Camposol Cares from Farm to Family

Our Apiary: Keeping Harmony Abuzz

Posted On: February 9, 2018

Can you imagine our planet without bees? It may be difficult to put into perspective something on such a large scale, so how about we narrow it down to our kitchen table: can you imagine how boring our diet would be without the powerful pollination of these insects?

Sure, bees can seem like pests as they zoom frighteningly close to our bodies, sometimes even pricking us with their stinger as they mistake our (usually) sweet smell for a source of honey. Though we’re quick to swat them away, these small winged insects do more for our planet than we care to realize. Just ask Andrés Portal Carrera, the man in charge of our apiary.

 

 

“Insects are important for pollination…Without bees there’s no food,” he simply states. “Keeping our own beehive is one way to assure that high quality pollination occurs.” Carrera, who has worked in our apiary here on the fields of Trujillo, Peru for the past ten years, has a vast experience working not only with our humble colony of bees but in various areas of The Berry That Cares.

“I began in sanitation, then moved on to general services and when the beekeeping area opened they invited me to work here,” tells Carrera. “I had some previous knowledge of beekeeping because I had worked with bees before as a young boy.”

With so much experience we had to ask: What has been his worst bee sting experience?

“Once, at the beginning of a work day, I uncovered a beehive without a mask on. Not only that, but my jacket was open too. I was stung by about 50 bees!” tells Carrera. “I was used to working with gentle beehives and figured that this one in particular would be no different.”

 

 

As we stood in the apiary listening to Carrera’s painful memory, it suddenly seemed all the bees hovering around us were getting ready to strike. Carrera quickly assured us that as long as we wore our protective gear the bees would show no interest in us.

“Bees won’t come near you because they aim to sting you,” he explained. “They’re drawn by the smell of honey.”

 

 

Soon after we watched the beehives be retrieved from the fields and prepared in order to extract the honey made by the busy bees. The harmony between our blueberry crops and the surrounding natural elements, both flora and fauna, requires a true sense of community, as evidenced by the apiary team here at The Berry That Cares who work alongside their tiny winged friends in order to keep the surrounding wildlife well and thriving.

You’ve likely heard (and perhaps you’ve personally noted) that the worldwide population of bees has been diminishing since an increased use of harmful pesticides. We don’t want to imagine a world without a healthy abundance of flora and fauna, not to mention colorful fruit like our blueberries. For this, we stay motivated in using natural alternatives to pesticides and encouraging the population of our healthy bees. By caring for the bees we have today we ensure a harmonious tomorrow. And that’s almost as sweet as honey!

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