Marko’s passion for bees has continued from childhood. And today, he has brought bees to Ryman.

As a child in Austria, Marko would travel into the forest to collect honey from the ‘bee man’. The bee man lived in a house built with hives. The bees would keep him warm in winter and pollinate the area during summer. Every visit, the bee man shared honey or honeycomb and Marko has loved honey ever since.

Marko understands the important role bees play in nature. As a food lover, he is naturally a fan of bees and their pollination work. With an appreciation for climate change and the environmental challenges we face, Marko decided this was a good time to bring hives into the village

A talented Ryman gardener painted the hives beautifully with landscape artwork, which ensures that the hives never go unnoticed! Marko’s mission is to help educate people about how important bees are. And he reports that the residents are “really embracing it”.

A tour of the beehives reveals a bottom board where the bees enter and exit. This is topped with the brood box, which is where the Queen spends her time laying eggs. Above that is a Queen excluder to keep her away from the operations centre of the hive where the action happens… honey, honey, honey!

Marko’s vision for the future is exciting. He believes that the gardens at Ryman’s Charles Upham Village can sustain around 10 hives. And with the growth of bee-friendly plants and trees, those hives will be well fed and productive. As Marko says, it’s so important that we support the bees “and don’t forget about them”.

Special thanks to Marko for sharing his bee initiative.