No .. you try and get the bees onto two empty supers so you can shift them. Even then the deep box can be quite heavy.
Sorry, when I said move I really meant 'lift'
I was concerned that if there were two colonies in the hive then things could get awkward, especially if the bees have supers on.
Ways and means. Depends on where they are too! Behind the average new build with a postge stamp garden could prove very interesting for a newbie to bees.
>>One colony will fit in the 'honey boxes' listed as part of a Dartington (but sadly not included with the new plastic offering).<<
Could you explain a bit more about this please..
The original plans for the dartiington hive include a couple 'carry boxes'. Just deep 1/2 supers. A dartington alternative to a nuc hive as well. My point was that the new beehaus buyer might not have enough kit available to mount an easy 'move site' operation.
Human nature is not to trash £300 + worth of bees... but you are right, in a small garden when problems occur you might be stuck...
Middle of a city/town, no access to an 'out of the way of the public' rural apiary, perhaps not part of an association. all sorts of scenario are possible. Hopefuly none crop up but do all the potential purchasers think about the worst scenarios?
bee farmer who ran 400+
Yikes - 400 WBCs! Old days in the country, no bother. probably he had means to pick up a hive in one piece, if necessary!
Thanks for taking the time to reply. My concern is: due to highly efficient marketing, people are being encouraged to keep bees in a hive that cannot be easily moved if problems occur.
Fact is, we don't know them all yet. I am inclined to agree that there could well be problems in a few cases. These potential problems may have been covered with the design, but who knows, as yet? Time will tell.
Best regards, RAB