A preliminary assessment of modern apicultural practice in Kwara State, Nigeria

Modern Apicultural practices in Kwara State date back to the year 2000 and has been assessed as being on low ebb. Fourteen bee farms were identified in nine of the sixteen Local Government Areas in the State and the Kenyan top bee hive was more used. Bee colony establishment rates were low but Ifelodun, Moro and Ilorin South Local Government Areas recorded high success rates of 73.32%, 65.85% and 47.42% respectively. All the government-owned apiaries paraded impressive numbers of hive but less than 20% of the hives were colonized by bees. The privately owned farms, however, did very well except Boorepo and Oniyangi farms in Ekiti and Irepodun Local Government Areas where apicultural practice is less than two years old. Cashew (Anacardium occidentalis) was the most popular of the six shade tree observed for bee hives. The likely factors standing in the way of the realization of the optimal beekeeping potential in Kwara State were highlighted. JARD Vol. 5 (2) 2006: pp. 203-21