Sweet success

Bee-keeping and honey production is thriving in the Yanshan Mountains area

More than 100 wooden boxes about 60 centimeters high and 40 centimeters wide hang from a cliff in Xikouwai village, Fengjiabu town, Miyun district, Beijing. 150 meters from the ground, it is the largest cliff bee feeding yard in the country and is also the core area of the Apis Cerana Reserve. Inside the beehive are native Asian honey bees. Hanging the boxes from the cliff is to restore the bee lifestyle, and to protect them from snakes and rats. The "nannies" who take care of these bees are by no means ordinary. They are a professional team from the reserve's beekeeping cooperatives, and they call themselves "the spidermen".