I find it amazing that many of these "Natural Beekeepers" seem to think in their arrogance that only they are the saviours of the honeybee and that all other practices are somehow bad for bees.
What these people fail to recognise is that European honey bees have
no natural defence against Varroa and it does wipe out huge numbers of colonies either directly or indirectly.
Yes, a few colonies sometimes exhibit "hygienic" behaviour, but studies in the US and elsewhere have shown that around 70-80% of the workforce in a colony need to show that trait to be of any use in reducing Varroa. Breeding bees to keep that trait in the wild is damn near impossible unless you can completely control the genetic profile of almost all drones in the immediate area.
So, thats why the sensible majority of us take a "Benign Beekeeping" approach, minimising intervention and using non-chemical treatments for Varroa and other pests. But, we are only holding our own against Varroa and we will never be able to eradicate this man-introduced pest without something like the mRNA approach currently being worked on at Aberdeen University and elsewhere - assuming it works...
So, the facts are that the VAST majority of beekeepers have the best interest of their bees at heart and do the best they can for them at all times. We are a broad church and there is room for a wide variety of viewpoints. We welcome "Natural Beekeepers" in our association, BUT a non-intervention approach requires a higher level of skill and experience to understand what is going on inside the hive by observing the bees from outside.
Like most associations, we teach our new beekeepers a standard approach over the first two seasons and encourage them to take the BBKA Basic Assessment to give them the confidence to realise they are up to a certain level of knowledge. After that they are very welcome to take their own path forward including "Natural Beekeeping" based on a basic level of knowledge and understanding supported by like minded mentors.
What I really object to is people who promote "Natural Beekeeping" as a means of keeping bees to complete beginners over a weekend who typically live in suburban areas. It is not fair on them, their bees and other colonies around them to simply get a colony of bees and then leave them alone. Almost all of them will die out in the first year or two whilst acting as a disease vector of Varroa, EFB and AFB to other beekeepers colonies in the locality. If they swarm, its up to that beekeeper to at least attempt to re-house them rather than allowing them to upset and annoy the neighbours, giving us all a bad name.
So, not natural but benign... The bees always come first, but intervention is sometimes inevitable and we need well-educated beekeepers supported by experienced mentors to keep our bees happy and healthy.
I'll shut up now....
