By Anahit Baghdasaryan

In his 30 years as a beekeeper, Karlen Jagharyan has never experienced a loss related to his bee colonies.

His colonies haveincreased to 180, up from only three.  Beekeepers know that during the year bees see three springs, so Jagharyan transports his beehives from one area to another so that the bees collect nectar from different parts.

According to Jagharyan, it’s important that bees receive their nourishment from honey and not sugar syrup. Bees survive six months on syrup and eight months on honey, and those additional two months are the most productive for a beehive.

“Every beehive contains at least 20 kilos of honey. If the bees survive only on sugar syrup their numbers will decline by the end of spring,” he said.

Jagharyan, who is from the southern Armenian town of Goris, says that beekeeping is not difficult, but it’s still hard work. If proper sanitary conditions are maintained, it’s possible to collect 10 kilos of honey per beehive. A beekeeper can make 20,000 dram per beehive after investing 10,000-12,000 dram in each one.

To make his work easier Jagharyan obtained a honey extraction machine, which he says many people have in Goris.  During the year he also helps 30 regional novice beekeepers get on their feet by providing queen bees. 

He’s also designed a special project aimed at collecting and refining beeswax to manufacture wax paper, which is now brought from Yerevan. Jagharyan presented the project to the Ministry of Agriculture in 2011 but it was rejected.

Around Goris there are more than 300 bee farms that maintain a total of about 18,000 colonies.Jagharyan claims in several years the number could increase if the problems related to honey production are resolved.

 According to him honey is sold through relatives and friends, and that there is no single market where honey producers can sell their product.

“If a common market existed, then the number of bees and beekeepers would increase,” he said.

When asked whether or not various honeys were pure, Jagharyan said that “pure honey is differentiated by color, flavor, and aroma.”

Jagharyan claims that his honey wards off diabetes. He boasts that once someone buys his honey they’ll come back for more.

Even though many beekeepers have complainedthat they didn’t produce much honey this year, Jagharyan’s bees pulled through.

“I had 20% less honey this year than previous years, but at least I had it,” he said.

Recently the Farmers’ National Union of Armenia awarded Jagharyan a gold medal and a letter of commendation for achievements in actively contributing to the development of agriculture.