The breeding of the bee colony: the natural way

Today, almost any large bee apiary does not use natural methods of breeding bees. Such methods are outdated, they bring a lot of losses and hassle to beekeepers. Moreover, the causes and mechanism of bee swarming are still not studied in detail and raise many questions from specialists. In this article we will most reliably tell about the principles of swarming and breeding brood within the family, as well as how mating and hatching, cleaning and planting of the swarm occurs in the hive.

Breeding description

The reproduction of bees in a natural way, as it is laid by nature at the genetic level, occurs in two ways: through swarming and by growing brood within the family.

Swarming process implies the division of the family into two conditional parts, and, moreover, not always equal.One part flies away from their permanent place of residence, takes with them the old womb and is looking for a new haven where they could settle down and breed their offspring. The second part remains in the hive, where uterine eggs are laid. Soon, uterus will appear, most of which will also fly away with swarms. But one still remains and will bring new offspring.

Brood inside the family grown with the help of young worker bees. The fertilized uterus lays the larvae in the cells prepared by the bees. Drones grow from unfertilized eggs, and from fertilized - working bees and queen bees. When the uterus brings offspring, worker bees constantly feed it with royal jelly, which is distinguished by a high caloric value. In one day, the uterus is able to lay so many eggs that their weight will be equal to the weight of the uterus itself, precisely because it must consume a lot of milk.

Roy and his features

Roy-burs are created by combining several families into one. This is done, in most cases, during the exit of families on the main bribe. It is important not to connect swarms without prior preparation, since in 90% of cases hostility will begin, and all the connected bees may die. Then you have to empty the hives in order to prevent a catastrophe.

To prevent hostility from happening, each of the families should be sprayed with mint water (bees distinguish strangers by smell, because they have organs of smell, and if they all smell the same, then enmity will not begin). Also in the beekeeping literature it is mentioned that a hive can be divided into several sectors with the help of paper. Over time, the bees will start to make holes in the paper, slowly merge and not be hostile.

Swarm medoviki form by connecting several swarms, the mass of which does not exceed 1.5-2 kg. Honey cakes are obtained weighing up to 6 kg, and many beekeepers call them "heroic". Such honey swarms are strong and work much more energetically. Similar swarms are created in this way: several swarms are poured into the hive, a separating grid is placed (to catch drones and old queens), the bees are sprayed with mint water. When swarms start to fly out (often weighing no more than 2 kg) on ​​the same day, the beekeeper can form an energetic honey swarm, whose working bees will pay a lot of bribes.In addition, in the new family will not be drones, which wasted a lot of honey.

There is another sure way to create a honey swarm, which in the future will bring a lot of honey and will not dig. Such a manipulation can be recreated if you have a 20-frame hive with side gaps. When the family releases swarms, it is transferred to the lateral entryways and shielded from the vacated space.

A swarm is planted in the vacated squad, and over time, the flying bees begin to adjoin it. In the lateral compartment, the uterus actively lays eggs, but 10–14 days before the main bribe, the compartments are reunited again, leaving the best uterus. The resulting family will collect a lot more honey and do not dig.

Disadvantages of natural swarming

The natural reproduction of bee colonies, as compared with artificial, has several disadvantages:

• Artificial reproduction is always planned, as opposed to natural.Principles of swarming are still not fully understood. Bees can start digging at any time, and if this moment is missed, the apiary will collapse financially. In addition, bees swarm differently in different years, they can also spontaneously stop their swarming.
• With natural reproduction, the swarming process can be inhibited, respectively, the honey collection processes are slowed down. If the bee colonies are propagated by the methods of artificial brood, then the swarming process does not occur, and the insects continue to actively take bribes.
• The processes of swarming, that is, natural reproduction, occur spontaneously, and very often the least productive families breed. If we use the methods of artificial reproduction, then only the most productive bee colonies can be propagated.
• With artificial reproduction, it is possible to form layers of any given force, which is practically unacceptable during natural swarming. Moreover, artificial reproduction makes it possible, in advance and under normal conditions, to breed queen bees for new bee colonies.
• Bee farms, which are engaged only in artificial processes of breeding bees, can easily keep statistics of the honey collection of each family.When breeding bee colonies by natural methods, such frauds are difficult, because at any time families can split up or arrange landfill swarms.
• Workers in apiaries that reproduce bee colonies by artificial paths have more free time to study honey plants in the area and other works. This is because such processes are completely controlled. Natural reproduction can be unpredictable, and beekeepers should always be alert to watch out for the first swarm.

