Italian Queen bee Strain

[thibault]

Does someone has any experience with italian queen bee (for Uk), any feedback or advices would be appreciated.

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[Ashley_apiaries]

Apis Milifara Ligustica was a strain I had, very hungry! They didn't over winter well on single national even with a super! They did best on double broods. Good temperament though and a good yield from them, just weren't for me, I favoured the Carpathian strain of carniolan.
A

 

[BKF Admin]

Nicest bees I ever owned,had them about 10 years ago.
Build up quick,you dont need any protection to work them and you get amazing yields.

Then the problem comes of overwintering,with mine I found they were greedy the queen carries on laying and laying,food runs out or they sucumbe to disease.
Keep carnies/Buckfast or move to Italy..

 

[Poly Hive]

An old Bee Farmer said to me they are great for producing brood. Also great for poor wintering, and if you go that route buy shares in Tate and Lyle.

I didn't.

PH

 

[Beefriendly]

I understand from those that kept them that all that is said in the above posts is about right.
Those I know who still use them source them from New Zealand where they have become adapted to a more "English" climate and are less inclined to continue brood rearing throughout the year.
That said....when you offset the increased honey yield with the amount of feed required to overwinter you are still quids in. Invest the honey money into large capacity Miller/Ashford type feeders.

 

[Hivemaker.]

I understand from those that kept them that all that is said in the above posts is about right.
Those I know who still use them source them from New Zealand where they have become adapted to a more "English" climate and are less inclined to continue brood rearing throughout the year.

I had them from NZ many years ago, via Exeter bee supplies, the really yellow ones, back when Acarine was still around, they were as described by others in earlier posts, but they never managed to over winter... as they usually collapsed due to Acarine during the autumn.

 

[BKF Admin]

Agreed Hivemaker.
The ones I had were like glass,you could see right through them when the sun shone.

 

[Into the lions den]

Even my Italian associates are not fond of ligustica...........for all the same reasons they are not generally loved here.

Had little trouble overwintering them here. However they ate loads and could starve mid season, and did not greatly like the heather weather. But when they hit it boy they hit it big style. Over a 5 yr cycle the losses were higher but the crops also pretty good.

Its a penny wise, pound foolish strategy to focus on frugality (often cited by some as a top quality) rather than productivity. Honey is 10 times (and more) the price of sugar so foregoing a sizeable crop to save a few Kg of sugar does not make much sense.

 

[beeno]

There are two varieties of Ligustica the north Italian Ligurian strain, the leather coloured ones favoured by Brother Adam which he used to breed the early Buckfasts and the southerners the Cordovans the ones with a brown thorax (talking queens here) which he did not have much good to say about. I do believe I have bees with a lot of Italian in them and they do use a lot of stores, but I have no problems wintering them in my neck of the woods. Given a choice I would always want one or two 'Italian' colonies.

 

[Quis Custodiet]

Some time ago a commercial beekeeper, who is also a knowledgeable bee breeder assured me that the best strains of A. M. Ligustica come from Finland.

 

[nantmoel]

I tried them in the early 80's they were loverly bees, I don't think they ever stung me or even tried to sting me, they gather a good crop of honey but just didn't over winter!

 

[Finman]

.
In Finland 90% out of hives are Italians. They are kept even on Polar Circle. Average winter food consumption from September to May is 20 kg.

I have had numerous Italian strains 45 years. I had 10 years Carniolans together with Italians.

The quality on Italian strains depends totally on you, how much you make breeding work and try and select the queens of different sellers.

If you do not take care on continuous selecting, after couple years you have typical mongrels, even if they are yellow: Swarmy, protect their best, inbreeding problems, average layers, average honey yields.....

Same with Carniolans. The chance to get bad material is bigger than in Italians.
And then to keep on you good material is the biggest job
.
To keep on non swarmy stock is bigger job than prevent swarming with AS, - in small apiary. But 100% swarming is a nuisance. With hybrid Carniolans I have got 120% swarming, and AS method did not work very well with them.

 

[thibault]

Thank you everyone for your comments, really appreciated [emoji106]

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[Beefriendly]

but they never managed to over winter... as they usually collapsed due to Acarine during the autumn.

Acarine!!...many beekeepers successfully overwinter Italian bees these days. Perhaps due to the demise of Acarine mites with the early thymol varroa treatments?