Pollination Services

We Are Experienced Pollinators

Proper pollination of fruits and vegetables by honey bees is money in the bank for farmers. A pollinated orchard using the right density of honey bee hives can produce upwards of 50% more yield, meaning healthier crops, larger fruit and better sets.
We supply pollination services to cherry and apple orchardists in the Creston Valley, as well as specialty services for small-lot berry, bush fruit and vegetable growers.

Provincially-Recommended Hive Strengths: What Does That Mean?

The recommended provincial standard for honey bee colony pollination strength is what is called “8-4-1”. The “eight” means a pollination-strength hive has enough bees to cover at least eight frames, with mature bees ready to forage. The “four” means there are at least four frames of brood in all stages – eggs, larvae and capped brood. This ensures a healthy turnover and growth of the hive while it is in the orchard. And the “one” means one laying queen. Without a queen a hive can’t reproduce.

What You Get From Us

In our case we choose to exceed the recommended provincial pollination services standard, ensuring our customers get more than they pay for.
Typically we supply double-box colonies with room for growth. This means each colony usually has enough bees to cover at least 12-15 frames.We do a walk-through site assessment  to ensure we place hives in the best locations. We typically deliver hives when the orchards are showing about 10 percent bloom but will work with individual growers’ needs.

Availability of Hives for Pollination

It is sometimes difficult to predict how many colonies will be available for pollination services. High winter mortality means fewer hives available for spring pollination.
We try to manage our livestock in the fall to predict demand in the spring, but sometimes Mother Nature throws us a curve ball. For that reason, the availability of pollination hives is on a first-come, first-served basis.

Protecting Our Pollinators

Hive health is critical to us. Our bread and butter is making honey. We also make or annual increase in livestock at this time by splitting strong hives. We will not put our hives at risk of being sprayed by pesticides, including fungicides and insecticides.
If our colonies are damaged at the start of the honey season by pesticide spraying, it reduces the potential yield of honey later in the season.
We understand the economic necessities farmers face, and we want them to be successful in producing quality food. Equally, we want to protect our bees from accidental damage.
For that reason we will only work with growers who use a registered agronomist or agrologist to tell them when treatments need to be applied. That professional also gives us the same information, allowing us to decide whether or when to temporarily pull hives from farmers’ lands to protect against incidental damage.

Signed Contracts

We use standard multi-year signed pollination contracts to allow our customers to plan for year-over-year needs. The contract guarantees delivery times, locations and hive strength, as well as contains restrictions on the use of pesticides and fungicides while our bees are in the field. We don’t guarantee hive numbers and availability until winter mortality is calculated in the spring.

Rates for hive rentals vary from year to year. See costs and recommended stocking rates below.
Payment is due prior to the placement; we do not carry accounts.