERE
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Newsletter 2010 # 4
Bees are very necessary for pollination.
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| The photo below shows a lone honey bee from my nearby bee hive hard at work on a sweet basil plant. Some plants such as cucumber do not do well at all without the services of honey bees.
I have kept a beehive or two for many years up until a couple of years ago when my last bee hive died out. I became aware that there were no bees at all working my plants.
One would think that there would be a hive of bees somewhere nearby to do the job, but there was not. I had to resort to hand pollinating my cucumbers to get some reasonable yield.
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The lack of bees would also affect the yield of the tomato plants.
I have a mate who keeps a large number of beehives, so I asked him to sell me a small hive, and there you have it, bees working away on the flowers of my aquaponic plants.
Having a bee hive again is very satisfying, it adds to the overall dream of self-sufficiency, or trying to get as close as possible to that anyway.
If you are thinking of getting a bee hive there are some things that need to be considered, especially if you are in a suburban area.
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| Beekeeping is becoming increasingly popular across Australia as people seek to enjoy the benefits of their own home produced honey, keen gardeners, (aquaponics fanatics) want to improve pollination of plants, and others just want to enjoy observing the wonders of a working bee hive. It is a wonderful hobby for teenagers and goes well with an interest in Aquaponics.
Most local Governments and Councils have rules and regulations regarding the keeping of bees in urban environments, so ask your local Council if they have any rules that might apply to your area. In Queensland you are required to register your bee hive if you keep one or more hives. There is an annual fee of $12.65 for registration. Information for Queensland requirements can be found here.
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| Your house block must be a minimum of 400 sqm in order to keep a bee hive.
Give some thought about where you place your hive so that the working bees will not annoy your neighbours or passers-by.
It is a good idea to face the hive towards the longest part of your block so that their natural flight path will take them mostly over your block as they gain altitude on their way to work. If you have to place the hive against the back fence of your block, make sure the fence is at least 2 metres high at that point and is that high at least 3 metres either side of the hive.
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| Removing the wax cappings before extracting the honey. |
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The back fence can be easily extended upward by adding a light but good quality frame of the same material as the existing fence and attach 50% shade cloth to the framework. You could build a screen like this in front of the hive at least 2 metres spacing from the hive. The bees will then fly up and over the shade cloth barrier on their way to work.
Remember to consult your neighbour. Explain to them the steps you intend to take to make sure the bees do not bother them. In actual fact the bees will prove to be no trouble at all, but most urban dwellers do not understand bees and are therefore a little apprehensive if a bee hive suddenly appears next door...
Australian Native Stingless Bees.
"Australian Native Bees are potentially the most underated resource available to agriculturists, horticulturists, honey producers and people who just want a bee hive or colony in their back yard. The bees range from small black, social (hive) stingless bees through a list of thousand and more varieties of solitary bees including the Blue Banded, Leaf Cutter and Giant Carpenter."
Native bees rarely travel more than 100 meters from the hive to do their work. You will usually observe them early morning when it is calm, working the flowers in the garden.
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Left:-
Australian Native Stingless bees (social bees) working in onion flowers early in the morning.
There are over 1500 species of Australian native Bees ranging from the very smallest, the Cape York's minute Quasihesma bee at under 2mm long, to the largest being the "Great Carpenter Bee" which can be up to 24mm long.
Most Australian Native Bees are solitary, living on theri own in hollows of trees ground. |
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Left:-
One of our Forum members has two hives in his Brisbane back yard.
He started with one, then split the hive into two.
Populations of Australian native Bees should be encouraged wherever possible. They may well save the world food supply.
New and deadly diseases are sweeping through populations of our standard European honey bees around the world.
Should the European honey bee be wiped out by disease, fruit and vegetable production will be seriously reduced causing widespread food shortages.
To date Australia is free of such problems, but authorities say it is not "if" but "when" these disease problems will be found in Australia. |
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Many people are becoming interested in keeping Australian native Bees. It is relatively inexpensive to get a hive and it is very safe in a backyard.
By keeping a bee hive you will be doing your part in keeping flowers pollinated.
There are places where you can purchase a native bee hive if you so desire. Info here
(in Australia)
There is also an excellent collection of native bee photographes here |
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| Aquaponics.NET.au last updated 15 February 2010 |
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