Hi all

I am from South Africa and work with A.m. capensis and A.m. scutellata bees.
I began working with bees about 2 years ago when I was working for a meadery
in the region while I completed my B.Sc.  During this time I dabbled in some
research which was very interesting but lacked funding to continue.  I am
presently busy with an honours degree in Ichthyology, which leaves me little
time for my bees except weekends, and my bees are 220km away from where I
live, on my family farm.  I have gradually built up through catching feral
swarms to 55 hives, and should be close to 100 after this swarming season.
The area I keep bees in is known as the Karroo, which is reputedly arid, so
when I hear about all the significant honey flows in the states, i go green
with envy, because the most I have is a tiny yellow flower called Acacia
Karroo.  However, even with the dry area's, my bees produce more than most
in South Africa, and I took 1.8 tonne of honey off in the last season.
I sell all my honey to the meadery I used to work at.
I don't contribute much to BEE-L, largely because my knowledge is limited to
South African bees, and the majority of beekeepers are from Europe or the
States.  So I read posts which are of interest to me and occasionally post.
Generally, when I have a question, I go to the library or net and search for
the result, because our bees are so different to most of yours.
Happy posting
Paul Collett
Acacia Apiaries

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