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Urban beekeeping
乡村饲蜜
Honey monsters
蜜怪
City dwellers cultivate a taste of the country
城市居民培养出乡村嗜好
A new kind of pinstripe
新型细条纹
WHEN Camilla Goddard first started to keep bees in London, it was difficult to find places away from anxious neighbours or teenage vandals. Nine years later she has hives all over the city: in parks, churchyards, primary schools and on the roofs of hotels. She collects swarms from people's attics and sells honey at her local shop. A hobby has become a thriving business.
起初，卡米拉.高达（Camilla Goddard）着手在伦敦饲养蜜蜂时，很难找到合适的驻点，因为附近要么是颇有戒备心理的邻居，要么就是淘气爱搞破坏的青少年。如今九年过去了，而她的蜂箱已经遍布整个城市：公园里、教堂里、小学校园里及旅馆屋顶上都随处可见。她通过收集隐匿在居民阁楼中的蜂巢，然后在自家经营的小超市中出售蜂蜜。而现在，这已俨然成为一种新兴商业模式。
Apiculture is fashionable. Since 2008 membership of the British Beekeepers Association (BBKA) has almost doubled, to 24,000 people. Around 1,500 are in London. Courses in the capital are always buzzing, says Angela Woods, an enthusiast. Despite the stereotype of beekeepers as luxuriantly bearded eccentrics, many newbies are young—women are particularly keen.The boom was partly a by-product of worries about bees and awareness of the huge benefits they bring. Colonies in many countries have been suffering mysterious sudden collapses since 2006. Urban eco-warriors found beekeeping an appealing practical outlet for their angst. Businesses, keen for green plaudits, also leapt on the trend. Fortnum & Mason, London's poshest department store, has hives on its roof (this newspaper, a neighbour, does not—yet).
眼下，养蜂业十分火热。2008年至今，英国养蜂协会（BBKA）会员已增加一倍，达到24000人。且有1500会员来自伦敦。安吉拉.伍兹（Angela Woods）是蜜蜂爱好者，他曾调侃道：首都的大道常常嗡嗡作响。尽管人们对传统养蜂人的印象还停留在是满脸胡子的怪大叔上，许多，但实际上许多新会员都是年轻一代，且女性尤为钟情。养蜂潮的兴起，在某种程度上正是由人们对蜜蜂的担忧和意识到蜜蜂巨大经济利益的双重作用下而促成的。自2006年起，英联邦国家一直受莫名的坍塌事故所困扰。城市生态卫士发现，养蜂恰是解决当下困扰的好对策，且可行性强。商业界渴望得到世界对其绿色行为的褒奖，同样也抓住时下潮流。伦敦顶级百货商店——福特纳姆和梅森，就在屋顶设有蜂巢（但它的邻居，报社集团却未如此）
Hives fit snugly in London gardens and bees seem to like city life. In the concrete jungle pesticides are rare. Nectar surprisingly abounds, and not just in gardens: parks have waterlilies and other exotic plants. Brambles and wild flowers line railway tracks. Chestnut trees give honey from Greenwich a heavy, nutty taste; bees that feed on rose bushes in Regent's Park produce an almost inedibly aromatic gloop.
蜂巢舒适地安于伦敦花园，蜜蜂似乎很享受城市生活。在钢筋丛林中，极少会出现昆虫。但蜂蜜却出奇得多，不但是花园中有，其它地方也有：公园植有睡莲和其它奇花异草。荆棘与野花铺满铁轨外延。因为板栗树，格林威治产的蜂蜜更浓稠，并带着丝丝坚果味儿；而在摄政公园，以采玫瑰为主的蜜蜂却产出不宜使用的芳香浆糖。
London is not yet flowing with honey. Membership growth has slowed at the BBKA. The cost of hives has risen. Green types are planting bee-friendly gardens instead of hosting apiaries of their own. And the harsh winter of 2012, which killed around a third of all the colonies in Britain, has put some beginners off. Busy Londoners want to connect with nature, says Ms Woods. But without the sting of disappointment.
伦敦现在还没到蜂蜜泛滥的程度。养蜂协会新入会员增速也已有所下降。筑巢成本上升。绿色一族如今选择建造利于蜜蜂的花园，而非建设私人养蜂厂。2012的严冬导致英联邦近1/3的蜂巢毁于一旦，这让一些新手望而却步了。伍兹夫人说，繁忙的伦敦人想与自然亲近。繁忙的伦敦人希望与大自然亲近，但可不希望被蜇的满头包而扫兴而归。译者：徐珍 校对：朱大素
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