BEEREEPING & DEVELOPMENT 42
ADVANTAGES OF BEE HOUSES by
George MacRobert, Zimbabwe
ADVANTAGES @
in some areas it is
necessary to place metal grids over the bees’ entrance
Bee houses offer security against vandalism and theft of hives.
to keep out predators like
@ The hives are
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Bees appear to be more amenable to the beekeeper working with them,
especially during day light hours However one beekeeper remarked to me, “Have you seen what is going on outside the bee house while you are safe and secure inside?” in other words, if the bees become agitated their annoyance appears to be . directed towards the area outside the bee house, rather than inside.
honey badgers, rats and
GEORGE MACROBERT
»,
protected from the weather and therefore last longer.
mongooses
A bee house built of
blocks, and with window bars: good protection from thieves.
/
PRACTICAI BEEKEEPIN € )
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With a floor of compacted clay/sand mixture or concrete it is easy to control ants and termites.
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if portable (as shown below right) a prefabricated bee house can be taken down, moved and re-erected on another site.
DISADVANTAGES Bee houses are expensive.
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Unless the bee house is of the portable type it can only be used in one place. This means that forage must be available at all times or the beekeeper must take less honey or feed the bees with sugar syrup when forage is scarce.
This bee house 1S
built of brick
and plaster with a corrugated tin roof. It has
space for 12 hives.
»
GEORGE MACROBERT
@
A prefabricated bee house made of sheet metal.
Space for
14
A Bees for Development publication
GEORGE MACROBERT
A bee house built like a traditional conical, thatched hut. This bee house can accommodate eight top-bar hives or frame hives.
‘
GEORGE MACROBERT
hives.
SEVEN
