Mr. Shen, Master Apiarist: Changping Beijing, China: August 8, 2016

Apiarist: A fancy word for a beekeeper. An apiarist enjoys working with an unusual kind of pet, the honeybee. Because bees and other pollinators are so important to a healthy environment scientists encourage “bee-spotting” to improve fruits and vegetables.- here

 

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At the age of 70, Mr. Shen is a full-time grandfather, tree farmer, beekeeper, and hardcore tobacco smoker.  This man produces more energy than an entire short yellow bus filled to the brim with Brick O’Neal ®.

At the age of 16, he began his bee business on the land in which he resides to this day. At some point in his life, he and his land were recruited by the Chinese government to be apart of a certain form of Bee Keeping Program. Mr. Zhen along with his wife has spent over 50 years working for the Chinese government in bee maintain projects in designated section on the outskirts of Northern Beijing, as well as throughout China. Mostly land occupied by the Government military or designated “Green Zones”

One of the many positive attributes of the Chinese government in my eyes is when they want to make a change a move towards improvement of the land and its people, towards a decision of a higher goal.

They move ass!

They don’t spend years in hopes for an act of Congress to finally make the decision to put said project into effect. They act.! They don’t go out like miss guided monkeys to burn, kill, and plunder in the name of protests like the humans living in American and other western countries. 90% of the Chinese population love their government and look towards the positive change in their home area.

Concluding that humans, in general, are lame and few have the capabilities of self-improvement. 

img_1206Once Mr. Zhen business and land were with the government on a SAVE THE BEE program, it wasn’t long till they shipped him and his bees to Xinjiang for some extensive training. Study, while working with many apiarists from other regions and procreation was the key! Queening! Training also included the crafting of all bee-oriented tools, hoods, boxes, etc. It wasn’t until near retirement age that Mr. Zhen moved back to his 40-acre farmland and started his care of Mother Earth even though he understands times have changed, and his grandchildren only want to play on iPhones. He continues to planting numerous apples, figs, plums trees to better help his family in the future.

He hopes they can understand that!

Once we got to sit down to chat with Mr. Zhen about his bee experiences, sharing photos, it wasn’t long that it seems everyone around the world practice the same beekeeping method installed by  Petro Prokopovych back in 1814. They also work with the same or similar breed of bee. The Italian bee is aggressive, resistant, and persistent of all the honey bee species.  Though it was tough to hear that they suffer from all the same negative drawbacks as with all beekeepers. Keepers should be more aware of in proper maintenance of their hive.

Moths, beetles, and most importantly.

  Food!

People are in direct competition with the bees themselves.  Destroying countless acres of natural forest and land to provide shopping, parking, and homes which kills everything to do with the bees!!!!!!! 

I’m getting too old for certain shit.fullsizeoutput_f4c

So as for production. Like the future of America, China has depleted all its natural woodlands, etc. It’s now taking a man like Mr. Shen in the last 20 years to plant a portion of it back. So everything is developing, growing 20 years of fresh and new none GMO trees. There are these tiny weed flowers that grow like a vine and cover the entire ground foliage that is deemed a ‘weed’ nut produce this tiny purple flower. Millions as far as the eye can see. The honey product is super thin, very watery, but very fragrant and tasty. I’m sure the final product, like all bee farmer in production, cut their honey with sugar or water, but the most interesting was the aroma. The fragrant perfume smell was rich and full body. This honey made for a good additional ingredient in the chocolate candy production that followed later that evening.

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But these days, it’s not all about the honey or the product. It’s about having old friends that help

each other out through the years, for some of the hives, are from the original start.  50 plus years ago in the making.

Thank you, Mr. Shen, for bringing us into your home and introducing us to your family! Both of them!

Best to all apiarist. The more the marry!

Check us out at Brick Consulting LLC Apitherapy Solutions & Honey Bee Farming!

Mr. Shen bees on YOUTUBE

 


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