Heading Honey makes money

Heading Honey makes money

Seasonal Management can increase the production of honey, Muneer Ahmad Sofi writes on bee keeping and the requirements to make it more productive

SEPTEMBER 02, 2005 - Beekeeping has been practiced in Kashmir since long by indigenous methods and this unscientific beekeeping is still in vogue in certain area of the state. But now generally scientific beekeeping is done. After the introduction and popularization of movable frame hives the knowledge on management practices was borrowed from the west by adopting modifications suiting to Kashmir (local) condition.

Success in beekeeping mainly depends on the sound knowledge of biology, behavious and accordingly the management practices.
Nectar and pollen are not available to bees throughout the year. However, during some parts of the year surplus food is available, minor and subsistence food is available during other periods, whereas bees may face dearth period for certain parts of the year. We also have different seasons in a year with greatly varying weather conditions and the weather at times may be hard for bees. A beekeeper must handle his bees in such a manner that the colonies are well prepared for the coming honey-flow. This has to be done by helping the bees in successfully abridging the dearth period and by reducing the effect of severe weather conditions.

Spring Management:
In hills the winters are severe and there is lack of flora, the bees remain confined to their hive for most of the time. The bees have also been facing the problem of maintaining nest temperature. At the onset of spring the colonies emerge in considerably weak condition. It should be the earliest attempt to examine the colonies on a bright, warm and calm day to assess the condition of the colony, working of the queen, amount of brood present, honey and pollen stores and to clean the bottom board debris accumulated during winter. It is a useful management to give a stimulant feeding to colonies when very few spring flowers have blossomed. The stimulant feeding with this sugar syrup (30-40%) will help the colonies to rear more brood and raise greater foraging force to avail spring and summer flow. This feeding also raises the morale of the bees. It is an established fact that colonies which receive stimulant feeding produce more honey. The examination should be done carefully and quickly because robbing is easily induced. All manipulations should be stopped once the robbing becomes apparent and reduce all entrances so that colonies are able to guard against the invasion of robbers.

During spring, bee colonies go 'all out' to rear brood and invest all resources in increasing their strength. Queen lays more vigorously after winter egg laying rest. More drawn combs are added for expanding brood next. If the queen is working unsatisfactorily, that is, she is laying sparingly and or laying drone eggs, efforts must be made to replace the queen at the earliest opportunity. It may be pointed out that very weak colonies desert their hives if disturbed unnecessarily and are easily robbed out if they are fed sugar syrup without great care. It is a wise practice to unite them with others and follow the golden rule, 'always help first those colonies that need the least help, leaving the weakest to be helped the last'. During early spring the weather is unsettled and beekeeping are warned against over expanding the brood nest and dividing it into two or more parts by insertion of empty combs or comb foundations because there can be chances of the outlaying brood being left unattended by the worker bees. Consequently the neglected brood gets chilled because of bad weather. Spring is also a swarming season. Swarm prevention and control measures should be taken.

Honey flow period
The swarming season is followed by good honey flow season. Proper management of the bees is essential during these days. It is true that any amount of diligence during the honey flow cannot make amend for the poor management during the preceding months but any oversight during these crucial days is certain to effect the year's work of the bees and the beekeeper.

The principal function of the beekeeper during honey flow period is to keep the colony morale high. In other words, he should ensure that the honey - gathering instinct is dominant and that the instinct is not checked. Congestion in the hive must be avoided and surplus house bees are drawn to supers (second story).

Many times the queen goes to the super chamber and lays eggs and honey extraction becomes difficult. At least three weeks before honey extraction a queen excluder should be placed in between brood and super chamber and queen is confined to brood chamber. Apis mellifera (European bee) attains sufficient strength before honey flow and full depth supers on langstroth hives are used in India, while in valley Langstroth hive is used even for Indian honey bee (Apis ceranna indica) . In most parts of valley Newton hive is still in use, where half super is the frames which are three-fourth filled with honey or pollen and one-fourth with sealed brood should also be taken out of brood chamber and in its place empty combs or frames with foundation is added.

On warm days, bees are noticed to gather in clusters at the entrance. This is a sign of congestion and poor ventilation. This affects the honey gathering instinct. The situation should be remedied promptly by improving ventilation by removing the entrance rod or shaving the supers backward.

Honey Extraction:
When the honey flow begins to slow down, the frames containing honey should be removed for extraction. The honey should finally be extracted when bees are still bringing the nectar. To remove honey combs, a colony is smoked, the desired combs taken out and bees brushed off with a soft brush or a bunch of green grass.

Depending upon the strength, 5-15 kg of honey should be left with the colony of Apis Mellifera for summer and monsoon dearth periods.
After the job has been done, the place should be swabbed with water and the appliances cleaned. Hive bodies are washed removed honey drops. The empty wet combs should be returned to the bees for cleaning and the hive entrances be reduced to avoid robbing.

Summer Management:
The honey flow is followed by a summer dearth period. With the ceasing of honey flow season develop a strong tendency to protect their stories and become nervous and excited. Bees start throwing out drones and are not allowed to return because they are now useless in the colony. Unmanaged colonies stop brood rearing in order not to starve in future. The best thing to do during this period is to avoid broodlessness in colonies and stimulate them to rear brood. The strong colonies with sufficient store would continue to rear some brood during summer. The colonies cannot be kept in the open in the sun. These should always be shifted to a place with thick shade. Beekeeper can further help bee colonies by placing them under open straw huts. At places the temperature rises as high and gunny bags, moistened twice at noon and in the afternoon, can be spread over top covers. Frequent examination of colonies should be avoided.

The above mentioned management practices during summer would check absconding of colonies. The above mentioned management practices during summer would check absconding of colonies. The principle is 'All efforts should be made to add to the comforts of bees.'

Winter Management:
Honey bees live in a thermal environment of their own and maintain colony next temperature between 320 and 350.
The bees form a cluster when the atmospheric temperature drops below 100 C. this roughly spherical cluster becomes tighter as the temperature drops further down. The cluster is composed of inner and outer shell, the latter serves as insulation and prevents the heat loss. Bees change their places between the inner and the outer shells. Bees raise the temperature by muscular movements and in possible by the consumption of honey. The colonies should be kept under damp places and under thick grooves of dry grass. Periodic inspection to verify the food stories is essential winter.

Insulation of hives helps to reduce consumption of honey and saves energy of bees. In the cold months namely December, January, February with days and night chilly need light insulation. Finely chopped dry grass, wood shavings, saw dust, dry leaves, chopped rice straw or wheat straw are the handy packing materials though thermocol and woolen rugs can also be used. Under valley conditions packing can be given in brood chamber, if the colony material is kept in place with strings or water proof tar paper wrapped over the packing material.

There is no need of migration of boxes toward Jammu in winter if proper packing is done. Government should come forward to provide necessary required in boosting Apiculture industry in valley as valley's environment favours the Apiculture.

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