Almond orchards buzz with activity before pollination
During the next few weeks, beekeepers will finish moving some 2.5 million honeybee colonies into California orchards to pollinate the state’s 1.2 million bearing acres of almond trees.
“We’re working really hard to supply a good supply of bees for the almond growers and doing everything that we can to keep up with their increase in production,” Butte County beekeeper Buzz Landon said.
The effort has to continue despite the threat of theft, which occurred last week in Yuba County. Nearly 100 beehives were missing on Friday, beekeeper Mike Potts said. He estimated that the theft of the 92 hives, about a third of his operation, would cost him about $44,000 in revenue.
Potts, who is based in Oregon, suspects that another beekeeper who lost bees could be responsible for the theft and may have stolen hives before. Given the weight of the hives in addition to the boxes that hold them, he thinks the thief may have used a flatbed truck to drive them away.
There are nearly 300,000 almond acres coming into production in the next few years, beekeepers and farmers say an additional 600,000 beehives will be needed for pollination, making the hives attractive targets. Trying to increase the number of hives could be somewhat daunting, as beekeepers report annual bee losses due to challenges such as reduced forage, the Varroa mite and pesticide-related issues, in addition to theft.
At the annual conference of the American Honey Producers Association and Canadian Honey Council, held recently in Sacramento, state Food and Agriculture Secretary Karen Ross said California border stations cleared 1.82 million beehives to enter the state in 2019.
Going into this season,
Ross reminded beekeepers to register movement of beehives in and out of orchards to protect the apiaries from theft and from applications of crop protection materials. The state’s BeeCheck program requires beekeepers to register beehive locations with county agricultural commissioners. Last year, agricultural commissioners added BeeWhere, a software program to assist beekeepers in registering beehives.
Beekeeper Valeri Strachan-Severson of Yuba City said many out-of-state beekeepers oppose the registration program, but said, “It’s important. This has been on the books for 30 years.”
Daren Williams, senior director of communications for the Almond Board of California, said he expects almond production to grow from the current 2.3 billion pounds to the 3 billionpound mark.
“For at least the next three to five years, most experts are projecting that this industry is going to continue to grow in acreage and in pounds. Of course, the pounds that we produce are very dependent upon pollination,” Williams said.
Last week, the Almond Board announced a new, five-point Pollinator Protection Plan aimed at protecting bees. The plan includes new collaboration with the nonprofit Pollinator Partnership; educating farmers and pollination stakeholders; improving communication; increasing on-farm floral diversity; and supporting bee health research.
At the honey producers conference, almond grower Ryan Cosyns of Madera, who used to manage honeybees, addressed pollination prices during a panel discussion.
“We need beekeepers that are pricing their product at a price that warrants what they had put into it,” Cosyns said. “The minimum price this year should be about $200 a hive. If you’re pricing under that, you’re doing yourself an injustice.”
In turn, beekeepers warned growers to watch out for “fly-by-night bee brokers,” who they said undercut the business with less than standard-quality bees.
Pollination services, Williams pointed out, represent “a significant input cost for growers, about 15 to 20% of a grower’s total production costs.”
Farmers have experimented with a self-fertile almond variety, Independence, which requires fewer bee colonies for pollination. Cosyns said the trees are only a fraction of the state’s total almond acres, and that planting of the variety has slowed because it does not have the same flavor as nonpareil, the top almond variety.
Many beekeepers at the conference had their minds on getting out and checking bees they had moved into bee yards or orchards.
During the honey conference, Iowa-based beekeeper Alex Ebert said he tripled the number of beehives he brought to California this year.
“After we get done with the conference, then we go take a look at how the bees are doing and get ready for almond pollination in February,” Ebert said.
Tulare County beekeeper Steve Godlin, who lost 100 beehives to theft last year at this time, said people in rural areas should be aware of the possibility of beehive thefts and suspicious activity.
“If you live near an almond orchard and see somebody loading bees onto a truck and out of the orchard, they are likely being stolen, so please call law enforcement,” Godlin said. “Get a license plate number or photo and report it.”
Hilmar Farm Watch, a rural-watch group working with law enforcement, reported 32 beehives allegedly stolen Jan. 7 from the Stevinson area of Merced County.
“For at least the next three to five years, most experts are projecting that this industry is going to continue to grow in acreage and in pounds. Of course, the pounds that we produce are very dependent upon pollination.” — Daren Williams, senior director of communications for the Almond Board of California