A BEEKEEPER teaching skills to students new to the art in West Devon says the creatures are vital to the health of our food supply.

Bees as are crucial to the pollination of about a third of the plants that keep us fed.

Honey bees trump other insect pollinators in the spring because they overwinter in colonies of about 10,000 so when spring arrives, they are ready to get on with this vital work. The colonies build up to about 60,000, enabling the pollination of crops like oil seed rape and fruit and vegetables.

Mark said people are unaware there are almost no ‘wild’ honey bee colonies in existence as they were all wiped out by an invasive Asian parasite in 1992. A big part of beekeeping now is helping bees deal with the varroa parasite using chemicals, so the colonies can thrive.

He said: ‘Without beekeepers to care for our honey bees their population would crash!’

He has 12 hives on his smallholding in the hamlet of Trewen, near Launceston where he nurtures his bees with obvious care, he showed the Times how important it is to make sure the bees survive the winter: ‘It isn’t the cold that kills the bees, because they are able to cluster together to keep warm. But it’s vital that they have sugar they convert to heat, by vibrating their wing muscles very rapidly.’

In winter he feeds baker’s fondant to his bees. Removing insulation from one of his observation hives and putting the palm of his hand on the glass panel he could feel the warmth generated by the bees.

‘I’ve been keeping bees for 15 years and in the last eight have seen the membership of the Tavistock Beekeeping association size from 60 to over 100 members. From talking to my students in the beekeeping class, I think this is due to awareness that bees are struggling and people want to be able to do something to help them, and not surprisingly quite a few of them have a sweet tooth.’

He said gardeners can support bees by planting plenty of bee-friendly flowers like lavender and thyme and not weed ing out dandelions which bees love. He admits to falling into beekeeping over a mix-up: ‘I was phoned and asked to pick up bees supposed to be for me – well, yes I’ve always wanted bees. A month later I found out the bees were meant for my brother and the seller had looked up the wrong phone number!’

Mark, a professional landscape artist, makes little money from his honey and gives it away.

The weekly Beekeeping for Beginners starts on Thursday February 23 at the Printworks in Tavistock – for more details, email at [email protected]