Beekeeping in the Leningrad region: features

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

There are many varieties of bees today. Some breeds bred by breeders can be bred even in areas with the most adverse climatic conditions. With the right selection of the type of insects and the observance of all the required technologies by the beekeeper, the apiary can become a very profitable business even in such an unfavorable weather region as, for example, the Leningrad Region.

The main difficulties of keeping apiaries

Beekeeping in the Leningrad region is a risky type of management, primarily because here:

• unstable weather prevails;
• frequent thaws occur in winter;
• spring is cold.

The flightless period for bees in the region usually lasts from the end of September until the last ten days of April. In October, insects have the opportunity to collect nectar only in rare years.

Beekeepers of the Leningrad region are not only experiencing difficulties due to unfavorable weather conditions. Almost allbee farms in this region are unfortunately infected with varroa.

It is believed that the most suitable for organizing apiaries in the Leningrad region are the southwestern regions and Gatchina. However, even here, the maintenance of a farm of such specialization is associated with all sorts of risks.

Beekeeping in the Leningrad region: breeds

Thus, the climate in this region for the organization of apiaries, unfortunately, is not very favorable. Therefore, beekeepers in this region can get enough honey to cover their expenses mainly if they keep the most hardy species of insects. Most often, bees are bred in the Leningrad region:

• Middle Russian;
• gray mountain Caucasian.

It is believed that an apiary in the Leningrad region can become the most profitable when an amateur or a professional chooses one of these two breeds of bees. However, such varieties of insects as the Carpathian and Karnika are also considered quite promising for breeding in this region. Many beekeepers in the region breed these bees.

Apiaries on wheels

In the Leningrad region, as in many other regions of Russia, there is also a legal society of beekeepers. Its chairman is A. Dmitriev. According to this experienced beekeeper, beekeeping farms on wheels are the most promising for the region. For their organization, in addition to the main equipment, a smallvan. Further, several hives are installed in the body of the latter. The roaming of such an apiary in the region, in order to obtain the desired effect, should continue from June 20 to July 25, that is, during the main period of honey collection.

According to Dmitriev, such an organization of farms will make beekeeping in the Leningrad region much more profitable. Transportation of hives in the summer, in his opinion, can lead to an increase in the productivity of each family up to 60 kg. Especially expedient migration can be in cold and damp years.

Beekeeping in Russia has recently been developing quite intensively. And similar apiaries on wheels already exist in many regions of the country. According to Dmitriev, this technique is very suitable for the Leningrad region. The most promising, in his opinion, for the organization of mobile apiaries are the Luga, Boksitogorsk, Vsevolzhsky and Tikhvin districts of the region.

Statistics

The average honey harvest in the Leningrad region is about 11-27 kg per year. However, in some well-organized farms, this figure can reach up to 157 kg per family in a good summer. In total, in 2013, there were about 33,525 hives in the region, according to statistics. About 3 thousand amateur beekeepers were actually engaged in beekeeping.

Product quality

Beekeeping in the Leningrad region, therefore, is quite a risky business. However, the actual honey from this region is highly valued by consumers. It is believed that in terms of taste, itoften vastly superior to products from many other parts of the country. Also, the advantage of honey sold by Leningrad beekeepers, according to consumers, is its diversity. There are a huge number of varieties of honey plants in this area. At the same time, there are practically no plantings of genetically modified crops in the region. The fields here are dominated by forbs. Therefore, local beekeepers sell a lot of types of environmentally friendly, he althy honey.