View Full Version : Apple orchard in NY questions
What is the acres/ hive ratio?
How strong the hive?
$/ hive?
Thanx,
Aram
Brent Bean
08-16-2009, 01:29 PM
Try this link http://www.beeculture.com/content/pollination_handbook/index.cfm
wildbranch2007
08-16-2009, 05:22 PM
depends on what you can work out with the orchard/how they spray. I worked out a deal with two orchards, I put in 1/2 the number of hives that he normally brought in the first year, left them permananetly, if he was satisfied with the pollination he paid me what he normally paid. I put in only three deep brood chambers, the hives never left the orchard again. as the price for polination went up I left my price below what they were charging, I made money and he saved money. and on top of that he retailed my honey.
the key is how they spray, both orchards used imidan and sprayed after dark, and I conviced them to mow the weeds/grass b/4 spraying and never had a problem.
mike
I'm thinking:
1 hive/acre
3-4 frames of brood. 8-10 bars of drawn foundation covered with bees.
$40/hive
3-4 weeks to cover the bloom but be out before any spraying.
Is this in the ball park?
wildbranch2007
08-18-2009, 05:43 AM
price depends on the size of the orchards. the big guys want to put down lots of bees so my partner sticks with the small orchards and charges a higher fee. I'll ask him how much he charged this year but If i remember it was around 85 dollars last year but he is doing less than 10 hives per orchard.
mike