Hot News

1.22.2008

By SEAN CLOUGHERTY
Associate Editor

HARRINGTON, Del. — By getting “bee smart,” vegetable growers can get more out of the honeybee colonies they rent for a more productive crop.
During the pollination session at Delaware Ag Week, Bill Troup, a Maryland master beekeeper and apiary inspector for the Maryland Department of Agriculture, gave tips to growers to maximize pollination.
“You need to be ‘bee smart,’” Troup said. “I didn’t say you had to be a beekeeper, but it does help to know more about pollination.”
Troup said the days of relying on feral honeybee colonies are virtually over. Nearly all of them have died off or been captured by beekeepers long ago. Native pollinators are effective, he added, but as the field size and the farm operation grows, more focus should be put on pollination from honeybees.
Some of the pollination crops widely grown on Delmarva — seedless watermelon, cantaloupes and squash — are some of the most difficult for honey bees to pollinate because of the length of the plant’s flower and the number of bees needed to travel over the crop.
Troup said in general, having one colony for every acre of crop is “essential” for sufficient pollination, but two to three colonies per acre is a “desirable” ratio.
When it comes to colony strength, bigger is not always better, Troup said. The number of frames used to manage a colony varies by beekeeper, and some use less to manage the same amount of bees.
If growers doubt the colonies they are renting are not as large as they should be, Troup said to have another beekeeper or apiary inspector come out for an independent look. He said to also call the beekeeper who owns the hives and allow him to be present for the inspection.
“It’s his personal property. You are renting them, but it’s not your privilege to go digging in there,” Troup said. “Extend him that courtesy.”
Troup also told growers to consider what they or their neighbor are planting near the vegetable crop. Lima beans, soy beans and sunflowers are three crops that “rob” honey bees because they prefer foraging in them to some vegetable crops.
Troup told growers to think about where their bees are placed in the field and if there is a better place where the bees could have more access the field. He said if all the colonies for that field are only in one corner, some parts of the field could be suffering.
“Would you want to walk from one end of a 100-acre field to gather all your food for the day?” Troup asked the group. He added that most beekeepers will be able to suggest places that will be best for the bees. And when the beekeeper moves the colonies to the next crop, they should be at least a mile away from where they were last or they will return to the previous spot and then fly off when they find no colony.
Troup said the beekeeper should be aware of this, but it’s good for growers to be aware of it as well.
Bob Mitchell, Delaware apiary inspector, said later during the session that the range honey bees will travel to get nectar is about 1,200 feet from the hive.
“If it’s over 1,200 feet, forget it. Write them off. They’re not effective anymore,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell also said to tell pesticide applicators, crop consultants and farm workers where the colonies are in the field and to try to apply chemicals as late in the day as possible when the bees are less active.
Troup and Mitchell told growers to consider developing a written contract with their beekeeper that clearly spells out the colony rental to reduce the incidence of a conflict.