BEEKEEPING
Introduction
Honey has a long and distinguished history in the human diet. For thousands of years
honey hunters have plundered the hives of wild bees for their precious honey and
beeswax a practice still common today.
The most widely used honey bees are the European Apis mellifera, which have now been
introduced worldwide. Tropical Africa has a native Apis mellifera, which is slightly smaller
than the European Apis mellifera, and is more likely to fly off the comb and to sting. They
are also more likely to abandon their hives if disturbed, and in some areas the colonies
migrate seasonally.
In Asia there are three main native tropical species, Apis cerana, Apis dorsata, and Apis
florea; cerana is the only species that can be managed in hives, but the single combs of the
other two are collected by honey hunters.
There are three different kinds of bees in every colony: a queen, the drones, and the
workers. The queen's job is to lay eggs, as many as several hundred in a day. These larva
develop into drones, workers, or new queens, depending on how the workers treat them.
Drones are the only male bees in the hive, and their main function is to mate with a virgin
queen outside the hive. They die after mating. They have no sting, do not carry pollen, are
unable to produce wax, and when resources are scarce they can be driven out of the hive to
die. The all-female worker bees, make up about 98 per cent of the colony, and they do
almost all the work. They bring water, pollen, nectar, and propolis (bee glue) back to the
hive, while some remain to guard the hive, and some clean it, build the wax comb, nurse the
young, and control the temperature of the hive. Workers eat honey to produce heat in cold
weather and fan their wings to keep
the hive cool in hot weather. Their
legs are specially equipped with pollen
baskets, and they have glands that
produce wax on their abdomens. The
worker has a sting, but usually dies
after stinging anything.
A honey bee nest consists of a series
of parallel beeswax combs. Each
comb contains rows of wax with
hexagonal compartments containing
honey stores, pollen, or developing
bee larvae (brood). To thrive and
produce honey the bees need
adequate supplies of nectar, pollen,
and water. The combs are evenly
spaced and are attached to the ceiling of the nest. The space between the faces of the
combs is known as the 'bee space'; it is usually between 6 and 9mm and is critical in
maintaining optimal
conditions within the nest, with just enough space for bees to walk and
work on the surface of the combs while maintaining the optimum nest temperature. Bee-
space, dimensions of combs, and nest volume all vary with the race and species of honey
bee. The bee-space is a crucial factor in the use of bee equipment, and honey bees cannot
be managed efficiently using equipment of inappropriate size. Be careful! Most equipment
is manufactured to the specifications of European bees.
Bees need a supply of food and water to live, and during dry periods the beekeeper may
have to supplement natural sources. As a general rule, attempts to begin beekeeping
Figure 1: Equipment and protective clothing
A hive tool
A bee veil is the
most important
part of the
protective clothing
A smoker
