Got my order delivered from Swienty the other day
- Thread starter Onge
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You've got a hand full there , and I don't mean the bee hives 
.
John Wilkinson
.John Wilkinson
Hombre
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I bet that delivery caused a few twitching curtains in the street.
I can only wish you a back breaking crop this season. They do get heavy.
I can only wish you a back breaking crop this season. They do get heavy.
DulwichGnome
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Good news, they should keep you busy for a couple of hours. Now all you need is some bees!!
Mike.
Mike.
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Do the kids get to choose the colours and do the painting?
Advice: restrict their choice to prevent lurid suprises.
Advice: restrict their choice to prevent lurid suprises.
OK! So how many were there?
'Just a single pallet is not close enough!!
Regards, RAB
'Just a single pallet is not close enough!!
Regards, RAB
OP
Onge
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Probably a combination of dark green and dark brown,(not much choice in masonry paint).
42 mediums, 12 floors, 12 roofs, one of them massive dadent smokers and some frames
I also have some more that I bought from another source that I have shown painted in another post. "a busy days painting".
No I would not let the kids paint them, it would be a disaster zone
Roll on spring.
42 mediums, 12 floors, 12 roofs, one of them massive dadent smokers and some frames
I also have some more that I bought from another source that I have shown painted in another post. "a busy days painting".
No I would not let the kids paint them, it would be a disaster zone
Roll on spring.
Onge,
You said: A combination of splits, nuc's, swarms and luck should do the trick.
Lots of the latter!
Not going for a honey crop this year, then?
But we might be surprised and you achieve all the full colonies and some honey.
We must be in for a good summer, then? Nothing like being an optimist (and better than getting half a dozen and doing it with 'no sweat' at all).
The 'nucs' is the unknown-to-us variable. If you have, or are planning to buy, half a dozen that would be a good start and make things so much easier.
I wish you that luck, because if you can fill that lot, and some more, from three colonies, we should all be having a good year.
Regards, RAB
You said: A combination of splits, nuc's, swarms and luck should do the trick.
Lots of the latter!
Not going for a honey crop this year, then?
But we might be surprised and you achieve all the full colonies and some honey.
We must be in for a good summer, then? Nothing like being an optimist (and better than getting half a dozen and doing it with 'no sweat' at all).
The 'nucs' is the unknown-to-us variable. If you have, or are planning to buy, half a dozen that would be a good start and make things so much easier.
I wish you that luck, because if you can fill that lot, and some more, from three colonies, we should all be having a good year.
Regards, RAB
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Making increase is easy with all mediums. I met a Bulgarian beekeeper earlier this month who was going over to this system as he was buillding up his colonies in order to turn semi-pro.
Once the coloney is into two bodies slip a queen excluder between them and after a few days you can quickly see where the queen is by the presence of eggs. Then take away the other box and introduce a new queen to it after a short delay.
Of course you can do this with full depth brood boxes but Langstroth Mediums, being a bit smaller, fill up more quickly. A Langstroth box of 10 Mediums gives almost exactly the same usuable brood area as a standard BS National box. I use the term "useable" as the Langstroth has fewer frames but in a poly hive the queen will use all of them whereas in a BS National wooden hive the queen will normally often ignore the outer frames.
The two Medium brood boxes, which is the standard way of running these colonies gives exactly the same brood area as a Jumbo Langstroth with the advantage of lower weight of the individual boxes and possibly improved horizontal movement of bees in the brood area due to the gap running through the middle between the upper and lower frames. This may reduce swarming due to improved transfer of queen substance but I am not aware of any research confirming this.
The Bulgarian called colonies on all mediums as the "Farrar" system. I can't find any reference to this other than a C L Farrar wrote about beekeeping many years ago. I would be interested for a specific reference if anyone knows it.
Once the coloney is into two bodies slip a queen excluder between them and after a few days you can quickly see where the queen is by the presence of eggs. Then take away the other box and introduce a new queen to it after a short delay.
Of course you can do this with full depth brood boxes but Langstroth Mediums, being a bit smaller, fill up more quickly. A Langstroth box of 10 Mediums gives almost exactly the same usuable brood area as a standard BS National box. I use the term "useable" as the Langstroth has fewer frames but in a poly hive the queen will use all of them whereas in a BS National wooden hive the queen will normally often ignore the outer frames.
The two Medium brood boxes, which is the standard way of running these colonies gives exactly the same brood area as a Jumbo Langstroth with the advantage of lower weight of the individual boxes and possibly improved horizontal movement of bees in the brood area due to the gap running through the middle between the upper and lower frames. This may reduce swarming due to improved transfer of queen substance but I am not aware of any research confirming this.
The Bulgarian called colonies on all mediums as the "Farrar" system. I can't find any reference to this other than a C L Farrar wrote about beekeeping many years ago. I would be interested for a specific reference if anyone knows it.
Poly Hive
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The queen will lay up the outer frame sides against the walls. Makes an odds that does...LOL
PH
PH
OP
Onge
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Well I'm not going to use them all to start with.
Probably 6-8 ish colonies depending on what happens weather wise or luck wise.
There's nothing like having lots of spare gear to cover any swarming etc
There also cheaper if you buy above a certain number.
Probably 6-8 ish colonies depending on what happens weather wise or luck wise.
There's nothing like having lots of spare gear to cover any swarming etc
There also cheaper if you buy above a certain number.
