Hive management
Encyclopedia
Hive management is a term used in beekeeping
. The term describes all the intervention techniques a beekeeper may perform to ensure hive survival and to maximize hive production. Hive management techniques vary widely depending on the objectives. The most common objectives are:
production are the duration and timing of the honey flow
in a certain area. Duration and timing of a honey flow may vary widely depending on local predominant climates, weather during the honey flow and the nectar source
s in the area. Good honey production sites are the far northern latitudes. In the summer, as days grow longer, bees can fly and forage for longer hours increasing the production. Migrating beekeeper
s also take advantage of local bloom of agricultural plants or wild flowers and trees. In mountainous regions a beekeeper may migrate up the mountain as the spring and summer bloom progresses.
It has been shown, that a larger bee colony will produce relatively more honey. Therefore the early buildup and spring feeding
and subsequent prevention of swarming
are of high priority. Several different methods such as the Demaree method
, Checkerboarding and opening up the brood nest have been advocated to prevent swarming.
A main objective is to prevent swarming.
for direct consumption as comb honey
is always created the same year it is harvested.
Honey combs may also be harvested by crushing the comb and squeezing out the honey. This is the lowest cost method of producing honey. Keepers of the low-cost top-bar hive
s use this technique to harvest honey. The technique may also be used for the frames of Langstroth hive
s. The so called cut comb are sections of sealed honey comb that are cut out of the frame. If the cut comb is to be consumed not crushed only the purest beeswax foundation may be used.
Techniques for maximizing agricultural crop
see:
Techniques to maximize open mating
Techniques to maximize open mating of virgin queens
center around having drone
s of a desired parentage saturate a queen mating yard.
Techniques to maximize artificial insemination
Artificial insemination of honeybee queens
is a process used for very selective breeding
of honeybee races. In the open mating of queens the source of drones cannot be fully controlled. In artificial inseminaton the source of drone sperm
can be fully controlled and be more predictively selected than in open breeding.
is one of the byproducts of the hive. Pollen collection is usually not the main management objective. Pollen is collected by installing a pollen trap at the entrance of the bee hive. There are varying designs for pollen traps. The pollen trap makes access to the hive harder for the foraging bees. In the process of climbing through the pollen trap wires some pollen is loosened from the bee's pollen basket
and falls into a collection container. Varying recommendations describe leaving the pollen trap on for a few days or for more extended periods. Pollen collection works best in an area with various pollen source
s throughout the year.
Fresh pollen can be frozen or dried. It is used for human consumption or fed back to the colony in early spring to speed up brood production.
is another byproduct of the bee hive. Certain races of bees are more prone to using propolis. Propolis can be collected on special plastic propolis screens. The tendency of the bees is to use propolis as a glue to seal openings that are too small for a bee to crawl through. A propolis screen is usually put in place of an inner cover. It has small openings that are propolized by the bees. The propolis screen can be frozen which hardens the propolis. Once the propolis is frozen it can be easily knocked off and collected.
Bee races that propolize heavily are usually not desirable as it makes other hive manipulation more difficult. There is only a limited market for propolis.
may be a major product or a minor byproduct.
The management technique that yields the highest amount of wax per hive is the top-bar hive
. During the harvest of the honey
from top-bar hives the whole honey comb is removed and crushed to extract the honey.
The commercial honey producers use Langstroth hive
frames
. The honey extraction process yields beeswax from the uncapping process. The highest quality beeswax is almost white. Lower quality beeswax from older cappings or comb is yellow or brown. Beeswax should be rendered and filtered before it is sold.
The least amount of beeswax that can be used as such, is produced in Ross rounds or cassette type comb honey
production. Wax and honey are not separated and are consumed together.
Tha ability and tendency to build wax comb differs between the honeybee races. It also differs between colonies. A newly hived swarm
produces wax and builds comb
very quickly.
is most dependent on the proper genetics of the queen. Queens and drones are selectively bred to increase the production of royal jelly. A good yield per hive is 5 kg per year.
) is obtained by stimulating the bee with an electrical current that incite them to sting, releasing a drop of poison onto a glass slide. The crystallized venom can be collected and processed. In order to get 1 gram of dry venom, it is necessary to collect the apitoxin of 10,000 to 15,000 bees.
and Africa
.
s are bought and sold usually in the spring time. The advantage to packaged bees is that the bees are on established frames with a laying queen and developing brood. A fast developing nuc can be transferred to a full hive box and may produce honey in the same year.
are usually shipped in the spring from regions of mild winter climates to areas that have more severe winters.