However, it should be noted that natural reproduction has not only disadvantages. There are positive aspects of such a dilution. The beekeepers of the Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Oryol Region often successfully breed bees using natural swarming methods. As they say, gone swarms can quickly and high-quality rebuild new cells, while their energy is directed straight to the constant collection of honey.

From the families that have passed, it is possible to form strong swarm honey that will bring a lot of honey, and quality ones. And the performance and statistical data of the beekeepers will not suffer at all, and, perhaps, on the contrary, they will improve.

Bee swarming

For catching bee swarms are used so-called "cats". "Cats" are peculiar swarm traps that lure scout bees. In these traps, swarm bee colonies find their new place of residence. Then, when the beekeeper discovers a swarm of bees in the actually established "cats", the family begins to be transported to the apiary.

They install such traps on tall old trees or on the slopes of mountains (in those places where, according to preliminary calculations, a swarm will be sent). "Cats" are made from old oak bark, linden or ash. Often they are made in the form of a cylinder, which inside has a cross. Crosses and the rest of the inside of the trap are lubricated with a special mixture to attract honey insects. This mixture is made on the basis of propolis, oil and old sushi.

How to use swarming bee colonies

As experience suggests, immediately after the swarming ends, united families begin to lay the queen cells, and the swarming processes are repeated. But this is not beneficial for beekeepers, and such processes should be prevented.

To do this, use this technique:

• The left swarm is caught and placed in the new hive, next to which the hive of the parent family should be located.
• Roy needs to give 2 frames with open brood, 2 honey and amber frames and a little honeycomb (honeycomb is added in the most optimal amounts, depending on the size of the swarming bee colony).
• After 3-5 days, the bees are already beginning to work actively, and the hive with the mother family can be removed, and a hive with the swarming family can be put in its place.
• When the gathering of bees occurs, from the hive it is necessary to select all the frames with young bees and brood. You need to leave only one frame with honeybird, mature brood and the best queen mother. All frames with young brood are placed in the swarm's nest, and the second building is placed.
• Next, the selected three frames are placed in a pre-prepared nucleus. When the uterus mates with the drone, the nucleus joins the swarm (the old uterus is previously removed).

If the swarming bee colonies create conditions according to the technology described above, then the resulting family will no longer dig. Moreover, all the bees from such a family will vigorously extract honey.

Mating queens

The mating of queens begins to occur 3-5 days after their transformation from a pupa into an adult insect. At first, the uterus makes one or more familiarization flights around the hives. Such flights can last from 5 to 20 minutes. They are necessary so that after mating the uterus can safely find its way home. During the period of the marriage act, it is not recommended to examine the hive of the uterus, otherwise it may not return.

Mating begins on a warm, windless day. At this point, the queen bee's reproductive system is already fully developed, and she is ready for the marriage act. You can learn about the beginning of the pairing process from the characteristic sounds of the drones. Sexual intercourse between the uterus and the drones occurs at a height of at least 3 meters, but there is no exact data, since so far no scientist has been able to observe the process of fertilization of the uterus. In the process of insemination of the queen bee take part from 5 to 20 drones, this method is called "polyandry".

Marriage starts in the period from 10 to 18 hours, it lasts from 20 minutes to several hours. As experienced beekeepers and scientists say, the queen flies with its drones far from its hives, where it tries to find drones from other families. However, at such a far distance, the Queen Bee flies surrounded by drones from her own family. During the flight, they protect the uterus from birds of prey and other dangers. If the uterus does not find other drones nearby, it can return to its hive and postpone the insemination process until the next flight. There may be several such sorties, and if drones from other families are not found, sexual intercourse will occur with their own males.

