More Chickens and Bees

Since I have been pushing small scale beekeeping, I thought I should share something that I came across which could be important for Albertans who might be listening. I had not considered the possibility that any scale of beekeeping would be strictly regulated here in Alberta, but apparently this is the case. I suppose it makes sense, given the huge stresses on North American honey bee populations recently.

Luckily I had stumbled across Beekeeping for Beginners page at the Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development website as I was searching for an Alberta apiary supplier. It was there that I learned of the Alberta Bee Act (insert ominous music here). Nothing too dramatic however. The biggest reason I wanted to mention it here, is to draw attention to two big parts of the Act. The first is that Albertans must obtain permission before importing bees or beekeeping equipment. The second is that ALL Albertan beekeepers must register the land description (title) where any colonies are kept. I`ve not looked into fee structures but I doubt the fees are prohibitive. I would just hate to see someone get fined for not knowing they needed to follow these protocols.

Albertans with interest in beekeeping might also find the Alberta Beekeepers Association to be an important resource.

In order to offer some additional inspiration, I have included a video from the Rawmodel Youtube channel. I think many will find his permaculture video offerings to be very enjoyable viewing...perhaps particularly those readers of a female persuasion. I know I find his energy to be quite contagious. Definitely the sort of person I hope to be able to work with.




In keeping to the theme of Chickens and Bees I thought I would link a video which may be helpful to anyone considering keeping chickens in towns. It`s a nicely designed chicken tractor which allows for moving the chickens from place to place so as to avoid soil damage due to overuse. My one concern is that it remains a wee bit small for more than 4 or 5 chickens, but it could easily be made somewhat longer.



And just in case anyone doesn`t think chickens are awesome...watch this:




Happy Spring everyone.