"Bees are like tattoos - once you start, you can't stop," says chef and beekeeper Honza Všetečka
A restaurant and bakery on the right bank of the Vltava
Honza, what led you to beekeeping?
Family. My grandfather was a beekeeper, and when he died, my uncle took over from him, who has been farming all his life. For a long time I didn't care about bees, as a kid I wasn't interested in listening to advice and learning from my elders. However, a little something settled in me, and five years ago I bought two bee colonies. Today I have eleven and I have to restrain myself from adding more. It's like tattooing - once you start, you're consumed.
Do you consider yourself a beekeeper?
I got registered at the association in Sedlčany, but I think it's too early to call myself that. For now I'm trying to pick up as much knowledge as I can from my uncle and more experienced beekeepers in the area. I'm gradually figuring out how to make a brood - a new colony - and how I can intervene in the hive when the bees need me.
As well, I'd like to be able to make wax for spacer frames. The ones I buy often contain paraffin and other chemicals when they are properly supposed to be pure wax. The bees can tell and don't always accept the frames well. In short, I want to be more independent so that I can take good care of the colonies and be able to close the loop that happens in the hive. I also plan to make candles from the wax and in the future I would like to collect propolis.
But you're already bottling honey.
I am. I even ordered a honey extractor from a Czech manufacturer. It's a big investment, but it's honest craftsmanship. I've already extracted honey from three hives this year, and I'm guessing that after the next bottling it will be around 120 kilos. I will give most of it to friends and neighbours, sell some and consume it at U Kalendů, but leave some of it for the bees as nutrition and a supply for the winter.
I am a believer that what is in the brood belongs to the bees, while the honey above the brood can be taken by the beekeeper. But of course there are more types of hives and beekeeping techniques. Just for the record, I chose an old 39 x 24 frame measure and really heavy attachments, so when the frame fills with honey it weighs about two kilos. Meanwhile, the whole attachment is made up of eleven frames, so I'm pulling about twenty-five kilos in the end.
What kind of honey do you extract?
I call it honey from Rudolec, after the village where I have my hives. There are about six houses with colourful gardens and five beautifully grown lime trees. There are acacia, willow, hazel, lilac and various fruit trees blooming just outside the village. There are no agricultural monocultures in the immediate vicinity, just a few fields and otherwise all meadows.
The diversity in the landscape is reflected in the taste and smell of the honey, which is probably closest to meadow honey. I enjoy using it in roasting meat, vegetables and fruit, in dressings and sauces, such as apple, cabbage and chamomile. In addition, we ferment the honey and make a cordial from the "caps" (these are created during the bottling process when the honeycomb and honey have to be uncorked) and rum. This is all great, yet I see honey as only a benefit of sorts, and a fraction of what a beekeeper needs to understand. I am much more attracted to the life of bees.
And by what?
I'm fascinated by the organisation in the hive. The bees have divided roles and together they form a perfect whole, an elaborate machine. I love to go and watch them. Many times I sit on a log and watch the comb and flyers where the bees gather and "dance". You can tell if they're cool by the sound, but also by the smell. Sometimes I stay until the evening, with a headlamp on my head, and then at home they laugh at me if I have counted the bees correctly.
It's by watching them that a beekeeper learns the most, which is why I spend so much time with them. At the same time, I don't know a better place where I can calm down and become present so easily. Most of the time I just wear a t-shirt and shorts, no overalls, so the bees get used to my smell and accept me among them. This is the only way I can cooperate with them and treat them as gently as possible, so that they don't sting me out of fear or hurt themselves when taking the frames out of the hive. Every bee lost is a pity!
Do bees need humans?
From a beekeeper's point of view, yes. The choice of habitat alone will affect how they live. Hives are set on a certain side of the world, preferably south, and sunlight is addressed, for example, so that the hive doesn't get too hot and the bees don't have to struggle to vent moisture and heat. I know a gentleman who has hives with flyers on all sides of the world, but there are also nomadic hives. These are moved to near woods, meadows, orchards or canola for the season and then the beekeeper pulls them back again. The location is also determined by the availability of water - a stream runs through my property, which I have used as a pond.
It's a fact that bees do a lot of things themselves. However, in critical months, especially in spring, it is necessary to check what is going on in the hives now and then. It is said that the calendar year does not apply to beekeepers, but the beekeeping year, which has several seasons. In these, specific tasks are then carried out. It always depends on the approach, but in general hygiene is emphasised, whether it is cleaning the frames or natural disinfection of the hives. Similarly, as a general rule, used hives are not bought to prevent the transmission of diseases and parasites. Bees have been weakened in recent years, not least because of pesticides in agriculture.
How often do you travel from Prague to Rudolec?
At the moment, I go there at least once a week for a trip. I check out the brood house and then go on my way again. It is important for me that the bees survive the winter and go into spring in full force. I don't ever want to experience that feeling of a colony collapsing again. At the time I had tears in my eyes and strong remorse.
After the winter, I check the so-called fallout and see if the bees are healthy, have a queen among them and are starting to brood. Then in spring and summer I have to be available all the time. As soon as the hive becomes overcrowded, the bees have nowhere to store the royal jelly (nectar) and there is not enough room for the queen to lay. The colony then begins to swarm. That's when I get in the car. Just the other day, my dad and uncle called to tell me there was a swarm in a tree.
Swarming used to be considered natural - the beekeeper would catch the bees and propagate the colony. Today, on the other hand, we make sure the swarm doesn't fly away. This makes the colony much weaker and it may not produce as much honey. Although I don't care about this - I am a hobbyist and I don't bee for business, but for pleasure.
Where is your joy going?
I wish to expand my bee colonies and devote myself to them fully. I've fallen into beekeeping like nobody's business. Moreover, I'm forty-five years old and I'm increasingly aware that the kitchen at U Kalendů can, and soon I'm sure will, function without me. I've long talked about living in the country, closer to nature and farming, and that dream is now slowly becoming a reality.
Honey from the chefs
Chef David Rejhon and his colleague Peter Mikuláš from Prague's Marriott rolled out their first honey this year. The idea was born during their time at White Circus catering. Peter brought in a beekeeper who helped them install the hives a year ago, on the roof of the hotel.
"Just the basic equipment cost us about fifty thousand, but the investment is worth it. It's not so much about the money as it is about doing the right thing and to educate our guests. Last year we left all the honey to the bees, this time we're also collecting honey for ourselves - the first time we got 42 kilos of honey," says David, who together with Peter looks after four hives. He bought their inhabitants in Horní Počernice:
"When you hold a box with tens of thousands of bees in your hands and hear their buzzing, you feel great respect. There is nothing to be afraid of. The bees really have no intention of flying into hotel rooms and attacking. We first had to explain this to the hotel management and we are still reassuring some guests."
Bee hives are sold with two or three frames on which to transfer them to the hive. The rest of the frames are delivered to give the swarm something to build on. "We consult the habitat, as well as disinfecting, mending or feeding, with a beekeeper who has trained and initiated us into the new discipline. He mainly advised us, how to provide ideal conditions for the bees," emphasises David, adding:
"We shaded the hives and put a tree and a drinking fountain on the roof. It doesn't seem like it, but the bees can easily fly to the river, Petřín, Letná or our garden in the courtyard, not to mention the surrounding balconies. This offers them far more variety than in any agricultural area."
David's office is filled with jars of honey, and there are also two demijohns on the cupboard of mead, while on the shelf are folded waxed napkins. And next to them are bottles of propolis - a few drops are added to the honey ice cream and multiply the value of the meal, just like the honeycomb on the breakfast buffet.