In the process of mating, the sexual organ of the drone remains in the genital tract of the uterus. The drone who gave away his organ remains to live for long, it only manages to deliver the uterus back to the place of residence (however, even this is not always possible). Now the uterus is fertilized, and in 3-5 days will begin to lay eggs.

The drones are no longer needed by either the beekeeper or the bee colony. If the owner of the bee farm does not destroy them, then the family of bees will do it for him. In nature, everything is quite harmonious: in the bee colony, everyone who does the work - feeds on honey, and who sits idle does not deserve nectar, and before wintering,and even earlier, will be expelled. The expelled drones settle for a while on the outer part of the hive, but eventually die.

Breeding bees in the hive

In the hive, bees reproduce sexually, and all the individuals that appear are sisters on the maternal line. Those insects that appear from fertilized eggs become queen bees or working bees. Drones appear from unfertilized eggs. The paternal line of bees is different, as it has been proven that the queen bee copulates with 5-10 drones from other apiaries during mating fly-outs. As a result of such matings, bees acquire different genetic material.

Each individual in the process of becoming goes through three main stages of development: egg - larva - pupa. The process of development of the individual inside the egg is the same for all types of individuals and takes three days (under optimal conditions, which are mostly observed by insects). Further development of the larvae will be different for queens, worker bees and drones.

In the active period of the life of the family, the uterus almost continuously lays eggs in the cells that are pre-polished by bees. To rest the uterus needs only 15-25 minutes.The process of active egg-laying can be disrupted only during periods of intensive honey harvest or when there is a shortage of protein food. When the uterus lays eggs, the breadwinners regularly feed it with royal jelly. The eggs laid by the uterus become vertically in the cells, but with time they begin to bend. After three days the egg is already in a horizontal position. In the hive, bees are constantly present, which care for their young offspring, since the uterus does not do this, because it purposefully lays eggs and eats high-calorie food. During the first three days, the bees deliver milk - larval feed to the cells with eggs. This milk is not only food, it is also able to activate the opening of the egg.

Further, with the beginning of the fourth day, there is a very interesting process in development. For the first three days, all the larvae were the same and did not differ in their belonging. On the fourth day the bees themselves decide who they will feed: drones, working bees or queens. In order for worker bees and drones to appear, a mixture of bee bread and honey is added to the cells with the larvae. Of those cells that will be sealed on the sixth day, worker bees will appear. If the cells were sealed on the seventh day, it means that the bees decided to bring out young drones. Sealing occurs with wax and pollen (the latter is designed for breathability). If the bees decide to take out a new uterus, then they preselect a suitable one-day larva. This happens when the family loses the old uterus, or when the old uterus becomes less fertile (it should be noted that the uterus, whose age exceeds 700 days, begin to lay a lot of drone eggs, which is not beneficial for the family).

The selected larva is fed royal jelly to five days of age. At this time, the bees expand its cell to the size of the queen cell. The food they feed on this larva contributes to some changes in morphogenesis. Thus, the larvae that are fed with royal jelly lose wax glands, little baskets on legs and a long proboscis in the process of development, but they acquire a well-developed system of genital organs.

Sometimes in the bee family is observed silent uterus change. Such a process occurs when the bees decide to replace the old uterus with a new one, or at the initial stage of the swarming process. In the first case, creation from 5 to 7 queen cells can be observed, in the second - from 10 to 20. Mother jails are often created far away from the center of the nest, since hostility can begin between the old uterus and the young.

A working bee in a sealed cell is for 12 days. The first quarter of this period is the process of pupation. The remaining three quarters of metamorphosis occurs, during which the larva loses the intermediate organs and acquires new, inherent in the adult.The drone larvae are in a sealed state for 14 days, 10 of which are separated into metamorphosis processes. The young queen bee develops in the mother liquor for 8 days. The day before its exit from the cell, the bees gnaw through part of the wax from the side of the larva's head. The rest of the uterus gnaw itself when it comes out of the mother liquor.