Beekeeping
Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in hives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and other products of the hive , to pollinate crops, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers...
. The term describes all the intervention techniques a beekeeper may perform to ensure hive survival and to maximize hive production. Hive management techniques vary widely depending on the objectives. The most common objectives are:
For honey production
The dependent factors for honeyHoney
Honey is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...
production are the duration and timing of the honey flow
Honey flow
Honey flow is a term used by beekeepers indicating that one or more major nectar sources are in bloom and the weather is favorable for bees to fly and collect the nectar in abundance....
in a certain area. Duration and timing of a honey flow may vary widely depending on local predominant climates, weather during the honey flow and the nectar source
Nectar source
A nectar source is a flowering plant that produces nectar as part of its reproductive strategy. These plants create nectar, which attract pollinating insects and sometimes other animals such as birds....
s in the area. Good honey production sites are the far northern latitudes. In the summer, as days grow longer, bees can fly and forage for longer hours increasing the production. Migrating beekeeper
Beekeeper
A beekeeper is a person who keeps honey bees for the purposes of securing commodities such as honey, beeswax, pollen, royal jelly; pollinating fruits and vegetables; raising queens and bees for sale to other farmers; and/or for purposes satisfying natural scientific curiosity...
s also take advantage of local bloom of agricultural plants or wild flowers and trees. In mountainous regions a beekeeper may migrate up the mountain as the spring and summer bloom progresses.
It has been shown, that a larger bee colony will produce relatively more honey. Therefore the early buildup and spring feeding
Feeder (Beekeeping)
Feeders are used to provide or supplement nutrients for a beehive. A feeder in beekeeping can be several different things.- Pollen feeder :Pollen can be fed from outside or inside the hive. When pollen or a pollen supplement is fed it can be fed as a powder, granules or in pattie form...
and subsequent prevention of swarming
Swarming (honeybee)
Swarming is the natural means of reproduction of honey bee colonies. A new honey bee colony is formed when the queen bee leaves the colony with a large group of worker bees, a process called swarming. In the prime swarm, about 60% of the worker bees leave the original hive location with the old...
are of high priority. Several different methods such as the Demaree method
Demaree method
The Demaree method is a term used in beekeeping that describes a swarming prevention method.The method was first published by George Demaree in an article in the American Bee Journal in 1884. It involves separation of the queen from the brood. However, it requires a great deal of labor and...
, Checkerboarding and opening up the brood nest have been advocated to prevent swarming.
Techniques to maximize extracted honey production
Once a good location for an apiary is selected, techniques under the control of a beekeeper for maximizing extracted honey production depend mostly on maximizing the number of foraging bees at the peak time of the honey flow. Techniques may include interrupting brood production right before the main honey flow to free up nurse bees for foraging.A main objective is to prevent swarming.
Techniques to maximize comb honey production
Comb honey production requires many of the same techniques that are required for the production of extracted honey. In addition, the colony must be very strong and have comb building traits. HoneycombHoneycomb
A honeycomb is a mass of hexagonal waxcells built by honey bees in their nests to contain their larvae and stores of honey and pollen.Beekeepers may remove the entire honeycomb to harvest honey...
for direct consumption as comb honey
Comb honey
Comb honey is honey, intended for consumption, which still contains pieces of the hexagonal-shaped beeswax cells of the honeycomb.Before the invention of the honey extractor almost all honey produced was in the form of comb honey...
is always created the same year it is harvested.
Honey combs may also be harvested by crushing the comb and squeezing out the honey. This is the lowest cost method of producing honey. Keepers of the low-cost top-bar hive
Top-bar hive
Top-bar hives are a style of beehive used for beekeeping. They are especially useful in areas where resources are limited, but are also increasingly popular among hobby beekeepers in industrialized nations...
s use this technique to harvest honey. The technique may also be used for the frames of Langstroth hive
Langstroth hive
The Langstroth bee hive, patented in October 1852, is the standard beehive used in many parts of the world for beekeeping. The advantage of this hive is that the bees build honeycomb into frames, which can be moved with ease. The frames are designed to prevent bees from attaching honeycombs where...
s. The so called cut comb are sections of sealed honey comb that are cut out of the frame. If the cut comb is to be consumed not crushed only the purest beeswax foundation may be used.
Techniques for maximizing Ross rounds and cassette production
- Killion Method
- Juniper Hill Method
- Crowding
- Shock Shook Method
Techniques for maximizing agricultural cropAgricultureAgriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
s pollination
see:
- Pollinator declinePollinator declineThe term pollinator decline refers to the reduction in abundance of pollinators in many ecosystems worldwide during the end of the twentieth century....
