If you are getting started as a beekeeper, the first and foremost thing that you need to choose is a bee source. There are two primary sources of bees: package bees and honey bee nucs. Both of them have their pros and cons. Let’s look at these honey sources in greater detail with the help of this article.
Package Bees
Each year, more than a thousand honeybee packages are sold, and the most popular size is the three # (weight) package of bees with a young mated queen. The bees in these packages come from commercial pollination services. A wooden box or small wire is utilized to transport them, and a can of sugar syrup is fed to them on the way.
Nucs
Nucleus colonies, also known as nucs, are the central part of a large colony. Various retailers who deal with bee products and other related accessories have honey bee nucs for sale, where you can find nuc as a small colony living on about 5 frames. It has all the traits of a fully-grown colony and, in addition to that, also has some stored pollen and honey.
The age of the nuc determines its quality in most cases. According to a few experts, if you want top-quality nucs, overwintering should be the one you should go for. When you own healthy overwintered nucs, there are high chances that it is likely to bloom in the spring season, giving you a populated colony in very little time. You can easily find bee nuc for sale in Chicago.
Which Is Better – Packages Vs. Nucs?
Since now we know what packages and nucs, let’s try to find which one is more suitable for someone who is beginning a career in beekeeping. To be very honest, there’s no definite answer to this question. The best answer varies from individual to individual, and it will depend on various factors like the geographic/climate location, genetics of the bees involved, and management style of the beekeeper.
Package bees are value-for-money products, less vulnerable to spread diseases or pests (this is because honeycomb is not involved here), and are more easily available. They take longer to create a working population and must follow the queen acceptance process.
To sum it up, both nucs, as well as package bees, are great to begin the beekeeping journey. You can find plenty of online retailers offering bee nuc for sale in Chicago and providing quality bee products to beekeepers at a reasonable price.
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