Any processes of the above described development of bees can occur only under certain optimal conditions. Violation of temperature, lack of food or lack of bee nurses in the hive leads to disruption of the development of the brood. In addition, morphological defects may be observed during development. Young bees that have just left the cells are still disabled, weakened and cannot sting. They have a characteristic pale gray color and slight pubescence.

Breeding bee colony

The reproduction of bee colonies by dividing them is observed during natural swarming. With swarming, bees are trying to expand their habitat, replace extinct families, or simply increase the number of existing families.

The first signs of the initial swarming process are the detuning of the pans and the withdrawal of drones. The tune-up of the bees by the bees will not always become the first signal of the onset of swarming, while the withdrawal of drones will mean the speedy process of departure of the conditional half of the family. Before the beginning of swarming, the feeding bees often begin to actively feed the uterus, so that it lays eggs, from which young uterus will soon appear. In such families, the process of collecting nectar and pollen is inhibited.

The first swarm often leaves after the first cells with larvae of uterus are sealed. Sometimes the process of leaving a group of bees can interfere with rain, strong wind or a cold snap. In any case, just before the swarm leaves, the nurse bees begin to feed the uterus less actively. At such rates, egg-laying processes are minimized, but, on the other hand, the uterus becomes smaller in size, and it will be easier for her to fly to a new place of residence. In addition, when the uterus lays less eggs, many bees lose their jobs and settle in the corners of the hive or hang on the front wall. Such bees are very strong, young and physiologically developed. It is they who will become the future "foundation" of the new family, and the speed and quality of the processes of honey collection and tune-up of new housing will depend on them.

In 90% of cases, the family begins to swarm in the morning, and you should expect departure before lunch. Roy-pervak very rarely comes after 14 hours, although this may depend on geographical predisposition and weather conditions. Just before the exit, all the bees fill the goats with honey for 1/4 of their weight.

Many may not believe it, but there is a frequent departure of swarms before the start of a thunderstorm. Bees feel atmospheric pressure, but they still try to leave their old hut. And together with them the uterus, which has not stretched its wings for a long time, is also trying to fly away. Sometimes the queen bee flies out of the hive, but very soon comes back. There can be many reasons for this: defects in the organs of the uterus itself, bad weather conditions, etc.Moreover, the return of the uterus can occur even when almost the entire swarm is already sheltered in a new place of residence. Still, such a swarm will return after the womb, and swarming will resume the next day.

But until it was resumed, the beekeepers could hear the queens "singing" all night. The old queen will shout down with new ones, now and then trying to destroy the young queens. But the bees will not allow her to do this, and on the next clear day the first swarm will fly away, taking the old queen with it.

Sometimes confusion may occur, and the swarm will take with it a young womb. The Pervak ​​swarm, which has flown away, settles on the nearest tall tree, and in the meantime, the reconnaissance bees are looking for a new place of residence, and as soon as they find it, they will perform a “dance” indicating the entire direction of flight.

The part of the family that remains in the old place of residence is now weakened, but has a sufficient amount of food. That is why she begins to actively multiply and create a new, large and full-fledged family. Soon the swarming will start again, and now the swarm will fly off. Swarm takes with her a young, still unfertilized and light uterus.Therefore, such a swarm can fly at any time and even in windy weather. To define it is simple: he often sits much higher than a swarm-pervak. After the second swarm can fly off the third and fourth. This happens as long as the bee colony does not "erode." It should be noted that with each subsequent swarm, fewer bees fly away.

When the family finishes the swarming process, in the hive all the young womb are destroyed, except for one. Soon she will get stronger, mate with the drones and start laying eggs - then the family will recover.

As you can see, the swarming processes are aimed at creating new bee colonies. Each swarm that has flown away after finding a new place of residence will also be actively propagated by the brood method within the family. The result: the increase in the number of bees and families per season by 3-5 times.

Conclusion of queen bees

In especially large apiaries, beekeepers try to replace the old queen with a new one every 1-2 years. In general, the life cycle of a queen bee can last 8-9 years. But the uterus, which is older than two years, is no longer so productive and lay little eggs. In addition, almost all eggs are drone. Very often, the bees themselves do the "quiet" upbringing of young queens, and then destroy the old one.

