Effectiveness of using different types of nuclei and methods of replanting queen bees in bags
Abstract
In Ukraine, among other industries, beekeeping occupies an important place. This fact is facilitated by the developed agricultural direction of the country and the high percentage of cultivation of entomophilic crops. However, despite the broad prospects for development and transition to an industrial basis, the beekeeping industry of Ukraine is represented, in the vast majority, by relatively small farms. One of the reasons for the low development of industrial honey production in Ukraine is the high costs of organizing an industrial apiary, which include the purchase of modern equipment for quick and efficient opening of frames, special equipment for pumping honey, the construction of separate premises for the honey pumping workshop, as well as the constant updating of equipment, such as new hives and frames, and the purchase of breeding queens. Another significant problem is the death of bee colonies due to a variety of diseases, including Varroa mite infestation. The use of pesticides to combat diseases and pests of agricultural plants and forest lands contributes to its negative share. An effective and cost-effective way to expand and increase the productivity of the apiary is the formation of bee packages using high-quality breeding queens. The use of early fertile queens makes it possible to form a strong full-fledged family and make full use of the honey collection this year. The effectiveness of the use of different types of nuclei and methods of replanting fertile queen bees in the formation of bee packages was checked. The study was carried out on bees of the Ukrainian steppe breed. The best results in terms of the percentage of fertile queens and the cost of queens per fertile were obtained using a full-size nucleus for 3 standard frames in a 16-frame bed. However, the same method required a larger number (10 times) of worker bees compared to the micronucleus. With traditional replanting using the Titov cage, the share of accepted queen bees is 90 %, and the maximum rate of reception of queen bees in packages is recorded when using the fourth method of transplantation. So, when transferring a queen with a frame of printed brood and young worker bees, the relative proportion of accepted queen bees was 98 %. Therefore, the traditional method can be considered optimal in terms of indicators: reception, manufacturability, costs.
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