A Sustainable Approach for Replacing Winter Honey Bee Colony Losses Using Locally Produced Nucleus Bee Hives Overwintered in Polystyrene Boxes

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1 Wintering Nucs A Sustainable Approach for Replacing Winter Honey Bee Colony Losses Using Locally Produced Nucleus Bee Hives Overwintered in Polystyrene Boxes By Dr. Joseph Latshaw This project is funded by SARE (Project # FNC08-700). Research Problem The objective of this proposal is to develop a sustainable and self-sufficient method of replacing production honey bee colonies that die during the winter by using small polystyrene nucleus colonies (nucs) established during the prior season as replacements. For beekeepers in a northern climate, the most critical time of year for colony loss is during the winter. Honey bees are unable to leave the colony in search of resources for nearly five months of the year in the north (November through March). Each winter a percentage of full-size production colonies are lost due to disease, parasitic mites, or starvation. Average winter colony losses in the Ohio area range from 10% to 20%. However, heavier colony losses reaching nearly 70% have been reported in recent years (Ohio Department of Agriculture). Currently, the traditional colony replacement procedure is to purchase packages of honey bees from southern states. Purchasing packages of honey bees from southern states risks the potential introduction of Africanized Honey Bees and other honey bee diseases and pests. In addition, the cost of purchasing a package of honey bees in the spring ranges from $75 to $125. Starting a new colony with a package of bees requires time for the new colony to become established and build its population. Therefore, a package is generally unable to produce a large surplus of honey the first year because it is not strong enough to take advantage of the spring nectar flows in the area. My alternative approach to purchasing packages of bees includes establishing nucleus colonies during the early summer, overwintering the nucleus colonies, and then using them as replacements the following spring. Nucleus colonies, or nucs, are small, young colonies of honey bees established by making a divide from a strong production colony and providing a new queen to the nucleus colony. Nucleus colonies develop more quickly in the spring because they are established colonies with brood development well underway and are a locally produced resource Latshaw Apiaries LLC 6050 Harlem Road, New Albany, OH

2 Recently a U.S. manufacturer developed a lightweight polystyrene nucleus hive, and this product will likely make overwintering nucleus colonies more feasible. From personal experience, overwintering nucleus colonies in traditional wooden boxes resulted in 30% to 50% winter mortality. Polystyrene offers greater insulation than traditional wooden beehives, and therefore smaller colonies can be successfully overwintered in colder climates. Nucleus colonies will be established after the primary honey flow, giving each new colony a locally produced queen. Fewer resources are needed to establish nucleus colonies later in the season as warmer temperatures reduce the risk of chilling. As with traditional methods, newly established nucleus colonies will require supplemental feeding until they become established. Reducing the need to purchase packages of honey bees has several benefits. The risk of introducing Africanized Honey Bees and other diseases and pests is reduced. A sustainable and self-sufficient system is implemented and honey production is increased. There is also a market for locally produced nucleus colonies in the spring. Extra nucleus colonies may be sold to local beekeepers to replace their winter losses or to new beekeepers who wish to start a new hive. Research Solution A project recently funded by SARE for the South region entitled Promoting Sustainable Beekeeping Practices Through Local Production of Nucs (Nucleus Colonies) and Local Queen Honey Bees (Project # FS08-223) sought to explore the benefits of using locally produced queen bees and nucleus colonies. My proposal shares many fundamental principles; however, my region presents its own challenges that necessitate modifications for the timing of queen and nucleus production and the type of equipment used. The climate in Ohio results in a shorter season and consequently a shorter spring honey flow than many southern states. The ability to have overwintered nucleus colonies produced during the prior summer and available in the spring will present a distinct advantage over producing nucleus colonies from production colonies in the spring of the year for which they are needed. Funding and interest for the project listed above illustrates the need for developing regional and sustainable beekeeping practices. While Project # FS examined the use of locally produced nucleus colonies and queens, I hope to expand on their work by developing a system that is adapted to my region in the context of a production setting. Traditional beekeeping practices call for the production of nucleus colonies and queens in the spring; however, such practices divert labor and colony resources away from honey production during the spring of the year. My proposal seeks to modify the timing of nucleus and queen production by waiting until after the primary honey flow and then overwintering the nucleus hives to be used in production the following year. In addition, the use of a newly developed polystyrene nucleus hive will facilitate overwintering nucleus colonies in the colder climate Latshaw Apiaries LLC 6050 Harlem Road, New Albany, OH

3 Procedure Set-Up and Inspection June 23, 2009 Established nucleus colonies using one frame of brood and bees, one polystyrene nucleus, and four new assembled frames. Established the nucs at my home bee yard and drove them to their new bee yard. June 24, 2009 Returned to install one queen cell per nucleus colony. July 28, 2009 Returned to feed the colonies with three 5-gallon buckets of sugar syrup. Inspected nucleus colonies for presence of laying queen. Found six nucleus colonies were queen-less (new queen failed to mate). Installed six laying queens into the queen-less nucleus colonies. Figure 1. Positioning of the nucleus colonies (nucs). Feeding The nucleus colonies were fed almost weekly during the summer season and into the fall using sugar syrup. Approximately one quart was poured into each nuc for each feeding. Because the polystyrene nucs have a solid bottom, the bees were able to collect the syrup from the bottom of the nuc. Figure 2. Individual nucs Latshaw Apiaries LLC 6050 Harlem Road, New Albany, OH

4 Updates January 23, 2010: Inspection revealed that 36 of the original 40 nucs were still alive. One nuc appeared to be weak, but the bees looked healthy. March 18, 2010: Inspection revealed that 33 of the 36 nucs survived the winter and were progressing nicely. During this inspection, each nuc was fed approximately one quart of sugar syrup. Some nucs contained as few as two frames of bees, and others nearly filled the box. April 1, 2010: Inspection and feeding showed that young bees were beginning to emerge in larger numbers and some of the nucs needed to be transferred into a fullsize colony. Conclusions Overall, the Styrofoam nucs wintered more successfully than wooden nucs that I have been using the past several years. One of the initial concerns with using the Styrofoam nucs was the buildup of moisture in the bottom of the nucs. In talking with other beekeepers, the consensus seemed to be that the moisture resulted from condensation in the nucs. I did not find moisture buildup in the bottom of the Styrofoam nucs. In fact, the nucs stayed much dryer inside that many of the wooden nucs I use. Perhaps the moisture was due to the placement and angle of the entrance and ventilation holes? I have always used the practice of drilling ventilation holes at an angle so that when water runs down the face of the box, it does 2011 Latshaw Apiaries LLC 6050 Harlem Road, New Albany, OH

5 not travel back into the box. This same design was used when making the holes in the Styrofoam nucleus colonies. Given the success of the Styrofoam nucs, I plan to try them again and make accommodations for the overheating issues experienced during the summer season Latshaw Apiaries LLC 6050 Harlem Road, New Albany, OH