Urban beekeeping is quite common in other countries. Photo shows bee hives on a Paris rooftop.
(Photo and related article from: https://phys.org/news/2017-08-paris-urban-rooftop-hives-honeybees.html)
For sure, beekeeping is not for the finicky or fainthearted.
Only practical-minded people who are brave enough to confront their fear of pain and squeamishness towards insects will ever seriously think about it. On the other hand, those who care to reflect a bit deeper will realize that these issues are more of a mind conditioning challenge that will only help one get mentally stronger rather than a serious practical consideration. Something that tends to separate the "real" men from the boys, so to speak.
The first question that people ask when they think about beekeeping is
"Will I get stung?" 😄
First of all domesticated bees do not attack without reason. If at all they do, they do not swarm and chase like you see in the movies except perhaps in the most extremely threatening circumstances.
While you could probably take the trouble of wrapping yourself up in those astronaut suits the Americans wear, the reality is that even without protection you will probably not get stung even once a month and will not really feel it that much after several times anyway. Wearing a pair of thick gloves will also probably allow you to avoid getting stung more than a few times a year. Unless you are one of those rare people (more common among whites) who are allergic to bee stings, it is much more convenient and good mental training to simply just "man up" and as the saying goes, grin and bear it. Feels more macho too. 😄
From a practical point of view, while you will always encounter occasional insect bites or stings throughout your life, such as from mosquitoes, ants, even roaches or wasps, which may not only be irritating, itchy, painful and worst of all, disease-causing, bee stings can actually be beneficial to your health.
The Marist School Herne Bay beehive is used to teach pupils about the environment and science. Note that the hive is right beside a window.
(Photo and related article from: https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/87770370/Urban-beehive-rental-growing-in-popularity)
Bees do not transmit any form of communicable disease to man. And while stings can be painful. the pain only lasts for about 30 seconds after which it quickly fades away. Even better, it seems that bee stings actually provide some relief from arthritis.
Considering the many other benefits beekeeping provides, between getting stung for nothing and getting some good out of it, the latter seems quite worth the forbearance.
As to feeling squeamish about handling insects, it is not like they are the same as cockroaches, flies, spiders or grasshoppers. While it does take some getting used to in the beginning, one can take heart in the fact that bees are probably the cleanest insects on the planet, probably even more sanitary than you! 😄
The reason for this is that they naturally excrete anti-bacterial/microbial agents that are found in the stuff they produce such as propolis, which they use to seal their hive, as well as honey. That is why honey (and propolis) is effective for treating wounds - bacteria cannot survive in it.
Domesticated bees, somewhat like black ants, are terribly single-minded. Probably also due to the fact that a sting is really an option of last resort as they will die soon after, they tend to just keep on doing whatever they are doing even when you are tinkering around with their hives. Using a smoker tool to blow smoke at them before you do is enough insurance to keep them friendly. They are rather interesting to watch and observe once you start feeling comfortable around them.
(Photo from: http://maxpixel.freegreatpicture.com/Beekeeper-Bee-Keeping-Smoker-321264)
The next question is usually:
"What about care and maintenance costs"?
The answer is: "Really quite minimal".
Bees are basically self-supporting. In an ideal location, which basically means an abundance of plants and trees and no frogs or migratory birds to prey on them, a hive can produce as much as 20 or more kilos of honey a year.
One hive will need maybe only about 20-30 hours a year of actual effort.
Aside from the occasional checking just to be sure they are doing okay there are only three basic things aside from breeding or replacing old queens that need to be done. Harvesting and bottling, seasonal treatment for mites, and feeding.
Feeding only needs to be done during the rainy season when they run out of honey. This is just a matter of placing a couple of plastic bags of sugared water in the hive(s) about once a week for about 3 or 4 months in a year. If one did not harvest all the honey and left them with maybe just half of what they collected, you would not even have to worry about feeding them.
Treating for mites means spraying the frames about twice a week or dropping some medicinal strips into the hive weekly for about 5 or 6 weeks in a year.
Breeding queens does require some study and experience although one can simply buy the queens when they need to be replaced about once every two years.
Depending on circumstances one would only need to spend about a minimum of P500 to a maximum of P1,500 a year per hive for maintenance once things get started. As in anything, there is always the possibility of some setbacks as one goes through the learning curve but the profit margin should be more than enough to get back your investment or make at least a modest profit in any but the most extreme scenarios even in your first year.
