A Beeman's Journey

Sue Giles was a librarian at the Ryerson Polytechnical Institute in Toronto.

Charles Sauriol is a Canadian naturalist who has received a number of awards for his achievements in maintaining and protecting the natural environment. His interest in the environment is also closely related to his activities as a bee keeper for, as this book clearly shows, it is impossible to be a bee keeper without having a concern for the environment that supports the bees.

This is not a “how-to-do-it” book, for a number of good books already exist. As the author explains in the introduction, the book was written “on the basis of putting the reader into the picture, to relive with me my personal experiences, to show what lies behind bee keeping rather than statements of to do this or do that... I like to record my experiences, and felt that they could be of value, if properly recorded, to many people including those who for years have been plying me with questions about bees. These answers I felt should be provided in an easy to read informative style, but in which the reader felt very much a part.”

The book follows the cycle of the seasons and the tasks associated with bee keeping through the year. Thus, it proceeds from spring, which is the season to set up new hives or inspect the old, through the summer and swarming and the wide variety of nectar-producing plants, to taking off the honey and preparing the hives for winter.

As the author promises, however, the narrative is full of by-ways and asides in the form of anecdotes based on personal experience and observation. We learn why a “Swarm in May is worth a load of hay — but a swarm of bees in July is not worth a fly”; also that skunks are very partial to bees as a meal! Perhaps one of the most fascinating aspects of the book is the discovery that the Don Valley that winds south into the heart of Toronto and is mainly known for its roadway and rail tracks, has frequently had small collections of hives in it, maintained by local bee keepers. In fact, it is presently the site of an apiary and bee garden run by the author on some land belonging to the Bate Chemical Co., which has distributed the resulting honey to clients and business contacts. The recipients have been astonished that an essentially industrialized area of a big city could produce such a product.