Jacek's Beekeeping

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====== Beekeeping By The Numbers ======

Copied from 
  * [[https://www.uncledavesenterprise.com/file/bees/By%20The%20Numbers.pdf|By The Numbers]]

===== HONEY WEIGHT PER VOLUME  =====

^ HONEY VOLUME ^ WEIGHT ^
| 1 Gallon | 12 lb |
| 1 Quart | 3 lb |
| 1 Pint | 1.5 lb |
| ½ Pint | 12 oz |
| 1 cup | 340g / 12 oz |
===== HONEY PER SINGLE FRAME  =====

^  Name  ^  Frame Size  ^  Amount of Honey it can hold  ^
| Deep | 19 inches x 1-1/16 inches x 9-1/8 inches | 6 Pounds |
| Medium | 19 inches x 1-1/16 inches x 6-1/4 inches | 4 Pounds |
| Shallow | 19 inches x 1-1/16 inches x 5-3/8 inches | 3 Pounds|
===== HONEY PER 10 FRAME BOX =====
^  Frame size  ^  Weigth of honey (Lb) ^  Volume of honey (gallon)  ^
| A shallow super |  25 - 30  |  2 - 2 ½  |
| A medium (6 5/8”) depth super |  35 - 40   |  3 to 4  |
| A full-depth box |  60 - 70   |  5 - 6  |
===== CELLS PER FRAME FOUNDATION  =====
^  Frame  ^  Cells per side (approx.)  ^
|  Deep  |  3500  |
|  Medium  |  2310  |
|  Shallow  |  2058  |


^  Foundation  ^  Cell size (mm)  ^  Cells on Both Faces of the comb  ^^
^              ^                  ^       Square Decimeter  ^   Square Inch  ^
|  Pierco      |  5.25            |  838   |    54.1    |
|  Permadent   |  5.4             |  792   |    51.1    |


5.4mm cell size per https://www.latiendadelapicultor.com/en/bees-wax/beewax-foundation-sheet-sold-by-unit.html
^  Foundation Type  ^  Size (cm)  ^
|  Layens         |  30x35      |
|  Dadant         |  27x42      |
|  Medium Langstroth  |  13x42  |
|  Deep Langstroth  |  20x42  |
|  Dadant Blatt  |  41x26  |
|  Lusitana   |  33x26  |
===== ESTIMATING COLONY STRENGHT =====

  * A shallow frame fully covered with bees will hold approx. 0.3 pounds of bees.
  * A deep frame fully covered holds 0.5 pounds of bees or about 1750 individuals.
  * There are about 3500 bees per pound.
===== AVERAGE DEVELOPMENTAL PERIOD OF HONEY BEES =====

  * Queen = 16 Days (Needs fertilizing by drones & may not lay eggs for up to additional 7 days)
  * Worker = 21 Days
  * Drone = 24 Days
===== AVERAGE LIFE LENGTH OF HONEY BEES =====

  * A honey bee queen could live for 3 to 4 years, as long as she is free from disease. Most beekeepers requeen after 1 to 2 years.
  * Worker bees live for 6 weeks during the busy summer, and for 4-9 months during the winter months.
  * At the most, drones may live for up to 4 months, however, they may survive for just a few weeks. Note, that upon mating with the queen, drones die immediately.
  * Honey bee colonies consist of a single queen, hundreds of male drones and 20,000 to 80,000 female worker bees. Each honey bee colony also consists of developing eggs, larvae and pupae.
  * A well-mated and well-fed queen of quality stock can lay about 1,500 to 2,000 eggs per day during the spring build-up—more than her own bodyweight in eggs every day.
====== Fun Facts ======

===== Honey Bees =====

  * Honeybees fly at 15 miles per hour.
  * Honeybees' wings stroke 11,400 times per minute, thus making their distinctive buzz.
  * Honeybees will usually travel approximately 2 to 3 miles from their hive.
  * Honeybees are the only bees that die after they sting.
  * Honeybees are responsible for pollinating approx. 80% of all fruit, vegetable and seed crops in the U.S.
  * Honeybees have five eyes, 3 small ones on top of the head and two big ones in front. They also have hair on their eyes!
  * Bees communicate with each other by dancing and by using pheromones (scents).
  * Honeybees never sleep!
===== Honey =====

  * Honey is 80% sugars and 20% water.
  * To make one pound of honey, the bees in the colony must visit 2 million flowers, fly over 55,000 miles and will be the lifetime work of approximately 768 bees.
  * A single honeybee will only produce approximately 1/12 teaspoon of honey in her lifetime.
  * A single honey bee will visit 50-100 flowers on a single trip out of the hive.
  * Honey is the ONLY food that includes all the substances necessary to sustain life, including water.
  * Honey never spoils.
  * It would take about 1 ounce of honey to fuel a honeybee's flight around the world.
  * Flowers and other blossoming plants have nectarines that produce sugary nectar. Worker bees suck up the nectar and water and store it in a special honey stomach. When the stomach is full the bee returns to the hive and puts the nectar in an empty honeycomb. Natural chemicals from the bee's head glands and the evaporation of the water from the nectar change the nectar into honey.
  * Out of 20,000 species of bees, only 4 make honey.
===== Beehives =====

  * A populous colony may contain 40,000 to 60,000 bees during the late spring or early summer.
  * A honeycomb cell has six sides.
  * Bees maintain a temperature of 92-93 degrees Fahrenheit in their central brood nest regardless of whether the outside temperature is 110 or -40 degrees