Establishment of an Apiary : Handling Bees

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 81, Issue 5, 15 November 1950, Page 471

Establishment of an Apiary : Handling Bees

Seasonal Notes for the Domestic Beekeeper PERSONS contemplating the establishment of a domestic apiary should first consider whether their home section is a suitable place to keep bees, whether the bees are not likely to become a nuisance to neighbours or to the owner’s family, and whether there is sufficient scope for the bees to gather and store surplus crops of honey in addition to the bees’ own food requirements. Important points in establishing a domestic apiary are discussed in this article contributed by the Horticulture Division.

ANYONE may become a beekeeper, but only those who are sufficiently interested and thorough and who plan apiary management skilfully can hope to succeed. Honey bees depend for success on favourable floral and climatic conditions and on the attention and care they receive at critical times during the breeding season. Care and maintenance of good working stock, including timely brood and hive manipulations to ensure a maximum number of worker bees at the beginning of the main honey flow in the locality where the bees are established, is essential. Before getting bees the beginner should spend as much time as possible with a successful beekeeper during the summer months when bees are being attended to. No attempt should be made by x inexperienced persons to establish an apiary, as bad handling of bees by a beginner, especially at times when they should be left alone, may cause an orgy of stinging. Good strains of honey bees are usually gentle and are not aggressive when properly handled. Experienced men can handle bees with a minimum of disturbance even under the most trying conditions, but beginners should choose warm sunny days, when the field bees are busy gathering nectar and pollen, for hive examination. Handling of Bees There are some principles affecting the handling of bees so that few stings are received. Attention should be paid -to dress; clothes should be clean and not made of woolly materials, which bees dislike. The use of gloves is advocated by some beekeepers for protection against stings on the hands, but their use deprives the beekeeper of a deftness •of touch to some extent. Any clumsiness in handling combs resulting from covered fingers tends to irritate the bees and make them less easy to control. Further, stings on the gloves or ■clothing may not be noticed by the operator and may rouse more bees to the attack, which does much to demoralise them generally, so that working conditions become very uncomfortable.

A rubber band around each sleeve cuff, or canvas mittens drawn above the cuffs and tied in place will guard against stings from bees which crawl under the clothing. Trouser bottoms ■should be secured by the use of cycle clips, rubber bands, or loose canvas :spats in which the trouser legs should be tucked. Once confidence is gained

in handling bees there are times during the honey season when it is much more comfortable to work with the sleeves rolled up above the elbows. Use of Bee Smoker Essential

All beekeepers should, however, use a bee smoker and wear a bee veil when working in the apiary. Every motion while manipulating the combs and bees should be smooth and deliberate with as little jarring of the hive parts as possible, if the work is to be put through rapidly with a minimum of disturbance or stings and without unnecessary killing of bees.

The most difficult time to handle bees is during cold weather or immediately following a period of bad weather when they have been confined to the hives for some days. It is also inadvisable to disturb the hives more than is necessary in autumn after the main honey flow ceases.

When to Establish Bees

November is a suitable time for the beginner to establish a domestic apiary in most parts of New Zealand, with the exception of North Auckland areas, where the season is earlier. At this time of year there is usually sufficient nectar available to the bees, so that no artificial feeding, which is tricky, is required.

Where bees are established early in spring there is a danger of stocks being robbed out by neighbouring bees or of colonies dying out because of insufficient stores when brood rearing increases. In purchasing established bees too early in spring there is also the danger that they may have become infected with disease the previous autumn which does not show up in the brood until later when the bees have worked back on to the last of their honey stores. It is much safer for the beginner to wait until late spring or early summer to purchase bees and used hive equipment (which should be thoroughly examined by an experienced beekeeper), as by then sufficient time has elapsed to determine with more certainty whether the bees had picked up infection the previous autumn. However, these precautions are not necessary where a start is made with new hive equipment and nuclei (colonies), complete with sufficient stores to maintain them until the honey flow begins, purchased from a reliable breeder.

Permit Needed

In any case the vender must first obtain a permit from the local Apiary Instructor of the Department of Agriculture to sell bees and any used hive equipment. This precaution is neces-

sary to prevent the possible spread of diseases. Particulars of the equipment required to set up an apiary of any size may be obtained from the nearest Apiary Instructor. Registration of Apiaries Unfortunately honey bees like other living creatures are subject to diseases and these may create serious problems for the beekeeper. It would be difficult therefore for even an efficient beekeeper to carry on successfully over a long period without some legal protection against careless neighbours. To enable the Department of Agriculture to service the beekeeping industry effectively (which includes the control of bee diseases), all apiaries must be registered immediately colonies of bees are established on any location. Forms of application for registration of an apiary may be obtained from any office or Apiary Instructor of the Department. There is no registration fee. Any person keeping unregistered hives or allowing them to be kept on his land is liable to a fine of £2O. Compulsory registration provides the inspector with a complete list of the beekeepers in his district, which is necessary to help him in carrying out inspection work.