Practical Natural Beekeeping-training

The 2025 English practical beekeeping training for beginners will host a maximum of 14 participants for the bee’s well-being and for each beekeeper-to-bee to have enough practical experience.
It consists of 16 gatherings of which 14 are planned on the following days:

• May 22^nd: 18.30 – 20.30 (mandatory – theoretical)
• June 5^th: 18.30 – 20.30 (mandatory – practical from this date on)
• June 19^th: 18.30 – 20.30
• June 26^th: 18.30 – 20.30 (mandatory – guest speaker: Albert Muller)
• July 3^rd: 18.30 – 20.30
• July 17^th: 18.30 – 20.30
• September 4^th: 18.30 – 20.30
• September 18^th: 18.30 – 20.30
• October 2^nd: 18.30 – 20.30
• October 19^th: 13.00 – 15.00
• March 29^th: 13.00 – 15.00
• April 12^th: 13.00 – 15.00
• April 23^rd: 18.30 – 20.30
• May 14^th: 18.30 – 20.30

On top of that 2 gatherings that can’t be planned (one catching a swarm and one introducing a swarm in a beehive two days later) of 2h will be held making the training 32 hours in total.

Our practical and natural beekeeping training is based on the principles of Biodynamic Beekeeping. Once the training completed, you can become a Natural Beekeeper on your own, or with a group of people. A certificate of participation will be delivered to the persons that have attended at least 75% of the lessons, in addition to the mandatory sessions.

In this course you will learn how to keep city bees in a way that is as natural as possible. We will focus entirely on the well-being of the bees instead of the honey profits. We will try to facilitate and give room to the natural tendencies of a bee colony like swarming, rather than to manipulate or suppress them.

The training runs from April to November and focuses on the colony’s yearly cycle to discover how we can support them the best at what times. This is done with 2 different types of natural hives: the Top-bar-hive and the Golden hive (also called Einraumbeute). We will not only look at the bees, but the whole hive – how the colony as a whole should be treated, and the direct environment the bees are confronted with.

Training contents

In total there will be 16 meetings of two hours spread over the year in which natural city beekeeper Geert Van Kerckhove will show you how he accompanies and supports his bees.

Geert will review just about all you need to know including:

• Approaching a bee colony
• Yearly cycle of the bee colony and what the bees do and need in the different stages of the colony’s development
• Setting up your home, city garden, or other location for your hive
• Swarming, the natural birth and cycles of a bee colony
• Catching a bee swarm hanging from a tree or other object, and hiving that swarm in a beehive that has been prepared and placed for those bees [Note: this timing is nature-dependent so you will be called upon by text message to go catch a swarm with Geert]  
• Special gathering on bee-health with guest teacher Albert Muller, one of the most experienced and knowledgeable natural beekeepers in the world.
• Daily caring for bees, how to pay special attention to the natural behavior and needs of the bee colony, and how we can facilitate this wonderful super-organism

The meetings will take place on Wednesday from 18.30 to 20.30. (Except for the sessions on October 19^th, March 29^th, and April 12^th that will take place on Saturdays from 13.00 to 15.00)

The total costs for this 32-hour training spread over 2024 is; 765€ incl. VAT

Subscribe for this training by filling in the form below.

The practical meetings will be held at Lab111 – Arie Biemondstraat 111, Amsterdam

There is a maximum of people for the practical course, not to overcrowd the bees and so that all the participants can gain enough practical experience. So make sure you register in time because when all the places have been taken we’ll have to refund you and ask you to participate in 2026.

Note: we require you to have taken the Buzzing Bees: Introduction Course or have some experience as a conventional beekeeper to participate, as almost all gatherings of the training are practical and we need participants to have basic theoretical knowledge.

We’re looking forward to seeing you in class and introducing you to the world of bees. We are confident it will be an enriching experience as it has inspired and brought us so many worldly and personal insights.