Exhibition creates a buzz

Beekeeper Kim Kneijber says an art exhibition is a way to get people thinking about the importance of honeybees to our environment. Some artworks include images of bees, while others are more abstract.

The hardworking honeybee is the subject of an exhibition that’s on now at Estuary Arts Centre in Orewa.

More than a decade as a beekeeper has taught Kim Kneijber a lot about bees and she decided to take a new approach to passing on that knowledge to gardeners and the general public by holding an art exhibition.

Pieces by more than 20 artists on the bee theme fill the upstairs Hibiscus Gallery, including needlepoint, etching, painting, papercraft and chocolate.

As well as having hives at home, Kim looks after two hives placed on top of the Auckland Town Hall. She says that she set up the Auckland Council hives three years ago to watch for exotic diseases and pests. The honey is given to visiting dignitaries or supplied as a fundraiser.

She has had to manage varroa mite and wasp incursions at the city hives.

Bee health is a big focus of Kim’s work, which includes inspecting hives, teaching beekeeping and sitting on the committee of the Auckland Beekeepers Club.

Kim says NZ’s bees are doing better than in many other countries, but they are still under threat from insecticide use and a decline in sources of pollen and nectar. She says anyone can make a contribution to honeybee health.

“It could be simply including plants in your garden that provide food for bees, or timing your use of insecticides to minimise their impact on bees,” she says.

Information on these issues is available at the exhibition, including facts about garden chemicals that can harm bees and lists of high pollen plants that bees depend on, for spring planting.

Bee Aware is on now at Estuary Arts Centre, Western Reserve, Orewa, until September 6.