When he’s not working as a certified public accountant and being an all-around family man, Alexis Dela Cuesta spends his free time as a beekeeper. He has eight colonies across the metro, which provides him with honey and beeswax to create numerous products to augment their income.
On the other hand, raising bees allowed him to give back to nature by promoting a balanced ecosystem where the bees pollinate plants and contribute to their growth, which humans and animals can benefit from.
Dela Cuesta’s success has set an example among beekeepers in the country, even capturing the interest and imagination of aspiring individuals who want to try bee farming. Fortunately for them, the part-time beekeeper is also passionate about sharing his knowledge with others.
“I train willing people who want to learn more about bee farming,” Dela Cuesta said.
Yet before Dela Cuesta gets into the nitty gritty about beekeeping, he has several pointers he shares and highlights with others. The first is identifying their goal with beekeeping. Dela Cuesta began beekeeping in 2019 as a hobby but realizes that some people might want to start to diversify their income sources.
Regardless of their reason, identifying various factors, like what species of bees to work with. For instance, Western honeybees (Apis mellifera) produce more honey, while local stingless bees (Tetrogonula biroi) or kiwot produce more propolis, a compound produced by bees thought to fight infections and heal wounds, among other benefits, and are more resilient.
Once they’ve identified their reason for bee farming, the next step for aspiring beekeepers is securing their colonies’ location. Although Dela Cuesta and many other urban beekeepers established that bees could thrive in the city, they need to ask permission from their neighbors and ensure the bees can forage on plants within their range.
Honey flavors depend on the plants bees forage from, hence the many flavors available in the market.
Another thing to look out for in choosing a colony’s location is its environment. In rural areas, aspiring bee farmers must consider the risks in their surroundings since chemical-pesticide spraying is frequent. These harmful chemicals can hinder colony growth.
“Beekeepers should also look out for bee-eating birds that could also impact the bees’ growth,” Dela Cuesta said.
If the bees’ immediate environment is safe, the next thing aspiring beekeepers should consider is being consistent in caring for their colonies. Since bees forage during the dry season when flowers bloom, they should support their feed with sugar water during the rainy season. However, they need to be careful in overfeeding the bees with the solution because it could affect the quality of their honey.
Dela Cuesta added that there’s only a three-month window, which sometimes extends depending on the Philippines’ dry season for the year. During this time, bees are their busiest and can effectively produce honey.
Speaking of consistency, beekeepers must also inspect their colonies frequently to ensure the bees are healthy and no pests have compromised the hives.
When in doubt, Dela Cuesta advises aspiring beekeepers to find a mentor and dabble in hands-on training before committing themselves to bee farming. If possible, they should research extensively about the venture and attend as many seminars on beekeeping led by professionals as they can before starting.
Beekeeping may sound like a profitable and easy venture, but for Dela Cuesta and many others, it takes dedication to help colonies thrive wherever they may be. Therefore, beginners must consistently work from start to finish before reaping the benefits from bees. As the famous saying goes, “All good things take time.”