A BEE thread....for those interested in beekeeping.

[SamG347]

I would reassure anyone considering which hive type is better that in general a top bar hive is best for the hobbyist who only wants a hive or two and who is more concerned about preserving our honeybee rather than how much honey they can extract from the hive.

I'm sorry and not trying to butt heads or get a argument going but this is a VERY bold statement. I have no biase on hive design as I have tried all but Skep and Warre and have picked the one that suits me best. But saying that the topbar hive is better for the bee has really yet to be proven. Bees have been kept in both the Langstroth and Topbar hive design for around a hundred years give or take. What beginners will find with the Topbar I personally believe are more hardships than good enjoyable experiences. Like you said it greatly depends on the beekeeper themselves and also a lot of other factors. But the Topbar hive requires more management in my eyes than your lang. I'm in it for the bees and the honey to me is just a bonus. But topbar hives are definitely good for one thing and that is stocking the local bee gums with swarms. It is very easy for the topbar to become honey bound unless the beek can get in during a flow 3 times a week. I believe everyone should try what hive style they believe is best for their situation...but saying one hive style is better for the honey bee over another is verrryyy verrrry BOLD. The health and survivability of a hive depends on wayyy more factors than hive style. I could have a booming colony in a hollowed stump hive...and a weak hive in a topbar....that could be my fault...a poor queen...late start.....foraging differences..the list goes on.

 

[#1California Chick]

Quote:
Actually, we have lots of Eucalyptus in the area. They start blooming in late Dec/early Jan. The last two weeks we have had fairly warm weather with NO rain. My bees have been happily working each day!!!

Cindy

 

[SamG347]

Thats awesome Cindy! The only thing we have here is 10 inches of snow

 

[heritagebirds]

My girls were out today, what relief! I've lost ALOT, but when I tap there's buzzing and I saw the queen a month ago on that one really warm day. Here's looking forward to spring. I'll be looking to make some changes/improvements this year, but I will probably one have one hive again.

 

[sgtmom52]

We had a few girls out for cleansing flights today too. Should be more out tomorrow as temps are supposed to get up to 45 F. We started the winter with 7 hives, but we are pretty sure we lost one in December. There has been no activity and no sounds on the "tap test". That hive was strong going into the winter so I don't know what happened ~ once it warms up we will open it and try to figure out what went wrong.
We will replace it in the spring as well as make a few more splits to add a couple more hives.

 

[RhodeIslandReds]

Ok im new at this some dont make fun of me. My next door neighbor has bees and looks like its easy to do. I see her out there 1 month doing things and was wondering what I need to do this. Is this hobby expensive and is it diffiult or easy? Where can I buy the box to house them or can I make my own? Ive been ready through but I dont really understand much. Any help info will help me get started.

Thanks,
RIRs

 

[JP33]

Quote:
I've been researching bees recently, and I find this interesting, as it's the exact opposite of what I've concluded.

I like the idea of the top-bar hive because it's possible to check on the bees and tend to them or harvest honey without: 1) disturbing the bees, 2) disassembling the hive, or 3) lifting anything heavy. A Langstroth hive SEEMS to make all of these things unavoidable. Is this incorrect?

Here's an example: http://www.thegardenhive.com/ (There are lots of others.)

I also like the idea of the top-bar because they're reportedly designed for the organic raising of bees, without chemicals or medicines or other "bee treatments" and seem more natural for the bees. The design also (seems to) better control mites and moisture inside the hive. The single disadvantage I can see over the langstroth is in the amount of honey potentially produced. Would love to hear your thoughts, if this isn't the case. I have a lot to learn.

Thanks!

Yvette.

Yvette, haven't been on here in a while, sorry I didn't respond sooner. I believe Sam addressed most all of your concerns, but just to reiterate: any style of bee keeping disturbs bees to some degree. You don't have to lift hundreds of pounds if you don't want to, you can pull individual frames one at a time if you like.

Here's a video of my friend and I harvesting honey one afternoon in July.

As you can see we pulled a frame here and there and replaced what we removed with new frames and foundation. We pulled five boxes, approximately 15 gallons of honey.

I remove bees from dwellings for a good part of my living and I can tell you from my experience bees do fine in a variety of places they choose to call home.

As Sam mentioned, do what you feel comfortable with. Top Bar Hives are no doubt cheap to build and very user friendly, but they are a real pain in the butt to move if you have to move them, that's one of the biggest draw backs with TBHs that I see, as I am constantly moving hives roughly ten months of the year.

The main thing is to begin the journey and have fun learning what works for you along the way.

Best of luck!


...JP

 

[greeneggsandham]

Mine were out last weekend when it hit 41. With the winter we have been having I was afraid they may have froze. I'm glad I left an extra 4 frames in that were intended for honey giving them well over 100lbs.

 

[JP33]

Quote:
To be honest, your neighbor just might be your best resource. I would suggest picking their brain a little and who knows y'all could become very good bee keeping pals. Are you in Rhode Island?


...JP

 

[cheraboo]

I haven't been around much this winter so I hope everyone is doing well.

This was our first winter with bees. We started the winter with three hives. Two small ones and and a large hive. We had intended to feed the smaller hives but never got to them before the cold hit due to health issues. We pretty much left them alone all winter and I have been hoping for the best. I took a quick peek at the small hive in our backyard today. I'm pretty sure the girls are dead. I can see the bees but there is no movement that I can see. I didn't pull out any frames since it's still kind of chilly. The bees are all grouped together in the middle of the super but they don't seem to be moving. I'm afraid to check the other two hives now.