Bee Keeping
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frank lee bent
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Re: Bee Keeping
same here. they can keep it!
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Prairieoyster
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Re: Bee Keeping
Very Interesting post.
I thought about beekeeping in Cambodia a few years ago as I have worked on a large honey operation western Canada.It looked like a natural thing too do as Vietnam is world player in the market.
I was wondering where the bees would get a consistent supply of pollen. In Manitoba where I was working we were surround by 1000's of acres of Canola which made great consistent honey, although only 1 crop a year but it was big one. We used to get 200-300 kgs per hive and we had 500 hives spread around the country side in " bee yards". The person I worked with had done some beekeeping in NZ ona exchange program and said there the main source of pollen was Acacia trees but he also said he didn't like the taste. I got the impression that the beekeepers in Vietnam had to move their hives around.
Hives that are producing lots of honey are very healthy. I was wondering if you have the same diseases here as in the west.In Canada we used to spend 4 months getting the hives healthy and strong after a long winter in the dark. The person I worked for was also a queen breeder and he used to breed an aggressive strain for the forest areas so they could better defend themselves against bears and skunks.
cheers
P0
I thought about beekeeping in Cambodia a few years ago as I have worked on a large honey operation western Canada.It looked like a natural thing too do as Vietnam is world player in the market.
I was wondering where the bees would get a consistent supply of pollen. In Manitoba where I was working we were surround by 1000's of acres of Canola which made great consistent honey, although only 1 crop a year but it was big one. We used to get 200-300 kgs per hive and we had 500 hives spread around the country side in " bee yards". The person I worked with had done some beekeeping in NZ ona exchange program and said there the main source of pollen was Acacia trees but he also said he didn't like the taste. I got the impression that the beekeepers in Vietnam had to move their hives around.
Hives that are producing lots of honey are very healthy. I was wondering if you have the same diseases here as in the west.In Canada we used to spend 4 months getting the hives healthy and strong after a long winter in the dark. The person I worked for was also a queen breeder and he used to breed an aggressive strain for the forest areas so they could better defend themselves against bears and skunks.
cheers
P0
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frank lee bent
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Re: Bee Keeping
enviable production! here maybe 50- 80 kg/year tops if you move them.
beekeeping here is less than 2 years old- now there is a source of equipment and bees in country so it is booming.
local management is ridiculously flawed- extract unripe honey, brood and all!
lotus is a great source of pollen, but no nectar. right now it is dearth, and i am feeding syrup and tea pollen at $15/kg mixed with soy flour at 70%.
my focus is queen rearing and nuc production so i HAVE to feed right now.
a friend is getting copious pollen from the forest at kirivong and trapping it out.
ants and varroa are the main problems.
beekeeping here is less than 2 years old- now there is a source of equipment and bees in country so it is booming.
local management is ridiculously flawed- extract unripe honey, brood and all!
lotus is a great source of pollen, but no nectar. right now it is dearth, and i am feeding syrup and tea pollen at $15/kg mixed with soy flour at 70%.
my focus is queen rearing and nuc production so i HAVE to feed right now.
a friend is getting copious pollen from the forest at kirivong and trapping it out.
ants and varroa are the main problems.
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tightenupvolume1
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Re: Bee Keeping
a blast from the past.
charlie
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cautious colin
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Re: Bee Keeping
I seem to have acquired a large bee colony which have set up home on my balcony.
Does anybody:
a) want to take them off my hands!
b) know of somebody that can deal with them properly. I obviously don't want them harmed but would quite like it if they found somewhere else to set up shop.
They have actually attached themselves to my window which I am sure would look fantastic to be able to see directly into the hive but I would rather not have to wait that long.
Does anybody:
a) want to take them off my hands!
b) know of somebody that can deal with them properly. I obviously don't want them harmed but would quite like it if they found somewhere else to set up shop.
They have actually attached themselves to my window which I am sure would look fantastic to be able to see directly into the hive but I would rather not have to wait that long.
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frank lee bent
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Re: Bee Keeping
99% likely they are native bees which are not really amenable to keeping in a box.
but lots of khmers will be happy to take it.
but lots of khmers will be happy to take it.
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cautious colin
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Re: Bee Keeping
OK, thanks anyway Frank
Re: Help Tammy Durand Pomroy Feed Starving Children in Siem Reap
Frank is your project self funded, or have you got outside help?frank lee bent wrote: ↑Thu Mar 09, 2017 8:34 pm well i may give the training component free to bonafide card carrying poor people. there is a thing called a poverty card here- it proves the beneficiary is living in poverty in a legal sense of proof.
the physical materials and livestock can't be conjured up from thin air though. it would be a little useless to do the course without any way of entering the industry.
i have had a few emails from ngo's who seem interested.
they all have tried this kind of stuff before in the form of - here is your chicken now get on with it.
they know this does not work and they also know that the academics tey draw their staff from do not have real world experience implementing these projects.
i have 15 years experience of tropical bee keeping.
beekeeping is an industry that is rapidly developing in cambodia and has been very successful in vietnam.
like anything else, if people have no skin in the game they wil just hold their hand out for further donations.
so if this is put into a solid business model, with extension services as required in any agricultural industry it may succeed or it may fail.
the prospect of failure does not paralyse me- i have been failing all my life, and sometimes have success too.
it has certainly been successful in parts of africa.
but then, they mostly did not liquidate an entire generation of their educated people like here.
Always "hope" but never "expect".
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frank lee bent
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Re: Help Tammy Durand Pomroy Feed Starving Children in Siem Reap
I engage in beekeeping as my own business, and I am helping CHOICE with training and source equipment and stock on a pro bono/ at cost basis.
they have put some money of their own into bees from a donor who lives here. this has to be repaid by the cooperative members on a no interest loan salary deduction basis. those beehives are their personal property.
in other words they have equity in those particular beehives. plenty of exposure to risk too.
choice as an organization also has some beehives held in common for current and future members wherein they ( choice ) have sole equity.
When livestock increases to an agreed level- the equity of the cooperative will be shared with members- like a dividend.
they started with 6 hives 5 weeks ago and have 9 now from splitting strong hives that were preparing to swarm.
the individual shareholders have also each made a successful split in this time. 3 hives at start, now 6 in 9 weeks.
i started with 14 hives in late April and made splits, purchased an additional 7 hives and have something over 40 now, 21 of which are for September 9 delivery from an order 6 weeks ago.
April until October is the off season for honey, so i have had to feed them liberally on sugar syrup and pollen supplement in order to make new colonies.
they have put some money of their own into bees from a donor who lives here. this has to be repaid by the cooperative members on a no interest loan salary deduction basis. those beehives are their personal property.
in other words they have equity in those particular beehives. plenty of exposure to risk too.
choice as an organization also has some beehives held in common for current and future members wherein they ( choice ) have sole equity.
When livestock increases to an agreed level- the equity of the cooperative will be shared with members- like a dividend.
they started with 6 hives 5 weeks ago and have 9 now from splitting strong hives that were preparing to swarm.
the individual shareholders have also each made a successful split in this time. 3 hives at start, now 6 in 9 weeks.
i started with 14 hives in late April and made splits, purchased an additional 7 hives and have something over 40 now, 21 of which are for September 9 delivery from an order 6 weeks ago.
April until October is the off season for honey, so i have had to feed them liberally on sugar syrup and pollen supplement in order to make new colonies.
Re: Bee Keeping
All sounds very good Frank, I agree it is good to pass on skills so people here can diversify. Who are CHOICE? Where are they based.
Always "hope" but never "expect".
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