But the beekeeper must control all the queens in his apiary, and if he finds that some old queens are no longer suitable for laying eggs, then he must act immediately.

Many do not know how many days the queen bee hatch. Naturally, this process takes only 16 days.

The old and universal method of withdrawal of the uterus is the following trick: you need to damage the wing or leg of the old uterus, and then the bees will bring up a new queen, and the old will be destroyed on their own. Today, there are many artificial methods of breeding genetically pure and pedigree queens. Such methods are used to ensure that the uterine specimens are winter-hardy, productive, and resistant to many diseases.

Cleaning swarm

To speed up the process of settling the swarm, the bees in it are sprayed with water. The settled swarm is collected in a special rooevna. To collect insects, a trap tank is placed under them, and then the bees are shaken into a tank. All shake off will not succeed, therefore, the rest are collected with a ladle or just shake off through the deciduous branches. Bees who have not gone to the roev, will circle a little and will gather there.

Sometimes the bee family is difficult to collect. For example, in cases where they settle on a tree trunk. Then some beekeepers will smoke smoke. After all the bees are collected in the swarm, they are taken to a cool, dark place where they stand before landing in the hive.

There is one tricky way to clean a swarm, using which, you do not need to spend a lot of time and effort. To do this, when a swarm departs, catch the uterus that has appeared, plant it in a swarm, which should then be suspended on the nearest tall tree at a level of 3-4 meters. After a while, all the bees themselves will gather in roevna.

Landing swarm in the hive

Families with bees need to settle in the late evening or at night. If the swarm is placed in a hive during daylight, then there is a possibility that the swarm retracted, partially or wholly, will join the new flying bees and leave the apiary.

A captured swarm is placed in a new place of residence only after preliminary preparation. The hive is installed on a permanent place, which must necessarily be in the shade, since bees may fly away from a sunny place. When preparing the hive, an artificial design with honeycombs is installed in it. From the very edge of the nest, you need to install one frame with honey and perga, and closer to the center - one or two frames with rasplod. If the frames with brood are not installed, then there remains a high probability that the insects will leave the new place of residence, as they will have nothing to do.

In order for the swarm to be safely put in the hive, you need to use the store. If the insects do not enter the hive well, then a smoke screen can be used. After the entire swarm is in the hive, it must be covered. When it takes 24 hours after landing the swarm, the hives need to be inspected for mechanical damage to the artificial surface.

Caring for a family who let go of the swarm

Usually, when the Pervak ​​swarm leaves, there are still a few queen mothers in the family. Their eggs were not laid at the same time, so they will appear alternately.If the beekeeper does not remove all the eggs from the hive in time, then the family will swarm until exhaustion. Constantly will depart all new, but very weak, swarms. As a result, there will be practically no bees left in the family, it will be very weak.

In order to prevent exhaustion of the family, the uterus is removed. If the family was highly productive, such queen cells are not removed. They are attached to new families, to replace the old queens.

Breeding time

In the Nonchernozem belt of Russia, the first swarms begin to emerge already in mid-May. That's when the active breeding season begins. The uterus begins to lay eggs to further increase the family. The period of swarming lasts 2-5 weeks, depending on weather conditions, family viability, the presence of a bribe, etc.

Sometimes the process of swarming may be repeated in the fall, if in nature there will be bribes. However, such a process occurs extremely rarely, and almost never occurs in the Non-Chernozem zone.

In the more southern regions of Russia, the processes of swarming and reproduction can begin with the beginning of May.In the south of Russia and Ukraine, bees swarm up to the middle of the first bribe, moreover, the swarming can be repeated in the fall.

In Belarus, the swarming process starts at the end of May or at the beginning of June, depending on the region (the more north the apiary is, the later the swarming process will begin). But the first swarms for further reproduction do not always fly off exactly in time, since for such processes the corresponding reasons should be observed, which we spoke about above. In this article, we have described in some detail how bees reproduce in a natural way. And although today such breeding can rarely be seen in large apiaries, it is the natural instinct of each bee colony and is embedded in insects at the genetic level.