Anyone got any old, blackened, discarded National frames they no longer want? Please don't throw them. I need a few for baited swarm traps...
North / Central Somerset.
Hi Niv. We're now getting towards Spring... are you still thinking of downsizing? I now have a friendly farmer who is offering me some land to put my hives, so am getting to the point of being active...
Last November I got started by making two National Hives - Brood box and two supers each. They have nice metal roofs, and I left them outside so that they woudn't smell 'new' to any bees that I might be able to obtain. Today I lifted the supers to get the brood boxes out so I could start making...
As 'that newbie', I very much agree. I don't mind in the least spending ££ on hives and equipment for the bees, but with free swarms available if you 'know how', I do mind paying £££ for bees that might well move home without a 'thank you and goodbye'. Maybe I'm related to scrooge....
Yes exactly. I'm driving down to Devon on Saturday for the Thorne sale - have ordered seconds frames for the hives. Only 100 mins drive, so not too far.
A great group, but apparently I have to wait until I've done 'the course' next April before I get access to anything. If that's how they work, I'm not complaining. But April is a long time away. I guess sorting new members by asking them to wait 7 or 8 months is one way of doing things...
Thanks, Enrico. I love the idea of attracting my own swarms with traps I have made. That's the next building job - a few traps, and then hunt for places to leave them out next spring.
Indeed - I visit the site regularly, as it's a great treacle-mine (honey pit?) of learning and information. So, firstly, thanks everyone for these great offers. I'm going to respond to everyone individually. Secondly, it's good to know folks in the same geographical area. I'd be very happy...
OK, I've done the taster day. Booked on a course in the new year. Bought a bee suit. Built a couple of National Hives. Read loads. Looked at loads on YouTube. But where do I get bees, and more importantly, I am assuming that late September is too late to start a couple of colonies. Any...