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Petro Prokopovych

 

 
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Petro Prokopovych
 
 
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Petro Prokopovych (1775–1850, ) was the founder of commercial beekeeping
Beekeeping

Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in beehives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and beeswax, for the purpose of pollination agriculture, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers....
. He introduced a number of novelties in traditional beekeeping that allowed significant progress in the practice. Among his most important inventions was a frame
Frame (beehive)

A frame in a beehive is the structural element that holds the honeycomb or brood comb within the hive body . The frame is a key part of the modern "movable" hive since it can be removed in order to inspect the bees for disease or to extract the excess honey....
 in separate honey chamber of his beehive
Beehive

Beehive may refer to:Bee-keeping* Beehive is a structure in which bees live and raise their young. It includes both natural and man-made hives; the latter includes traditional designs such as skeps and gums and modern designs such as:...
. He also invented a crude queen excluder
Queen excluder

In beekeeping the queen excluder is a selective barrier inside the beehive that allows worker bees but not the larger queens and Drone s to traverse the barrier....
 between brood and the honey chambers

o Prokopovych was born in Ukraine
Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east; Belarus to the north; Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary to the west; Romania and Moldova to the southwest; and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south....
, in the village of Mytchenky, near Baturyn
Baturyn

Baturyn , is a historic urban-type settlement in the Chernihiv Oblast of northern Ukraine. It is located in the Bakhmatskyi Raion of the oblast, on the banks of the Seym River....
.






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Petro Prokopovych (1775–1850, ) was the founder of commercial beekeeping
Beekeeping

Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in beehives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and beeswax, for the purpose of pollination agriculture, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers....
. He introduced a number of novelties in traditional beekeeping that allowed significant progress in the practice. Among his most important inventions was a frame
Frame (beehive)

A frame in a beehive is the structural element that holds the honeycomb or brood comb within the hive body . The frame is a key part of the modern "movable" hive since it can be removed in order to inspect the bees for disease or to extract the excess honey....
 in separate honey chamber of his beehive
Beehive

Beehive may refer to:Bee-keeping* Beehive is a structure in which bees live and raise their young. It includes both natural and man-made hives; the latter includes traditional designs such as skeps and gums and modern designs such as:...
. He also invented a crude queen excluder
Queen excluder

In beekeeping the queen excluder is a selective barrier inside the beehive that allows worker bees but not the larger queens and Drone s to traverse the barrier....
 between brood and the honey chambers

Biography

Petro Prokopovych was born in Ukraine
Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east; Belarus to the north; Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary to the west; Romania and Moldova to the southwest; and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south....
, in the village of Mytchenky, near Baturyn
Baturyn

Baturyn , is a historic urban-type settlement in the Chernihiv Oblast of northern Ukraine. It is located in the Bakhmatskyi Raion of the oblast, on the banks of the Seym River....
. Starting at the age of eleven, he studied at the Kiev-Mohyla Academy for eight years. After studies he committed himself to a military
Military

A military is an organization authorized by its nation to use force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or Threat of force ....
 career. He resigned his commission in 1798, bearing an officer rank and enjoyed retirement at his brother's apiary
Apiary

An apiary is a place where beehive of honey bees are kept. Traditionally beekeepers paid land rent in honey for the use of small parcels. Some farmers will provide free apiary sites, because they need pollination, and farmers who need many hives often pay for them to be moved to the crops when they bloom....
. By 1808 Prokopovych already had 580 beehives.

Prokopovych studied the biology of bee colonies, and strove to improve existing methods of beekeeping. His main intention was to develop methods which allow least disturbance and damage to bees. This resulted in 1814 in one of very first beehive frame, which allowed easier honey harvest. Another invention was a wooden partition with apertures, which is passable only for working bees, presently called queen excluder
Queen excluder

In beekeeping the queen excluder is a selective barrier inside the beehive that allows worker bees but not the larger queens and Drone s to traverse the barrier....
. It made possible getting pure honey in the frames. Prokopovych's inventions were a landmark in the history of beekeeping, and the beginning of the commercial beekeeping. Prokopovych's scientific work resulted in more than sixty articles in various printed media such as newspapers and magazines.

Another passion of Prokopovych was teaching. He set up a beekeeping school that prepared more than 700 qualified beekeepers during 53 years of existence. As a beekeeper
Beekeeper

A beekeeper is a person who keeps honey bees for the purposes of securing commodities such as honey, beeswax, pollen; pollination fruits and vegetables; raising Queen and bees for sale to other farmers; and/or for purposes satisfying natural scientific curiosity....
, Prokopovych owned 6600 colonies and became rather wealthy.

Petro Prokopovych was buried in the village of Pal'chyky in the Chernihiv region
Chernihiv Oblast

Chernihiv Oblast is an administrative divisions of Ukraine of northern Ukraine. The capital city of the oblast is the city of Chernihiv....
, where his beekeepers' school was located. A monument to Prokopovych stands there, and the Ukrainian Institute of Beekeeping is named after him.

Sources