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What to consider before setting up an apiary
An apiary should be near a water source and in a place with many trees. File photo
What you need to know:
- Like it is for building a house, finding a suitable place where to place the bee hive is crucial to the bee keeping business, writes Brian Ssenoga
Most people know the bee for its honey and cannot tell where to find a swarm or how to keep them. Like it is for building a house, finding a suitable place where to place the bee hive is crucial to the bee keeping business.
Therefore, setting up an apiary requires a beekeeper to consider the features that will make their bees comfortable and productive in a selected place.
According to the beekeepers extension manual published by Ministry of Agriculture (MAAIF), a good apiary should be away from any disturbances by humans or animals.
A calm natural environment is perfect where the bees can build their colonies without being stressed.
In addition, Alice Kangave, the principal entomologist, MAAIF, says, “There should be a water source not more than 500 metres away. Bees are built to carry nectar longer distances but lack of water in the surrounding is much more tasking on the colony and reduces its productivity. Just as humans drink water so do the bees.”
Water sources can be natural like rivers, ponds and wetlands or artificial with simple things like filling tins with water and placing reeds or straws in them so the bees can drink without drowning.
“Food availability is another important factor,” notes Phionah Birungi, project manager at The Uganda National Apiculture Development Organisation (Tunado) notes. “Apart from pests, the other leading cause of abscondment is little food. Bees will easily migrate to where there is forage. Studies show a bee can travel five to six kilometres in search of pollen, nectar and water but when there is no forage it does longer distances with little productivity as it will get tired.”
Thus, your apiary has to be set near nectar sources like flowering trees and shrubs, food crops and cash crops that need to be pollinated. It should be set on the land with good drainage and not a swamp or any water-logged area that would be harbour pests.
Hives should be sheltered from strong winds and direct sun. Avoid the wind blowing off the top covers and swinging the hives, this makes them rowdy and hostile. This can be done by use of trees for shade and wind breaking. Building a shelter is recommended though.
Animals especially livestock should be kept away from the apiary. This is normally done by fencing, which can also secure bees from wildfire outbreaks.
