Although apiculture is extremely fascinating to most people who have a
taste for the study of nature, requiring, as it does, out-of-door life,
with enough exercise to be of benefit to one whose main occupation is
sedentary, the income to be derived from it when rightly followed is a
consideration which generally has some weight and is often the chief
factor in leading one to undertake the care of bees. Certainly, where
large apiaries are planned, the prime object is the material profit,
for they require much hard labor and great watchfulness, and the
performance of the work at stated times is imperative, so that in this
case there is less opportunity than where but a few colonies are kept
to make a leisurely study of the natural history and habits of these
interesting insects, because--unless the keeper is willing to forego
a considerable portion of his profits--his time must necessarily be
almost wholly taken up in attending to the most apparent wants of his
charges.
One very naturally supposes that the return from a single hive, or
several of them, in a given locality, may be taken as a fair index
of what may be expected each season. Such return, if considered
average, may serve as a basis on which to reckon, but as so many
conditions influence it, great differences in actual results-will
be found to occur in successive seasons. Apiculture, like all other
branches of agriculture, depends largely upon the natural resources
of the location, and the favorableness or unfavorableness of any
particular season, no matter how skillful the management, may make
great differences in the year's return. The knowledge, skill, industry,
and promptness of the one who undertakes the care of the apiary have
likewise much to do with the return. Furthermore, profits are of course
largely affected by the nature and proximity of the markets.
A moderate estimate for a fairly good locality would be 35 to 40
pounds of extracted honey or 25 pounds of comb honey per colony. This
presupposes good wintering and an average season. When two or more of
the important honey-yielding plants are present in abundance and are
fairly supplemented by minor miscellaneous honey plants the locality
may be considered excellent, and an expectation of realizing more than
the yield mentioned above may be entertained. With extracted honey of
good quality at its present wholesale price of 6 to 8 cents per pound
and comb honey at 12 to 14 cents, each hive should under favorable
circumstances give a gross annual return of $2.50 to $3. From this
about one-third is to be deducted to cover expenses other than the
item of labor. These will include the purchase of comb foundation and
sections, repairs, eventual replacing of hives and implements, and
the interest on the capital invested. By locating in some section
particularly favorable to apiculture--that is, near large linden
forests, with clover fields within range, supplemented by buckwheat;
or in a section where alfalfa is raised for seed; where mesquite,
California sages, and wild buckwheat abound; where mangrove, palmettos,
and titi, or where sourwood, tulip tree, and asters are plentiful--the
net profits here indicated may frequently be doubled or trebled.
But these favored locations, like all others, are also subject to
reverses--the result of droughts, great wet, freezes which kill back
the bee pasturage, etc., and though some years the profits are so much
larger than those named above as to lend a very roseate hue to the
outlook for the accumulation of wealth on the part of anyone who can
possess himself of a hundred or two colonies of bees, the beginner will
do well to proceed cautiously, bearing in mind that much experience
is necessary to enable him to turn to the best account seasons below
the average, while during poor seasons it will take considerable under
standing of the subject, energetic action, and some sacrifice to tide
over, without disaster, or at least without such great discouragement
as to cause neglect and loss of faith in the business. On the whole,
there should be expected from the raising of bees for any purpose
whatever only fair pay for one's time, good interest on the money
invested, and a sufficient margin to cover contingencies. With no
greater expectations from it than this, and where intelligence directs
the work, apiculture will be found, in the long run, to rank among the
best and safest of rural industries.
The value of bees in the pollination of various fruit and seed crops
is often sufficient reason to warrant the keeping of a small apiary,
even if circumstances do not favor its management in such a manner
as to secure the largest possible crops of honey or to insure the
saving of all swarms. The quality and quantity of many varieties of
apples, pears, plums, and small fruits depend absolutely upon complete
cross-pollination. The most active agents in this work are honey bees.