- Pesticide toxicity to beesPesticide toxicity to beesPesticides vary in their effects on bees. Contact pesticides are usually sprayed on plants and can kill bees when they crawl over sprayed surfaces of plants or other media...
- Buzz pollinationBuzz pollinationSonication or buzz pollination is a technique used by some bees to release pollen which is more or less firmly held by the anthers, which makes pollination more efficient. The anther of buzz-pollinated species of plants is typically tubular, with an opening at only one end, and the pollen is inside...
Techniques to maximize open matingMatingIn biology, mating is the pairing of opposite-sex or hermaphroditic organisms for copulation. In social animals, it also includes the raising of their offspring. Copulation is the union of the sex organs of two sexually reproducing animals for insemination and subsequent internal fertilization...
Techniques to maximize open mating of virgin queensQueen bee
The term queen bee is typically used to refer to an adult, mated female that lives in a honey bee colony or hive; she is usually the mother of most, if not all, the bees in the hive. The queens are developed from larvae selected by worker bees and specially fed in order to become sexually mature...
center around having drone
Drone (bee)
Drones are male honey bees. They develop from eggs that have not been fertilized, and they cannot sting, since the worker bee's stinger is a modified ovipositor .-Etymology:...
s of a desired parentage saturate a queen mating yard.
Techniques to maximize artificial inseminationArtificial inseminationArtificial insemination, or AI, is the process by which sperm is placed into the reproductive tract of a female for the purpose of impregnating the female by using means other than sexual intercourse or natural insemination...
Artificial insemination of honeybee queensQueen bee
The term queen bee is typically used to refer to an adult, mated female that lives in a honey bee colony or hive; she is usually the mother of most, if not all, the bees in the hive. The queens are developed from larvae selected by worker bees and specially fed in order to become sexually mature...
is a process used for very selective breeding
Selective breeding
Selective breeding is the process of breeding plants and animals for particular genetic traits. Typically, strains that are selectively bred are domesticated, and the breeding is sometimes done by a professional breeder. Bred animals are known as breeds, while bred plants are known as varieties,...
of honeybee races. In the open mating of queens the source of drones cannot be fully controlled. In artificial inseminaton the source of drone sperm
Sperm
The term sperm is derived from the Greek word sperma and refers to the male reproductive cells. In the types of sexual reproduction known as anisogamy and oogamy, there is a marked difference in the size of the gametes with the smaller one being termed the "male" or sperm cell...
can be fully controlled and be more predictively selected than in open breeding.
For pollen production
PollenPollen
Pollen is a fine to coarse powder containing the microgametophytes of seed plants, which produce the male gametes . Pollen grains have a hard coat that protects the sperm cells during the process of their movement from the stamens to the pistil of flowering plants or from the male cone to the...
is one of the byproducts of the hive. Pollen collection is usually not the main management objective. Pollen is collected by installing a pollen trap at the entrance of the bee hive. There are varying designs for pollen traps. The pollen trap makes access to the hive harder for the foraging bees. In the process of climbing through the pollen trap wires some pollen is loosened from the bee's pollen basket
Pollen basket
The pollen basket or corbicula is part of the tibia on the hind legs of the four related lineages of apid bees that used to comprise the family Apidae: the honey bees, bumblebees, stingless bees, and orchid bees...
and falls into a collection container. Varying recommendations describe leaving the pollen trap on for a few days or for more extended periods. Pollen collection works best in an area with various pollen source
Pollen source
The term pollen source is often used in the context of beekeeping and refers to flowering plants as a source of pollen for bees or other insects. Bees collect pollen as a protein source to raise their brood. For the plant, the pollinizer, this can be an important mechanism for sexual reproduction,...
s throughout the year.
Fresh pollen can be frozen or dried. It is used for human consumption or fed back to the colony in early spring to speed up brood production.
For propolis production
PropolisPropolis
Propolis is a resinous mixture that honey bees collect from tree buds, sap flows, or other botanical sources. It is used as a sealant for unwanted open spaces in the hive. Propolis is used for small gaps , while larger spaces are usually filled with beeswax. Its color varies depending on its...
is another byproduct of the bee hive. Certain races of bees are more prone to using propolis. Propolis can be collected on special plastic propolis screens. The tendency of the bees is to use propolis as a glue to seal openings that are too small for a bee to crawl through. A propolis screen is usually put in place of an inner cover. It has small openings that are propolized by the bees. The propolis screen can be frozen which hardens the propolis. Once the propolis is frozen it can be easily knocked off and collected.
