Produced by bees, honey, royal jelly and propolis are beekeeping products that are highly appreciated by internal and external consumers and allow beekeepers to earn a great income.
For this reason, it is an activity that draws the attention of many family producers, mainly because it is an activity that requires less space and investment than other agricultural crops.
For this reason, we are going to tell you what beekeeping is, its main characteristics and tips for starting it.
What is beekeeping?
According to the Brazilian Bee Studies Association (A.B.E.L.H.A.), beekeeping consists in the breeding of bee species of the genus Apis for the production of various products, such as honey, propolis and royal jelly.
In Brazil, the most popular bee is the Apis mellifera or Western honey bee, but the Africanized bee is also quite common in national breeding. In addition, Brazil has an abundant and very diverse bee flora, which allows the production of honeys of excellent quality.
Kátia Aleixo, a biologist at A.B.E.L.H.A., points out that beekeeping is a highly sustainable activity in several aspects. According to the biologist, national beekeeping is a source of income for many family farmers, in addition to having less impact on biodiversity.
“When properly practiced, it contributes to the maintenance of pollination services, which are essential for the reproduction of flowering plants in natural ecosystems and for the conservation of biodiversity.”
In addition, Apis mellifera hives, in association with agricultural crops such as melon, watermelon and apple, improve the productivity and quality of fruits and seeds.
In this case, for a proper agricultural pollination, it is necessary to plan based on the characteristics of the cultivated varieties and the bees.
Apis Mellifera: the most cultivated bee in Brazil
The most cultivated bee in Brazil (and in the world) is Apis mellifera. Famous for the quality of its honey and its sting, it is the main representative of the type of breeding known as apiculture.
However, in Brazil there is also another group of social bees, that is, that form colonies, known as stingless bees. “Unlike Apis mellifera, stingless bees are native to Brazil and their breeding activity is beekeeping” says Kátia Aleixo.
Among the most cultivated species are those of the genus Melipona, such as: mandaçaia (Melipona quadrifasciata), uruçu-nordestina (M. scutellaris), jandaíra (M. subnitida), uruçu-cinzenta (M. fasciculata), among others.
Other highly cultivated species are the jataí (Tetragonisca angustula) and those of the genera Scaptotrigona and Plebeia. “Currently, more than 250 species of stingless bees are known in the country, about 100 with management initiatives,” adds the biologist.
5 pillars of successful beekeeping
Beekeeping is an ancient activity, with records dating back to 5,000 years BC. From that time to the present, techniques have evolved through the creation of artificial hives and equipment for more efficient extraction of bee products.
Consequently, populated, healthy and productive hives are mainly supported by five pillars that, when properly worked by the beekeeper, generate good financial returns.
Here is a general approach to these pillars:
1 – Knowledge about bees
To become a successful beekeeper, A.B.E.L.H.A. representatives point out that it is necessary to learn as much as possible about bees, their behavior and their role in nature. “By knowing the bees, the beekeeper will be able to make decisions aimed at improving their production,” they point out.
2 – Location of the apiaries
One of the most important decisions to be made is the location of the apiary. Some factors should guide this decision, since they affect the intended income, the practicality of the work and the safety of people and other animals.
Therefore, in order to be successful in this venture, the beekeeper must take into account:
- The type of bee flora in the area;
- Presence of places protected by trees or hedges (known as windbreaks);
- Shading, topography, environmental conditions;
- Ease of access; and
- Safety.
It is also worth mentioning that the camper bees can collect food within an average radius of 3 km, but the closer the proximity of the hives to the floral sources, the greater the chances of good production.
“The bee flora (or bee pasture) must be rich and abundant within a radius of 1.5 km from the apiary, and must also be composed of plant species that complement each other in flowering, so that food is available throughout the year,” recommends the association.
3 – Management of the beekeeping activity
Each hive is a factory of products (honey, pollen, wax, propolis, royal jelly and apitoxin), as well as a pollination service provider that generates financial return for the beekeeper.
If a hive dies, swarms, or produces little, it will hardly cover the beekeeper’s production costs. Thus, to achieve good productivity, it is important to consider an annual management plan.
With this measure, the beekeeper will be able to better organize the management of his expenses, revenues and time devoted to the apiaries.
“There are different flowering periods for the different Brazilian states and the construction of a beekeeping calendar with the forecast of the time of realization of the main practices is a good form of management in beekeeping for honey production”, recommend the experts of A.B.E.L.H.A.
4 – Productive management of hives
The general practices of productive management require the strengthening of the hives in the months before the major blooms, the annual replacement of the queen and the replacement of old and dark waxes.
Although more frequent during blooms, checks should be quick and careful and hives should not be manipulated excessively. “This is a time when workers are working intensively on food storage. This is an activity that must be preserved”, says A.B.E.L.H.A.
During the period of reduced flower availability in the environment, known as the winter or off-season, management should be limited mainly to supplemental energy and/or protein feeding to prevent colony weakening.
It is natural at this time of year for the bee population to decline due to food shortages in the countryside. Beekeepers should also remove empty honeydew trees, as this practice helps the bees regulate the internal temperature of the nest.
5 – Associativism
Finally, associations are important spaces for sharing knowledge and exchanging experiences. Therefore, beekeepers, through associations, can strive for a better professionalization and thus be more competitive, especially in the marketing of honey and other bee products.
For details, we invite you to check out this material developed by A.B.E.L.H.A.
Bonus: New Embrapa platform brings together technologies and services for beekeepers
Recognizing the importance of beekeeping in Brazil, researchers from Embrapa Eastern Amazon (PA) and Equilibrium Web developed a digital platform that gathers technical-scientific, economic and market information on beekeeping and meliponiculture.
Accessible by computer and mobile devices, Infobee brings the results of agricultural research in the areas of beekeeping and meliponiculture, in the form of publications, courses, videos, animations and web applications.
“The purpose of the solution is to assist the decision-making process of beekeepers based on access to relevant information that can promote improvements in management or overcome technological bottlenecks in the activity,” says Michell Costa, systems analyst from Embrapa Eastern Amazon.
Highlights of the new platform include:
- Digital Beekeeping Calendar, which provides information on the location of occurrence and flowering time of the plants most visited by bees in the Amazon region;
- Virtual meliponarium, which is a three-dimensional model of the nest structure, rearing boxes and bee morphology; and
- A service called “zapbee”, that uses artificial intelligence to provide answers to creators anytime, anywhere.
Click here and check out Infobee details that will help you review technological, economic and market services and information to learn about and adopt good beekeeping management practices.
