Bee keeping in Hong Kong

Is there any bee keeping in Hong Kong. Is it permitted?

Kadoorie Farm has an apiary: http://www.kfbg.org.hk/kfbstaging/homepage.xml


There are a few bee farms around Hong Kong:

Wing Wo Bee Farm, 136 Pai Tau Village, Shatin, N.T.

Their website is in chinese only: http://www.wingwobeefarm.com.hk/

Many thanks for the advice. I wasn't thinking of this with honey gathering as motivation, simply as a gesture to help a species which appears to be under pressure from intensive farming and widespread use of chemical pesticides worlwide; unless media reports are needlessly alarmist.

Hello all,

People (usually foreigners) are getting interested in beekeeping in HK.

Michael Leung a english born and raised Chinese young man, created HK Honey in HK, recently.

A friend and I met him two weeks ago, he is a very nice chap.

http://www.cnngo.com/hong-kong/life/hong-kong-honey-933423


We've seen pics of some guys that just installed a beehive on their balcony, in HK.


Because of the bee problems around the world, I'm interested to have my own bees, hoping to be part of those who wish to do something so that they survive. I've been checking on the subject. I found plastic beehives online, tonight and searched as well for feedback on them. Not all is good about them. And one sure thing is that with HK scorching summer sun, you'll see what happens with your beehive. The plastic is going to be literally cooked and will break in your hands. As for the temperature regulation, I don't think it's going to be a easy job for the lovely bees.

My friend and I contacted Michael since we've met him but he's on holiday (CNY) , we're very eager to see him back as some of our questions relate to the type of beehives they use in HK. Check on the link above, you'll see it looks like a simple box while most of beekeepers in Europe use Warré beehive for about a century.


The swarming season in HK should be by the end of this month.

Are there classes available for bee keeping ?

Hello,

In the 60's there were many beehives in South Lantau, but very few remain nowadays. Few local villagers still have one ... or a few.


We are three friends who shared a dream, although we didn't talk much about it. But suddenly, within 3 months this dream finally came true :

In South Lantau, first in Pui O, then in Shap Long (Chi Ma wan area) , and finally in Luk Tei Tong (Mui Wo), we started beekeeping!


We first got to know Mr. Yip of Wing Wo Bee Farm http://www.wingwobeefarm.com.hk/


Yip Ki-hok: Owner of Wing Wo Bee Farm by June Ng | HK Magazine Online

http://hk.asia-city.com/city-living/article/yip-ki-hok-owner-wing-wo-bee-farm


, just next to the Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery, in Shatin. And since he doesn't speak English and we do not speak Cantonese, we got the help of a Chinese friend for communication.

We went for a visit at his place, and it was amazing how beekeeping can change people's interaction with one another. First Mr and Mrs Yip were a bit cautious when we arrived but as soon as they realised we were not afraid and were eager to learn, their face lit up. They gave us the most beautiful smiles and were extremely enthusiastic in sharing their experiences. We went back twice after that and … oh boy! What a welcome we had !


We bought our current hives from M Yip as there is no european hive make locally (it is in process now). Only one of us got a swarm from him, but he came twice , all the way from Shatin, to catch two wild swarms in Jacqueline's garden. Those wild swarms ended up in the other two hives. Mr. Yip always insisted to set the bees himself. Indeed, he charged us for the work, but it was very reasonable and M. Yip (as well as his wife) are very genuine people who love their bees as much as the wild ones.


We started a forum : http://asianbee.freeforums.org/

  where we just posted our experiences on apis cerana (Asiatic Honey Bees) and we wish all bee lovers could come and share their experiences with us.

And of course, those of you who are new to beekeeping  are very much  welcome. It is an extremely interesting topic; learning about the bees' behaviours, how they work together, etc.

 We are already  in contact with a French beekeeper in France who has 40 years of experiences in beekeeping and he is always willing to help us with our  questions, just like Mr Yip in Shatin. 


Asianbee



PS: @ viveik : Kadoorie farm was providing a course on bee keeping, few years back. It was aimed at potential honey makers. The course was quite basic.

The best course is to read a lot on bee keeping, then work with a bee keeper. Local beekeeping seems to be quite basic, very few experiments were done in the past.


One of us discovered something nice and extremely unexpected, in the new territories, we will post about it on our forum within few weeks

Has CCD been an issue for HK beekeepers?

@ hyperhippo: Shouldn't be we don't use ROUND UP here, thankfully...

I would like to buy a "starter kit" beehive and bees for my rooftop - does anyone know where to start ? i can't speak cantonese unfortunately ..

Hi Asianbee,

I have a lot of space on my rooftop for a beehive and would really like to learn how to keep bees. We see wasps out here (Mui Wo) but rarely any bees, so I would like to help the species out. Please send me a private message, I am very interested in this.

Wes