Beehive

Apiculture (Beehives and Beekeeping)

Apiculture is the practice of maintaining honey bee colonies within beehives. Bees live in organized colonies and will establish, grow, and produce honey and wax when provided with proper care.

Setting Up Your Beehives

You will need the following:

Bee-Friendly Plants (decorative allowed)

• Poppies
• Lilies
• Snowdrops
• Campions

Water Sources

• Water or wine pitchers
• Water troughs
• Fountains

Pitchers are recommended as water access can be controlled.

Beehive Deeds Available from Beekeepers (north of Skara Bank, west of Britain Bank).

If all beehives are within 3 tiles of a flower and water source, a single flower and pitcher can support all hives.

One Tile Tending

Beehives can be arranged so that a single standing position allows interaction with up to 22 beehives. Because beehives may be tended from up to two tiles away, careful placement makes large hive clusters easy to maintain.

Tending 22 Beehives From 1 Tile

Beehive (BH)			Open Tile (OT)
BH	BH	BH	BH	BH
BH	BH	BH	BH	BH
OT	OT	◊ OT	BH	BH
BH	BH	BH	BH	BH
BH	BH	BH	BH	BH

◊ – Stand on this tile to tend all surrounding beehives and place the initial flower and water source.

Beehive Stages

Colonizing – Scouts search for flowers and water. Brooding – Population growth accelerates. Producing – Excess honey and wax are generated.

Beehive Health

Overall Health

Thriving – Increased honey and wax production. Healthy – Normal production. Sickly – No excess production. Dying – Population will begin to fall. [Empty] – Bees have abandoned the hive.

Population

A hive supports up to 100,000 bees. Larger populations require more flowers and water. If conditions worsen, bees may abandon the hive entirely.

Hive Growth Check

A growth check occurs once per day during world save.

Symbol	Meaning
!	Not healthy
!	Low resources
-	Population decrease
+	Population growth
+	Stage increase / resource production

Tending Your Hives

You will typically use potions daily to maintain hive health and maximize output.

• Greater Agility

Increases honey and wax output.

Increases flower and water search range by +2 tiles.

Only effective once hive reaches Producing stage.

• Greater Poison

Used to combat infestation (bug icon).

! Overuse harms bees.

• Greater Cure

Treats disease (skull icon).

Neutralizes excess poison.

Potion Amounts

- = 2 potions

- = 1 potion

No symbol = 0 potions

• Greater Heal

Restores hive health.

Healing Requirements

Dying = 3 potions (2 day treatment)

Sickly = 2 potions

Healthy = 1 potion

Thriving = 0 potions

• Greater Strength

Builds resistance to infestation and disease.

Note: A maximum of 2 potions per type per day may be applied. Potions are consumed from bottles or kegs in your backpack.

Flowers and Water

Search Range

• 3 tiles – Colonizing/Brooding, up to 20k bees
• +1 tile per additional 10k bees
• 100k bees = 11 tiles
• Day two at 100k = + (12 tiles)

Greater Agility adds +2 tiles. Maximum possible range: 14 tiles.

Flower and Water Symbols

Symbol	Meaning
X	No access
-	Needs more
	◊ Perfect amount
+	Slight excess
+	Huge excess

Wax and Honey

Applying 2 Greater Agility potions increases production per growth check.

A hive can store up to 255 honey or wax.

Harvesting

• Honey – 3 honey + bottle = 1 jar
• Beeswax – Extracted all at once

Required Tools

• Hive Tool
• Small Wax Pot

Bee Hibernation

Pine needles may be applied to the hive table to place bees into hibernation.

• Each pine needle = 24 hours
• No production during hibernation
• Population is preserved

Be careful to target the hive table, not the hive itself.