Cave paintings show that humans have been engaged in beekeeping for about 8,000 years. There is actually ancient honey preserved because honey never spoils. It was the sugar that was important to humans. A substance from bees – propolis = a natural antibiotic – was also used to embalm mummies in Egypt.
We move quickly forward in time and end up on Sollerön in 2021. More specifically, at beekeeper David Summermatter's in Utanmyra.
“I started my hobby 10 years ago.
It feels good to be able to contribute an important piece of the puzzle for nature. Did you know that 1/3 of everything we humans eat is pollinated by bees? (2/3 in total by pollinated insects). The fruit growers' association's approximately 300 apple trees would not bloom and bear fruit without bees.
Sollerön is a good place for beekeeping, but I wish the biodiversity was even greater. The thing that limits beekeeping here on the island is the availability of food. Bees eat nectar for carbohydrates and pollen for protein. The more flowers, the more bees.
Willow and dandelion are favorite plants in the spring. Dandelion in particular provides good honey and nice color. Later in the summer, clover, raspberries, milk thistle and heather are mainly on the menu.
A hive = community can amount to 40 – 60,000 individuals. Reproduction is important. The queen bee lays 1,500 – 2,000 eggs/day in early summer.
When the hive becomes overpopulated, a swarm forms and moves out. The swarm can consist of 20,000 bees and resembles a football. My task during the early summer is to make sure that they do not swarm, because then the honey production decreases.
A bee lives about 6 weeks in the summer and 9 months in the winter. They fly about 1.5 – 2 km to collect nectar and pollinate and they are active 24/7. The fact that Mathias Håll is growing rapeseed here in Utanmyra this summer is great for my apiary. When the rapeseed flowers, my bees will be able to eat their fill.”
The honeybee is a wild animal that has never been domesticated. They don’t recognize me. They can get irritated at the end of the summer when I take their honey. I get stung a few times during the season because I usually work without gloves. The bees guard the entrance (the whisper) to the hive carefully. You have to approach from behind and pump in some smoke so that they are a little stunned. Then I can see if everything is right in the community. I usually don’t use a veil and a suit because then I can see and feel better.”
When Solleröbladet visits, David has just had a basic course in beekeeping for future beekeepers. "It's important to recruit new people. We are about 100 beekeepers in Ovansiljan.
In Sweden there are about 15,000 beekeepers. Most have it as a hobby. Sweden imports about 50% of the honey consumption so we welcome more to start. I throw honey 2 times. In early July and in mid-August.”
Solleröbladet asks David about the future of bees on Sollerön. “If every farm has a few square meters left on their well-mowed lawn, I wish they would plant perennial plants there for bees. Insect hotels are also good. They take care of themselves and mean a lot. We have been taught that honey is beneficial. Many people drink tea with honey. “Don't pour honey into boiling water. That way, many of the beneficial substances will disappear. Let the water cool down for a while and then add the honey,” concludes David.
Honey from Utanmyra is truly locally produced. And it is real honey with all the beneficial ingredients. This is not necessarily the case with all imported honey.
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