Key Techniques and Methods for Raising the Chinese Honey Bee (Chinese Bee)

The Chinese honey bee, also known as the Chinese bee, Chinese honeybee, or native bee, is a bee species unique to our country, widely distributed across more than 30 provinces in our country, and is widely kept in artificial culture because it is easy to raise and has high honey production. So, what breeding techniques are there for the Chinese honey bee? Let's take a look together!

I. Rearing Environment

The choice of rearing environment is the foundation for raising Chinese bees well, and effort must be put into the selection and control of two environments: first, the natural macro-environment, and second, the micro-environment of the hive.

1. Natural macro-environment

A Chinese bee breeding site should face south with its back to the north, be dry and well ventilated, free of standing water, warm in winter and cool in summer, and it is best to raise them in mountainous areas with sparse small trees or in mountain hollows with gently sloping woodland. Raise the hive half a meter off the ground, so that there is both ample sunlight and good drainage, shade, and ventilation.

2. Hive micro-environment

The hive micro-environment must be given particular attention and must not be neglected. First, the hive body used for raising Chinese bees must suit the needs of Chinese bees; using Langstroth hives meant for raising Western honey bees to raise Chinese bees is difficult. Also, the hive must be tight and seamless, and cracks must be repaired promptly to prevent robbing bees and the occurrence of diseases.

II. Proper Management

1. Selection of bee stock

Because Chinese bees have evolved naturally over a long period, many types have formed, with great differences in body size and colony strength, so species cannot be introduced casually. This is because Chinese bees are currently listed in our country's resource protection catalogue, and to ensure the distinctness of each Chinese bee type, random introduction that causes mixing is not permitted. Also, Chinese bees from different places have different specific characteristics; for example, the northern Chinese bee type has larger individuals and larger colonies, is cold-tolerant and heat-sensitive, and when it encounters the high-temperature, high-humidity climate of summer in the south, its colony strength declines extremely quickly, and it may even fail to pass through the summer. In addition, introducing species from other places may also cause infection with colony diseases. Therefore, it is best to select and breed bee stock locally.

2. Management of the queen bee

In Chinese bee rearing, a new queen bee is certainly better than an old queen bee. If there are sufficient drones, it is best to replace the queen twice a year, and at least once a year. After replacing with a new queen, the new queen has strong egg-laying ability, the offspring have strong disease resistance, and the breeding scale will also increase.

3. Colony temperature regulation management

A colony with bees matching the comb or slightly more bees than comb is conducive to the colony's temperature regulation and keeps the temperature inside the hive basically constant. This is the primary management measure, not only helping to ensure the feeding of larvae, but also helping the colony's cleaning, guarding, and disease prevention.

As for the question of whether the colony needs insulation in winter: the prerequisite for a colony to overwinter safely is having overwintering bees of the right age and sufficient feed. When the temperature is below 5 degrees, dry the rice straw in the sun, shake it out, cut it to the inner diameter length of the hive, tie it into small straw bundles, tighten the combs so the bees are dense (more bees than comb), and fill the straw bundles outside the divider board, filling it completely. As the temperature rises and the colony reproduces, the straw bundles can gradually be removed.

4. Feed management of the colony

Feed management is divided into two aspects: management of sugar feed (feed honey) and management of pollen.

① Sugar feed management

At all times leave enough good-quality sugar feed. Sugar feed is honey, and it is capped honey. Only when bees eat honey can they develop well, have a strong constitution, and live long. You can choose low-priced honey to feed the bees, which lowers costs while still allowing the bees to grow well.

② Pollen feed management

Compared with other bee species, Chinese bees are not strong at collecting pollen, and the colony is basically in a pollen-deficient state. This is the fundamental reason why the colony reproduces slowly during the breeding season. Therefore, feeding pollen to Chinese bee colonies is an important management technique. Pollen feeding should begin at the start of the colony's breeding period; when the bees bring back scattered pollen, feed continuously, and feed enough in one go. If in the south, feed once more at the start of the breeding period, which ensures both reproduction and production without compromise. The pollen feeding method is: mix the pollen into a paste, place it on the top bars, placing an amount that the colony can move entirely into the brood cells in 2 days, and feed continuously until enough.

III. Moderate Production

The correct way to produce honey is: wait until the honey on the comb is capped and ripe before harvesting it. Only honey harvested this way is high-quality honey; not only does it sell at a high price and be in short supply, but it also ensures the bees have high-quality feed. Each time you harvest honey, appropriately leave part unharvested, to prevent sudden weather changes leaving the colony short of feed in the hive. Before the flowering period ends, harvest honey for the last time depending on the situation: if there is much honey, harvest part of it on the basis of leaving enough sugar feed; if there is not enough honey, do not harvest it and also supplement sugar feed.

The above are the breeding methods for the Chinese honey bee. I hope they can help everyone!