TECHNOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC OPTIMIZATION OF HONEYBEE (Apis mellifera L.) COLONY PRODUCTION

Due to the increased honeybee colony losses, the demands for honeybee colonies are growing annually. To regain the lost colonies or to increase the apiary size, the beekeepers need to purchase the new colonies or to prepare the new ones during the season. The aim of this study was to investigate the technological and economic efficiency of the three different methods of honeybee colony production, deploying one, two, or four combs of capped brood with the adhering bees and a mated queen. The study was conducted in northeastern Croatia from May 2019 to April 2020. At the end of the first season, there were no significant differences between the groups in the number of combs occupied with the brood and the bees. The production of colonies with one brood comb provides the beekeeper with an opportunity to multiply more colonies, while the colonies established using four brood combs during an early season produced honey during the main summer nectar flow. All three methods of colony production have scored a positive economic result and have demonstrated positive profitability rates.