Bee races that propolize heavily are usually not desirable as it makes other hive manipulation more difficult. There is only a limited market for propolis.
For beeswax production
BeeswaxBeeswax
Beeswax is a natural wax produced in the bee hive of honey bees of the genus Apis. It is mainly esters of fatty acids and various long chain alcohols...
may be a major product or a minor byproduct.
The management technique that yields the highest amount of wax per hive is the top-bar hive
Top-bar hive
Top-bar hives are a style of beehive used for beekeeping. They are especially useful in areas where resources are limited, but are also increasingly popular among hobby beekeepers in industrialized nations...
. During the harvest of the honey
Honey
Honey is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...
from top-bar hives the whole honey comb is removed and crushed to extract the honey.
The commercial honey producers use Langstroth hive
Langstroth hive
The Langstroth bee hive, patented in October 1852, is the standard beehive used in many parts of the world for beekeeping. The advantage of this hive is that the bees build honeycomb into frames, which can be moved with ease. The frames are designed to prevent bees from attaching honeycombs where...
frames
Frame (beehive)
A frame in a beehive is the structural element that holds the honeycomb or brood comb within the hive body . The frame is a key part of the modern "movable" hive since it can be removed in order to inspect the bees for disease or to extract the excess honey.-History:One of first beehive frames was...
. The honey extraction process yields beeswax from the uncapping process. The highest quality beeswax is almost white. Lower quality beeswax from older cappings or comb is yellow or brown. Beeswax should be rendered and filtered before it is sold.
The least amount of beeswax that can be used as such, is produced in Ross rounds or cassette type comb honey
Comb honey
Comb honey is honey, intended for consumption, which still contains pieces of the hexagonal-shaped beeswax cells of the honeycomb.Before the invention of the honey extractor almost all honey produced was in the form of comb honey...
production. Wax and honey are not separated and are consumed together.
Tha ability and tendency to build wax comb differs between the honeybee races. It also differs between colonies. A newly hived swarm
Swarming (honeybee)
Swarming is the natural means of reproduction of honey bee colonies. A new honey bee colony is formed when the queen bee leaves the colony with a large group of worker bees, a process called swarming. In the prime swarm, about 60% of the worker bees leave the original hive location with the old...
produces wax and builds comb
Brood comb
The brood comb is the beeswax structure of cells where the queen bee lays eggs. It is the part of the beehive where a new brood is raised by the colony...
very quickly.
For royal jelly production
The production of royal jellyRoyal jelly
Royal jelly is a honey bee secretion that is used in the nutrition of larvae, as well as adult queens. It is secreted from the glands in the hypopharynx of worker bees, and fed to all larvae in the colony....
is most dependent on the proper genetics of the queen. Queens and drones are selectively bred to increase the production of royal jelly. A good yield per hive is 5 kg per year.
For apitoxin production
Bee venom (apitoxinApitoxin
Apitoxin, or honey bee venom, is a bitter colorless liquid. The active portion of the venom is a complex mixture of proteins, which causes local inflammation and acts as an anticoagulant. The venom is produced in the abdomen of worker bees from a mixture of acidic and basic secretions. Apitoxin...
) is obtained by stimulating the bee with an electrical current that incite them to sting, releasing a drop of poison onto a glass slide. The crystallized venom can be collected and processed. In order to get 1 gram of dry venom, it is necessary to collect the apitoxin of 10,000 to 15,000 bees.
For bee brood production
Bee brood as such is generally not a commercial commodity. However, bee brood is edible, and is used as a food in AsiaAsia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
.
For the production of nucs
Hive management techniques to multiply colonies use the bees natural tendency to swarm by simulating a swarm. NucNuc
Nucs, or Nucleus Colonies, are small honey bee colonies created from larger colonies. The term refers both to the smaller size box and the colony of honeybees within it....
s are bought and sold usually in the spring time. The advantage to packaged bees is that the bees are on established frames with a laying queen and developing brood. A fast developing nuc can be transferred to a full hive box and may produce honey in the same year.
Walk-away split
In a walk-away split, frames with eggs and worker bees are removed and the bees will create a queen cell out of a suitable egg. Once the queen hatches, successfully mates and returns to the hive, the hive will be queenright.For bee package production
Packaged bees with a caged queenQueen bee
The term queen bee is typically used to refer to an adult, mated female that lives in a honey bee colony or hive; she is usually the mother of most, if not all, the bees in the hive. The queens are developed from larvae selected by worker bees and specially fed in order to become sexually mature...
are usually shipped in the spring from regions of mild winter climates to areas that have more severe winters.