Brood nest size most commonly used in the UK

[Poly Hive]

Ok. Please search ITLDS posts on the difference between his timber and poly units. As in 200 poly hives and some 1600 timber ones.

Too idle? Ok in summary 20% more honey if I remember rightly.

Pologies if wrong.

PH

 

[REDWOOD]

I must say swarms and splits explode in a poly nuc compared to a wood nuc, next year all my wood nucs will be replaced by poly.
As for BBs It will be a test with two first

 

[Poly Hive]

Sorry it's a no brainer.

PH

 

[Anduril]

This is what Poly Hive is talking about.
http://beekeepingforum.co.uk/showpost.php?p=283794&postcount=91
I have 2 14x12 Swienty Polys and for the past 2 years the spring build up has been very strong and I have temporarily gone 14x12 double brood. Back breaking work if you haven't got an empty nuc by your side to do the manipulations.

 

[user 6228]

The curious fact is that the published academic data on poly mostly appears to contradict itlds results. It's only when you look closer can you see the flaws in the conclusion made in those papers.

 

[Fusion_power]

derekm, I'm going to disagree with your conclusion on a qualified basis. The article by Bernhard Mobus that you and I read a few days ago clearly did not have a properly set up test protocol. I can't prove from the article that highly insulated hives are better than plain wooden boxes based solely on that study. I also can't clearly prove that wooden boxes are better than properly managed EPS hives. What I can say is that too many studies have been done that did not properly ask the bees what works. Measure the performance difference between similar colonies in both hive types with several hundred hives in the test and managed the same except for the difference in hive type. This would very quickly prove which is best. I also qualify this statement that such a test may already have been run, but I have not seen it.

One conclusion can be reached re EPS hives based on the study.. Small colonies are likely to benefit much more from better insulation than normal hives.

 

[Finman]

The curious fact is that the published academic data on poly mostly appears .

I have never seen academic data about polyhives.

Every beekeeper is able to compare, how bees do in wooden and polyhives.

I made my comparision in the years 1987-88, before I started to abandon simple
wall boxes as brood box. Hives stood side by side anf I noticed that all polyhives got earlier the supers on then and poly hives swarmed earlier.

And polyhives are splended to handle in migrative beekeeping.
.
In nucs poly is supreme. Easy to see yourself.
.
Academic people must have better to than this.

The most stupid idea is that tree trunk legenda. No one nurse hives in tree trunks.
.
.

 

[Finman]

The curious fact is that the published academic data .

Well, one academic person told to me that I should go to the top of Snowdon, without clothes and in rain when wind id 80km/h. Then I would know what is cold.

....That kind of tourism... We arrange swimming competing in ice water. ... And carring wives

.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IojgBeLLS_o

Hiw to cactch new wife From Finland

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adi1kwcaFlk


And swamp football
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5xnuRZ3jqk
.
And record in sitting in ant nest, 2 hours 10 minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKgd8ykCq1k

 

[BeeJayBee]

Measure the performance difference between similar colonies in both hive types with several hundred hives in the test and managed the same except for the difference in hive type. This would very quickly prove which is best.

This? ...

I am not that worried about the exactitudes of this stuff. Bottom line is that we have half the winter losses in poly compared to wood of the same size (Langstroth), and production runs between 20 and 30% ahead per colony. That is over hundreds of colonies and a 15 year line of experience. Only ONE year did they fail to make the minimum of 20% better performance.

If asked about the difference between the hive types in a simple statement.....'In wooden hives we often have trouble keeping our numbers up...........in poly hives we have trouble keeping our numbers down.'

Other than some replacement to keep the unit working, have no intention of ever buying wooden hives again. All new units will be poly.

 

[Finman]

.
About brood space size

Many of our professionals let the queen lay as much as they can. When main yield begins, they put excluder at the beginning of July.

In July reared brood emerges in August, and then we do not have any more plants in bloom. Bees' only job in August is to rear winter bees.
..
No need to evaluate, how much brood boxes.
.
Most professionals over winter the colony in one langstroth box or in two medium boxes.



.

 

[Murox]

I suggest you look seriously at Layens hives and management system. A 14 frame hive could produce up to 40lbs excess honey and still leave bees enough to overwinter on. Layens were always sized according to prevailing local honey flow/conditions, a hive could be 12 - 30 frames.

 

[Codford]

Hi Murox - just be aware this thread is nearly a year old (easily done!)

 

[Finman]

I suggest you look seriously at Layens hives and management system. A 14 frame hive could produce up to 40lbs excess honey and still leave bees enough to overwinter on. Layens were always sized according to prevailing local honey flow/conditions, a hive could be 12 - 30 frames.

That is not posdible.

14 frame hives does not exist nowadays, and nor 50 years ago.