Bustling honey making season

From early morning, Mr. Pham Hong Thuy in Hamlet 1, Cao Son Commune, Anh Son District checks each beehive he raises. The beehive must be regularly monitored and cared for properly.from observing the movement of the bees, then separating the beehive, separating the swarm if the bees are “in large numbers”, to harvesting honey on the right day. This year, there are many flowers blooming so there are beehives that are already closed with honey even though they were harvested 6 days before.

Mr. Pham Hong Thuy - Hamlet 1, Cao Son Commune, Anh Son District is checking a bee bridge. Photo: Ngoc Phuong

BeekeepingAlthough busy, but compensate for the income is quite good. Mr. Thuy is a war invalid infected with Agent Orange, after retirement he started raising bees. Up to now he has mastered the profession. Currently he raises over 100 bee colonies, each year he sells 500 kg of honey, each kg of honey costs 150 thousand VND, not to mention selling bee seeds earns hundreds of millions of VND.

However, to get good quality honey, beekeeping requires hard work. Beekeepers must move bee colonies to areas with lots of flowers for the bees to collect nectar.

Beekeeping requires diligence and passion. Photo: Ngoc Phuong

Mr. Nguyen Van Hung in Dang Son commune, Do Luong district, a migrant beekeeper, said: "After returning from the army, I started raising bees. Because the land in Dang Son - Do Luong commune is narrow and the population is large, I often have to take the bees to Bac Son, Nam Son, Giang Son Dong communes... to raise them, because there are many flowers here."

Beekeeping depends on the blooming season, so there are many types of honey such as: honey from lychee flowers, longan flowers, eucalyptus, grass flowers, squash... In March and early April 2021, longan and lychee flowers bloom densely, covering the entire canopy of the tree, so bees can freely collect nectar. Thanks to that, on average, each bee colony can collect 1 liter of honey at a time.

Mr. Nguyen Van Dung is one of the "experts" in beekeeping in Do Luong. Photo: Ngoc Phuong

When working at the beehive, to avoid being stung by bees, beekeepers are equipped with some special tools such as a hat with a mesh cover from the brim down to cover the face and neck, and a smoke spray. When the smoke is sprayed out, the bees will not sting the person.

According to Mr. Nguyen Van Dung in Dang Son commune - one of the "experts" in beekeeping, beekeeping requires a firm grasp of techniques, the most difficult step is creating queen bees. "Beekeeping requires practical learning, hands-on instruction like learning to drive a car…!", Mr. Dung happily said.

Queen bees are created by people who have mastered beekeeping techniques for many years. Photo by Ngoc Phuong

As for the queen bee creation process, it is a very elaborate step for beekeepers. Beekeepers use an aluminum needle or a small goose feather to insert into the back of the larvae, trying to get the royal jelly so that the larvae are not damaged. Then gently place the needle into the drop of honey, the larvae will float up, gently pull out the needle and continue to scoop up other larvae.

Choosing 1-day-old larvae to create queens is best. If the nest is newly built, be careful when moving the larvae because the needle tip can easily puncture the bottom of the nest hole. If the nest cake is too old, the nest hole will be narrow and difficult to scoop the larvae. When moving the larvae, it must be done quickly and in a sheltered place, in warm weather, avoiding sunlight that will dry the larvae when handling. After moving the larvae, turn the wax cups downwards and place them in the middle of the prepared breeding colony.

Beehive production in Do Luong. Photo by Ngoc Phuong

24 - 48 hours before migrating, take the queen bee out of the colony, shake off some of the brood cells so that the bees can cling to the remaining cells. At the same time, 2 - 3 hours before migrating, spread the 2 cells in the middle of the colony about 3cm apart to create a gap so that young bees will gather in that area, they will quickly receive and feed the larvae.

Currently, in Nghe An, there are thousands of people raising bees for honey, and in Do Luong district alone, there are over 600 households raising bees. Thanks to their good beekeeping skills, some households have become “masters” in the beekeeping profession, specializing in providing queen bees, beehives, beehives, etc. to those who have only kept bees for a few years.

Beekeepers in Yen Thanh buy beehives to multiply their colonies. Photo: Ngoc Phuong

Diligence and passion are two factors that beekeepers always have. The joy of a beekeeper is nothing more than pulling a beehive out of a hive with a heavy hand because of the thick honey. The joy of a beekeeper is the thick golden honey after each honey extraction...

Honey products in Do Luong are chosen by many consumers. Photo: Ngoc Phuong

Golden honey product. Photo by Ngoc Phuong

Beekeeping has brought in a good income for many households in Nghe An, while also creating clean, delicious, nutritious products for sale on the market.