You may have noticed that beekeeping can be a lot of work. Beekeepers have to tend to colonies of thousands of bees and make sure that everything is just right. They are constantly fighting off pests, such as mites and ants, while also ensuring that the bees are producing enough honey to survive winter. So, why do people do it? What benefits come from beehives?
Honey
The first thing people think of beekeeping is honey. Honey is the most popular resource harvested from beehives. There is nothing like harvesting your own honey. Give some local freshly harvested honey a taste and you will agree that store bought honey cannot compare at all.
Honey has health benefits too. It's used as both a food and medicine. honey, especially Manuka honey, is rich in antioxidants, which reduces the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Eating honey can also help your blood pressure. Antioxidant compounds in honey have been linked to lower blood pressure. Honey has also been shown to lower bad cholesterol while raising good cholesterol. Manuka honey is used to treat wounds and for skin care. Manuka's antibacterial properties reduce the healing time of wounds while aiding in tissue regeneration.
Pollination
Another benefit of keeping bees is pollination. Plants need bees to pollinate them so they can reproduce. Bees do this naturally when they are foraging for pollen and nectar. Basically, pollen from the plant's stamen gets stuck on the bee. When she goes to another flower the pollen falls off onto the plant's stigma. This is what needs to happen for fruits and vegetables to develop.
Gardeners love bees because it is impossible to have a bountiful garden without pollinators. So for them, pollination is a major advantage of beekeeping.
It's Fun!
Simply put, beekeeping is fun! It's great to be around the bees and be a part of nature. You get to witness something truly amazing when caring for bees. It's also a rewarding experience to get to share beekeeping, or even just knowledge about bees with others.
Once your hive is set up and your bees are settled in, beekeeping is relatively low maintenance. Hive checks can take as little as half an hour, depending on how many hives you have.
Via - Complete Beehives
