LANGSTROTH HIVES OVERTAKE TOP BAR HIVES IN HONEY PRODUCTION
Langstroth Hives have in the first 3 years of the Project been criticised by communities around Liwonde National Park and Mangochi Forest Reserve as being less profitable as compared to Top Bar Hives. Langstroth Hives are a new dimension of Hives, dominantly known for its best quality honey. It is for this quality advantage that swayed Honey with Heart to promote this type of hive, the Langstroth Hive.
During the first 3 years of introducing the Langstroth Hives, communities were very reluctant to adopt it, sighting late colonisation and low honey production as the main reasons. However, HwH through its Coordinator and AP Extension Assistants kept on encouraging the Beekeepers to exercise patience as together they pushed on. Today, 6 years down the line, it is apparent that these communities are producing more honey in Langstroth Hives than in Top Bar Hives. This trend started appearing in the past 2 years, when Langstroth Hives started producing more honey than before. Technically it was observed that with intensive trainings which these Beekeepers have been receiving, coupled with the acquired experience, Langstroth Hives have become a preference to our Beekeepers. As this story was being compiled, honey production for Langstroth Honey was at 3 tons while that of Top Bar Hives was at 1 ton.
Asked to comment on the performance of Langstroth Hives, Mthyola Phiri, a Beekeeper of Ndengu Beekeeping Club, in TA Jalasi, Mangochi District said, “Initially we thought Langstroth Hives are a waste of time. We preferred Top Bar Hives. But with trainings we have been receiving from HwH, and the experience, we have discovered, these hives are much better in terms of production as well as quality of the honey’. I thank Honey with Heart for introducing this type of Hives in our area’’, concluded Mthyola.