Production of propolis and honey from Tetragonula laeviceps cultivated in Modular Tetragonula Hives

Abstract

Propolis and honey produced by stingless bees are regarded as high economic value products due to their bioactive components, which are significantly influenced by conditions at the cultivation location. This study investigated the effect of cultivation location on the amount and quality of propolis and honey produced by Tetragonula laeviceps cultivated in Modular Tetragonula Hives. Fifteen bee colonies were cultivated for at least three months in coffee plantations at two different locations, namely Cibodas and Cileunyi Wetan, Indonesia. The propolis was harvested from the hives and then evaluated to compare product quality from each location. The average production of propolis in both locations was found to lie in the range of 4.26-4.54 g/colony/month with a flavonoid content of 11.4-14.8 mg/g qE. Meanwhile, the average production of honey in both locations after eight months of cultivation was found to lie in the range of 0.93-1.44 g/colony/month. The vitamin C content of the honey obtained from both locations was 17.2-69.5 mg/100 g with an IC 50 of 1188-1341 mg/L, in terms of its ability to inhibit the free radical 2,2-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl. This study shows that cultivation of stingless bees on a coffee plantation in the studied locations has the potential to provide sustainable production of propolis and honey from T. laeviceps.

Determination of productivity, yield and bioactivity of propolis extract produced by Tetragonula spp. Cultivated in Modular tetragonula hives

“…MOTIVE units have also been developed for use with instrumentation systems. By outfitting the beehive with these instrumentation systems, beekeepers can collect microclimate data, allowing them to monitor the health of the colony with respect to the microclimate conditions within the hive [ 4 , 5 ].…”

The use of propolis in ointment ingredient for the treatment of dermatophytosis infection

“…Propolis is a gomo-resin compound produced stingless bees by mixing salivary secretions and beeswax with exudate collected from plants [4,5]. Bees use this material to seal open spaces in the hive and protect the hive from various pathogenic agents [6].…”

Comparison of productivity from three stingless bees: Tetragonula sapiens, T. clypearis and T. biroi managed under same feed sources for meliponiculture

“…biroi can produce honey 2,030 mL/colony for two moths meliponiculture. Furthermore, Abduh et al (2020) reported that propolis production from T. laeviceps ranges from 4.26 to 4.54 g/month, meliponiculture in Cibeusi Village (Subang, West Java). Erwan et al (2021b) reported that propolis production from honey pots of stingless bee Tetragonula sp.…”

“…is 3.28 g/month for bamboo hives and 7.40 g/month for box hives. Furthermore, Abduh et al (2020) reported production of propolis from T. laeviceps ranges from 4.26 to 4.54 g/month. Production of propolis from T. laeviceps which meliponiculture for four months ranges from 15.4 to 77.2 g (Agussalim et al 2020).…”