Practical Natural Beekeeping-training

Announcement: Due to ongoing construction work around our beehives at Lab111, we unfortunately had to make the decision to postpone the practical natural beekeeping training to the following year. The training will start in the Spring of 2026.

The 2026 English practical beekeeping training for beginners will host a maximum of 14 participants to ensure the bees' well-being and for each beekeeper-to-bee to have enough practical experience.

It consists of 16 gatherings, the following 14 are planned but are subject to change and may be adjusted based on Dutch school holidays:

April 11th 2026: 13-15.00 (Mandatory - theoretical)
April 18th 2026: 13-15.00
May 6th 2026: 18.30 - 20.30 (Mandatory)
May 13th 2026: 18.30 - 20.30
May 27th 2026: 18.30 - 20.30
June 10th 2026: 18.30 - 20.30
June 24th 2026: 18.30 - 20.30

July 8th 2026: 18.30 - 20.30
July 29th 2026: 18.30 - 20.30
August 19th 2026: 18.30 - 20.30
September 2nd 2026: 18.30 - 20.30
September 23rd 2026: 18.30 - 20.30
October 7th 2026: 18.30 - 20.30
October 31st 2026: 13-15.00

The meetings will take place on Wednesdays from 18.30 to 20.30, except for the sessions on April 11th, April 18th, and October 10th where it will take place on Saturdays from 13.00 to 15.00. On top of that, there are 2 gatherings that can’t be planned (one catching a swarm and one introducing a swarm to a beehive two days later), making the training 32 hours in total.

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

Our practical and natural beekeeping training is based on the principles of Biodynamic Beekeeping. Once the training is completed, you can become a Natural Beekeeper on your own, or with a group of people. A certificate of participation will be delivered to people 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 farming them for honey. We will try to facilitate and give room to the natural tendencies of a bee colony like swarming, rather than trying to suppress or manipulate them.

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The training runs from April to October and focuses on the colony’s yearly cycle to discover how we can best support them at all 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.

Having the theoretical knowledge from the Introduction Course is recommended, as the training focuses on the practical aspects of managing a natural bee colony.

Geert will review just about everything you need to know, including:

How to approach a bee colony
The 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
Preparing and catching a bee swarm hanging from a tree or other objects and introducing them to a new hive
Special gathering with guest teacher Albert Muller, one of the most experienced and knowledgeable natural beekeepers in the world
Care routine for bees, how to pay special attention to their behaviour and needs of the colony

The total costs of the 32-hour training spread over 2026 is; 876€ incl. VAT