Beekeeping for Beginners. How You Can Start a Small Business
Romanian climate and vegetation are very good for bee culture: there are a variety of nectarios plants, linden and black locust forests, orchards and sunflower fields on large areas. Also the price of good quality honey and other bee products makes this activity very tempting. Here are some key facts about beekeeping for beginners.
Bee culture can be initiated as a secondary occupation or hobby, with a small number of hives and a lot of instruction from an experienced beekeeper. The work isn’t difficult, but it involves strictly observing certain rules to avoid any accidents.
In the countryside, beekeeping is a good activity to practice alongside growing clover or fruit trees, obtaining better harvests from those plants, up to five times larger even.
Beekeeping for beginners. Costs involved
One of the youngest beekeepers in Romania, Alexandru Nicoara, from Moreni, Dambovita, got to be the owner of 180 hives by the age of 27.
He says that, theoretically, you can start bee culture with less than 150 dollars, as a hive with everything costs around 50 dollars and the price of a family of bees (a few thousand bees and a queen) starts from 100 dollars.
But a beginner beekeeper should also have the following on his shopping list.
Pe lista de cumparaturi a apicultorului incepator se mai afla insa si:
- overalls: 35 dollars
- leather gloves: 6 dollars
- bee smoker: 15 dollars
- pollen trap: 5 – 7 dollars
- honey extractor: around 300 dollars
- honey stainless steel container: around 200 dollars (80 gallons)
Beekeeping for beginners. Benefits
The honey that can be harvested from one hive is around 90 – 100 pounds in a pretty good year. This can go up to 175 – 200 pounds in a very good year, but may drop to 20 – 30 pounds in a bad year.
Besides honey, a beekeeper can also earn from other apiculture products, as follows: pollen (9.5 – 12 dollars/kilo), propolis (70 dollars/kilo), royal jelly (145 dollars/kilo).
Credits: agrointel.ro, cresterea-albinelor-incepatori.blogspot.ro
Photo credits: stiriagricole.ro, alcedoltd.ro, agrointel.ro, lectiiapicultura.ro
