Since I was a small boy, born in the then agricultural breadbasket of Africa, Zimbabwe, I have always been interested in the natural world and all it has to offer. I feel complete joy when I am in nature. I am in awe of how animals, insects and plants have evolved to function and survive in the environments we find them. I have sat for some time and just observed bees moving in and out of the hives and can feel the positive energy they provide. I made the decision to learn beekeeping in South Africa.

In December 2019 I did my first removal to acquire my first swarm. I look back now on that experience and see my errors, but we learn through our mistakes. As I write this at the end of 2020 that swarm is still just outside, busy going about their day. It took some time before I was able to obtain another two swarms through removals, but things are moving at the right speed for me to learn.

At the time of recording this first episode of my beekeeping vlog, at the end of August 2020, I had 3 swarms and was more ready to expand my apiary. I needed to find space, a perfect location, to home the bees and I needed to find colonies of bees. The first space has come from friends I have known most of my life. A perfect spot in a vegetable garden on a smallholding in Kyalami and the bees I have decided to get from removals.

The videos that will follow illustrate my real-life journey, performing beekeeping in South Africa, and a vision to grown and build a sanctuary for bees.