Abstract

The study was conducted in Loma district of Dawro Zone to evaluate the productivity performance of bee hives using locally adapted honeybees spp. A total of ten farmers with rich experiences in beekeeping were purposively selected for this research purpose first. Theoretical and practical training session about honeybee colony management was given for selected farmers, development agents and Woreda experts. The project was provided technical support and input materials such as improved hives, wax printer, wax and improved bee flora. After share of traditional honeybee colony by each member of cooperative groups, colony transferred to modern hives and inspected regularly at study site to follow up the progress of the bee colonies. Finally, ripened honey was harvested and extracted by using honey extractor and stored in sealed containers and put in dry place until marketed. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected, systematically analyzed and interpreted using descriptive statistics. During the first harvesting season the average honey yield per hive/season from traditional, Kenya Top bar and frame hive was 7.3 kg, 18.1 kg and 22.875, while in the second round it was 5.5 kg, 14.89 kg and 16.52 kg respectively. The average honey yield per hive/year from traditional, Kenya Top bar and frame hive was 12.85 kg, 32.99 kg and 40.095 kg, respectively, which was significantly different (p<0.05). The findings of the study showed that the mean honey yield obtained from frame hive was significantly higher than Kenya Top bar hive and traditional hive. Moreover, formation of beekeepers’ cooperative and market linkage is found to be very important to experience modern beekeeping system because it increases sharing of equipments and skills between members.

Keywords: Honeybees; Colony management; Participatory evaluation; Traditional hive