How To Be A Beekeeper - The Occupants Of The Hive.

Feb 9
18:44

2009

Chris Haycock

Chris Haycock

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A description of the occupants of a bee colony, and their purpose.

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Are you interested in bees and beekeeping? Maybe even thinking of taking the plunge yourself?. I thought it best to start at the beginning. I apologise to the experienced apiarist who may chance upon this. However these articles are not aimed at you,How To Be A Beekeeper - The Occupants Of The Hive. Articles but those starting the wonderful world of beekeeping. Also those who may be considering beekeeping as a hobby, or even a business.

I think it's quite important that anyone wishing to become a beekeeper, either as a hobby, or hoping to make an income from beekeeping, should know something about these wonderful creatures, bees are fascinating, as well as necessary. Good husbandry in beekeeping means that you will need a good working knowledge of bees, their habits, and their requirements.

So we start with a description of the occupants of the hive. That is to say the Queen, the Workers, and the Drones. A prosperous, healthy colony of bees in midsummer will consist of a Queen, plus 30,000 to 60,000 Workers, and maybe 300 to 400 Drones.

Although the Queen is named as such, she is not in fact the absolute ruler of the colony, rather she serves it from a position chosen for her. Born specifically for the role, potential mother to millions. She is the longest living of the bees. She may live for several years. In her size, physical form, and colouring, she is unique in the colony. Whilst not as bulky as the Drone, she is the longest, and darkest, as well as being surpisingly delicately proportioned. Her one purpose is to propogate, she mates once, then exclusively lays eggs. Up to 3000 a day. This only ceases on old age and death.

The Worker bees are the smallest in the colony, they are all females, like the Queen, but undeveloped. Their life is hard and brief, as the name says, they work incessantly, and if born at the start of summer will only live a few weeks. If a Worker bee is born in the autumn they may well survive the winter, to start the work which as yet unborn generations will take over. They gather the nectar and the pollen. They manufacture wax for repairs and the building of the combs (the colony's larder and cradle). They feed the Queen, nurse the young, clean the hive, and also defend it.

The Drones are the male bees. They are thick and bulky, but not as long as the Queen. They do no work, their sole reason for existence is to fertilise the young Queens. So they are tolerated in the colony. They can come and go freely, and are allowed unlimited access to the honey cells. However, theirs is also a brief existence, and those Drones that survive to the end of autumn are then driven out of the hive to perish. A short life, but a happy one, you could say.

Well, that's a brief description of the occupants of the hive. As I said before, that's just the very beginning. It is a wonderful hobby, and if you want to keep bees I recommend you learn as much about the subject as you can beforehand.

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