###"How can I get started?"###
You can buy a starter hive, which normally consists of a 10-frame capacity box with three brood frames with bees and a queen for about P8,000-9,000+. You will have to buy more frames and what is called a super, basically half the size of the hive box which is placed on top of the hive for the bees to store more honey as you go along for perhaps another P2,000.
A typical 10-frame bee hive (Photo by http://maxpixel.freegreatpicture.com/Bees-Nature-Honey-Honeycomb-Beekeeping-Frames-1537156)
Those who are planning to make a more sizable investment from the start, say about P60,000 and above may want to take a beekeeping course which can cost between P4,000 to over P7,000 for about 3 days of intensive learning. The good thing is that one can gain confidence and some knowledge from the experience. The disadvantage is that you might forget or be unable to dutifully replicate what was taught a few months down the road when confronted by the particular situation.
An alternative would be to just arrange to have a master beekeeper visit you every month for starters and maybe every two or three months when you start getting the hang of it already. He can then also provide any additional supplies you might need aside from evaluation and guidance. Of course, initiative for self-study and research would also help a lot.
The final expense for either option would probably work out to be about the same.
If one lived near an experienced beekeeper/friend who you could easily consult and ask to visit rather painlessly, it would be feasible to start with even just one hive if one did not want to be stressed out by the expense of a more sizeable investment.
The only drawback would be that it might take two or three years before a reasonable income could be generated. Under optimal conditions and barring setbacks, it is possible to double or even triple the number of hives in just one year.
A more reasonable option would be to start with at least three or four hives, particularly if you have to pay your master beekeeper consultant to make a trip to see you. While the investment might be a bit more significant, the returns would also be reasonable with the possibility of more than breaking even on the first year and doubling by the second. The nice thing about starting with just three hives is that it will not require that much time and effort. Maybe just 60 to 80 hours for the whole year.
"Do I need to have a farm or be in the countryside?"
This is actually one of the more curious things about beekeeping.
My photo of my beehives on my fourth floor rooftop in Pasay near NAIA3. You really don't need much space.
While you would obviously want a greener and more spacious location in the countryside for a commercial bee farm operation with say 30-100+ hives, for smaller installations of up to about 10-12 hives, an urban location such as a rooftop, terrace or garden may even be easier to maintain and manage as long as there are enough plants and trees within a radius of about 2-3 kilometers. There are many places like this such as private subdivisions, places near parks, golf courses, military reservations, big school campuses, memorial parks and the like.
The area size needed is also quite minimal. 8 hives would only require about 4-5 square meters.
While it might seem rather risky in terms of the neighbors getting stung, the truth is as long as the hives can be carefully and properly positioned, they will not really pose any nuisance as they are not noisy nor do they create any foul odors or pose any health hazards. Private subdivisions are actually quite ideal as there are usually enough plants and trees while the houses are all screened if not air-conditioned making the possibility of any accidents really quite minimal.
As the bees are only interested in foraging for food, they will not simply attack people nor invade their homes. In the rare event that a neighbor does get stung, a bottle of honey is normally enough to make them happy, if not even regular customers. In case of allergy to bee stings, a single dose of anti-histamine is enough to solve the problem.
Two hives placed in the corner of a garden in Marcelo Green Village in Bicutan (my photo)
There are no local or national ordinances, laws or regulations concerning bees in the PH at this time so there is really no legal liability in any case. I have been bee keeping in the city for over 3 years now and have not encountered any real problems. I would also definitely not insist on keeping bees if they really did pose any public hazard or nuisance.
Urban bee-keeping actually has many advantages. There are relatively few predators like frogs and migratory birds. There are no pesticides being regularly sprayed. The sources for bottling and packaging are accessible and marketing is easier and commands somewhat higher prices. The only limitation is in the maximum number of hives that an area can support.
On the other hand, if one does have a farm in the countryside, aside from being able to have more hives in one spot, the major advantage would be that bees, being nature's most efficient pollinators, can increase crop yields by as much as 25-30%. In the US and other countries, bees are actually contracted to be brought to orchards precisely because of the significant increase in production they can generate.
Beehives on a carrier transport. These are rented out and to orchards to promote pollination. (The image is released free of copyrights under Creative Commons CC0.)
All told, beekeeping seems to be a perfect endeavor for anyone interested especially older folks and retirees as it is an interesting hobby/pastime that is easy to learn, stress-free, neither time, labor or even capital intensive, has many health benefits and can even grow into a reasonably profitable endeavor over time.
For more information you can visit my FB page: The Urban Hive Shop or call/text 09173560312 landline 8100768.
Well, just keep at it. :) Good luck !