She was born in 1992. Together with her husband Maxim and their two children, Alexander and Ekaterina, they have been raising bees for fifteen years.
Anastasia noted that love, trust, and mutual understanding reign in their family, which helps them work together at their apiary. The story began in 2010 with a few hives. At that time, the family decided to try their hand at it.
“It all started with a small number of hives; we decided to test our strength first, as beekeeping is a labor-intensive and costly process. And from the very first year, we got hooked on this fascinating endeavor. At first, it was difficult; we knew little about beekeeping, but over time we learned all the necessary skills,” she said.
The choice of profession was inspired by family tradition. Maxim's grandfather was a beekeeper.
“We were motivated by the roots of our family history. My husband’s grandfather was engaged in beekeeping. When he died, my husband was still very young and could not continue his work. And then, many years later, he decided to try beekeeping. Fortunately, he succeeded. He even got the whole family interested in it,” Sokolenko shared.
Work at the apiary is carried out year-round. In the summer, the family works with the hives: preparing the bees for honey collection, transporting the apiary to different locations, extracting honey, monitoring the health of the colonies, and treating the bees. In winter, they repair and prepare equipment, assemble frames, and tidy up the hives. In beekeeping, there are no insignificant details — every little thing can affect the health of the bees and the amount of honey.
“A beekeeper works all year round. There are no major or less significant rules — everything is extremely important, as many factors influence the preservation of the hive and the quantity of honey,” shared the resident of Karakol.
The Sokolenko family primarily works with the Buckfast breed. According to their observations, this breed is more productive and resistant to diseases.
“We mainly work with the Buckfast breed. Based on our observation and comparison with other breeds, it is the most productive, more resistant to diseases, and less reactive to weather conditions, which is important in our area,” she added.
This year's season was average: worse than last year’s, but better than the year before. The harvest depends on the weather, so each year brings its own characteristics.
The family collects several types of honey. They first obtain May mountain honey — barberry and dandelion. Then, in the fields, they extract mountain-field and field honey: sainfoin, sweet clover, and wildflower honey. After that, the apiary is moved to the mountains, where they harvest mountain wildflower honey.
In addition to honey, the family produces flower pollen, propolis, collects bee bread, makes mead, creams honey with sea buckthorn, mixes honey with pollen and bee bread, and also sells comb honey.
The sale of products is carried out directly: at markets, through social networks, to regular customers, at fairs, and to tourists.
Anastasia emphasized that it is impossible to determine the quality of honey by external signs. The composition can only be reliably determined in a laboratory, so it is important to trust the beekeeper when purchasing. All folk methods of testing are considered myths, so it is better to buy honey from acquaintances and trusted people.
The Sokolenko family plans to increase the number of bee colonies and develop their production. Beekeeping has become not just a job for them, but a common endeavor that unites all family members.
