By KEVIN WALKER
Michigan Correspondent
 
LANSING, Mich. — Michigan’s state apiarist is saying the state of the beekeeping industry in Michigan is adequate to the needs of the state’s growers.

Beekeepers in Michigan who offer pollination services follow the different fruit and vegetable crops in the southwestern part of the state and meander north, where they harvest a honey crop at the end of the season. Among the crops that get pollinated are blueberries and apples, but not all at the same time.

“Growers are always looking for new beekeepers to see if they can shave a couple dollars off pollination services,” said Michael Hansen, the apiarist. “We get a lot of colonies that come into Michigan over the summer. We have a very big migratory industry. When you become a migratory beekeeper, you become a migratory person.”

During the winter months, many beekeepers travel to Florida, Georgia, California and Mississippi to place their colonies. Some beekeepers take their hives to Maine for the blueberry crop there, where they might be able to get higher prices for their services.
In 1993 Michigan changed its law to allow the movement of bee colonies into and out of the state. Hansen described the current situation as “a different world,” where the movement of colonies can add to the stress that a hive experiences.

Below are some key Michigan beekeeping facts, courtesy of the state apiarist:

•Michigan bees go broodless in September, then start to rear brood again in February

•Severe cold, lack of food, parasites and diseases contribute to losses in the north

•An estimated 30,000-35,000 bee colonies overwinter in the state
•100,000-150,000 colonies are present in Michigan over the summer

•There are an estimated 1,200 beekeepers in the state; 50-100 are commercial, defined as 500-5,000 colonies; 250-300 are sideline or semi-commercial, defined as 50-500 colonies; and more than 1,000 are hobbyists, defined as 1-50 colonies.

•48,000 colonies owned by Michigan beekeepers were placed in Florida over the winter this season; 10,000-20,000 in California; 10,000-15,000 in Georgia; and 5,000 in Mississippi.