Hello All,
I'm a 4-hive hobbyist making the leap to a "serious sideline" venture. This one may be over my head, but maybe worth a shot. A friend has has a U-Pick blueberry operation and is interested in honeybee pollination. Would I be crazy buying some nucs to put some hives together for this spring in time for pollination? Live in north-central NY. He has about 1200 blueberry bushes. Not sure of total acreage. I have plenty of equipment, it's just a matter of bees. I'm not sure when he needs the bees. So;
1) If I can find out the expected bloom dates of these blueberries, when do I need to have the hives there and how long should I leave them there?
2) I can get nucs mid to late May. How much time do you think it would take a 5 frame nuc to be usable as a pollination hive?
3) Any rough guidelines on the number of hives needed per acre or number of bushes?
Thanks in advance,
Steve
I'm a 4-hive hobbyist making the leap to a "serious sideline" venture. This one may be over my head, but maybe worth a shot. A friend has has a U-Pick blueberry operation and is interested in honeybee pollination. Would I be crazy buying some nucs to put some hives together for this spring in time for pollination? Live in north-central NY. He has about 1200 blueberry bushes. Not sure of total acreage. I have plenty of equipment, it's just a matter of bees. I'm not sure when he needs the bees. So;
1) If I can find out the expected bloom dates of these blueberries, when do I need to have the hives there and how long should I leave them there?
2) I can get nucs mid to late May. How much time do you think it would take a 5 frame nuc to be usable as a pollination hive?
3) Any rough guidelines on the number of hives needed per acre or number of bushes?
Thanks in advance,
Steve