The courtyard of the Saxon Ministry of Economic Affairs in Dresden is buzzing - and not just symbolically. Eight bee colonies have been hard at work there again this year. Beekeeper Rico Heinzig's assessment is positive: "We were able to harvest an average of 30 to 40 kilograms of high-quality honey per colony."
The bees travel considerable distances in some cases - all the way to the Ostragehege, where there are particularly many lime and chestnut trees. "The location here is ideal," says Heinzig, who looks after a total of around 200 bee colonies between Meißen and Dresden. In the courtyard of the ministry, he relies on the particularly gentle Buckfast bee, a cross that was originally bred in an English monastery. "It is peaceful, efficient and ideal for the city."
Heinzig expressly emphasizes that city honey not only tastes good, but also has health benefits. "There is no spraying in cities - unlike on agricultural land. That's why city honey is often cleaner and healthier than some country honey." Pesticide contamination, which endangers bee populations, hardly plays a role in urban areas.
