bee inspector for the provincial agriculture ministry for the past 35 years, says he could sell his hives to some of those Alberta beekeepers, but they wouldn’t be used to pollinate local orchards. Those beekeepers rent out hives on a larger scale for pollination; a pallet of four at a time, where local growers, particularly in the South Okanagan, require just a hive or two at a time because many are on small acreages, with mixed fruit trees.


For beekeepers, summer in the Okanagan is a time when they need to move their hives to the high country because the dry weather means little forage for bees. Some truck them up north to the Peace country, but Levesque takes his to Bridesville or up to Covert Farms in Oliver for the summer.


The quality of the honey made by Okanagan pollinators is particularly high, he says. “It depends on the crop they’re pollinating how quickly the honey crystallizes. Canola, for instance, does not make a high quality honey.” The Alberta bees are transported to the Canola fields in summer.


AGING BEEKEEPERS Sladen comments that he is concerned that Okanagan beekeepers are aging and he wonders whether there are enough new, younger people entering the industry.


That problem is helped by the fact that the amount of orchard acreage has diminished over the past 10 or 15 years, with vast acres of vineyards planted, particularly in the southern part of the Okanagan.


Since grapes don’t need bees for pollination, fewer bees are required today.


But, Sladen rattled off the names of half a dozen beekeepers who either have retired recently or downsized as he has, or are considering leaving the industry.


One of those is Levesque, who admits he has reached retirement age, and would like to slow down. “We’re all aging,” he comments.


His son has been helping him in recent years, and he still has 100 hives. “When I started there were more beekeepers and less demand for honey. Now there is more demand for honey and fewer beekeepers,” he notes. Levesque came to Oliver in 1970 when, he remembers, you could buy a 10-acre farm for $50,000. Today it would probably cost you $1.5 million. That has made quite a difference in the


18 British Columbia FRUIT GROWER • Winter 2013-14


number of young farmers or beekeepers there are around. Keeping bees was quite different a couple of decades ago from what it’s like now, he notes.


“I’ve been in the business since long


before mites such as varroa or trachael were much of an issue. Then, you could expect five to 10 per cent mortality over winter. Now, you’re lucky if you only suffer 30 per cent.” Sladen remembers those days too, and says it’s really important now that bees go into winter healthy.


“It’s all about the management of the hive.”


Although some bee diseases have been around for decades, there are far more threats to a healthy hive than there used to be, largely due to the global nature of travel and trade today. That complexity also makes it much more difficult for a young beekeeper to get into the industry today. As well, with so many new and different varieties of apples and cherries, all blossoming at slightly different times, it takes longer to achieve proper pollination in an orchard, unless the trees are all one variety.


Also, he says when he got started there were big issues with very toxic pesticides which could easily kill bees. Today, growers are more aware of the possibility of the death of important pollinators from sprays and the pesticides are softer, he says. “You don’t hear so much about bee poisonings.”


Nonetheless, Levesque notes that any spray when the bees are flying will cause them harm, so no sprays should be applied in the area during the day, when bees are nearby.


Beekeeping in B.C. has a long history, with the first hives arriving by ship at Victoria in May, 1858,


according to the agriculture ministry. Since then, they’ve spread to all parts of the province, where more than 2,300 beekeepers now operate around 47,000 colonies of bees, either as a hobby or as a full- or part-time business venture. Increasing urban pressure has limited expansion of beekeeping in some areas of the province, and there are now fewer beekeepers in the Central Okanagan than in the north and south of the valley.


Beehives also must be protected from bears with electric fencing since bee brood provides a high food value for them, making honeybee colonies irresistible.


Despite the challenges, beekeeping has been around for centuries and it’s not likely to disappear anytime soon. Increased consumer interest in local honey and other bee products such as pollen, propolis and royal jelly, as well as contracts for pollination of orchards and farms, make it an economically- viable enterprise for a careful beekeeper


However, it’s important to learn about all facets of bee management and have the time to properly oversee the colonies in order to keep them healthy, before embarking on a career in beekeeping.


Hobby beekeepers who don’t practice good management practices are the bane of commercial beekeepers’ existence, because insect and disease issues can be easily spread from one hive to another. It’s estimated honeybee pollination in B.C. is responsible for more than $160 million a year in agricultural production, while the total market value of hive products accounts for $8 million a year.


Beekeeping plays a vital role in B.C. agriculture.


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