Hedgecoe "Hive"

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Poly Hive

Queen Bee
Joined
Dec 4, 2008
Messages
14,093
Reaction score
393
Location
Scottish Borders
Hive Type
National
Number of Hives
12 and 18 Nucs
In the new Beecraft is yet another cry of Eureka.

I can see three major issues with it as published.

Discuss....

PH
 
New hive type from a chap called Hedgecoe who advocates.

1. Entrance in the middle of hive with holes arranged with a slot cover, says it prevents swarming!! Landing board removable for winter.

2. Building from ply and assembling in screwed sections for easy replacement.

3. Larger brood frames a la Langstroth for larger colonies.

There are a few other adaptations. He says he has started a design from scratch to suit modern beekeeping.
PH won't like it because is made out of wood.
 
I have no objection to the material dinna be so silly.

I do though have some thoughts on the design and some of his comments...

PH
 
The fact that he has already named it after himself was the first thing that worried me!

G.
 
:) Precisely but that was not one of the three...LOL Way too obvious...LOL

PH
 
Probably not allowed Pete, copyright and all that.

PH Are you a Scot by any chance?
 
I will need to read the article properly however my first thoughts were:

Small high entrance would make it very difficult for workers to dispose of dead bees.

If slot/ hole is small enough to restrict the queen how do the drones get out?

Roger
 
Well, found out one of our Apiary managers is going to trial one of the Hedgecoe hives , we'll see how it works

hedgecoe is a local beekeeper near me, i understand he worked for £hornes..and £hornes may have Hedgecoe hives their next reprint of their catalogue, 2011?

I have met him and he one of those people who take over and then do nothing, big ideas, no action, too involved with his own pet projects.
 
wasn't that in last yrs books?
didn't bother to re-subscribe this yr
 
Don't know what the hive is - However there is enough variety of hives. Do we need another one? It would have to be particularly good to make it worthwhile.

If you look at the old American ABC-XYZ book (so the Zed is pronounced Zee :) ), there were loads of designs in the past, all claiming to be special for one reason or another. Ultimately the Langstroth became the dominant design 'cos it works.

except here where we decided upon a smaller one as the Brits know best!
 
except here where we decided upon a smaller one as the Brits know best!

I am sure they did, 90 years ago.

The British beekepers of the day were, I am sure, on a par with their American counterparts.

Things have changed since then. That is all. Not rocket science to go to 14x12 instead of standard brood + half (which has been in widespread use over the last several decades).

If the beekeepers had not been so conservative, they would have surely changed much earlier. The Jumbo frame was part of the standardisation process back then.

How many on here will admit to running a brood and a half, I wonder.

I didn't even try it. WBC was too small; standard National was too small; 14 x 12 is much better and mostly (until last year) more than adequate; the Dartingtons - well no contest - they are perfectly adequate from a nuc up to 22 frames.

But there again, I don't buy exotic queens from foreign pastures that need two 14 x 12 boxes all the time.

Regards, RAB
 
Don't know what the hive is - [/I]

Well, we have had our apiary managers Hedgcoe hive delivered and a talk by Mr Hedgecoe..he is as he named it after himself, just as i imagined

what is it//...

it is a top beespace 14x12 with add on bits

quirky bits

top entrance above the brood with mouse guard and sliding entrance ( how do bees clear the dead ? and i would not want to see it in 30c++ weather

18mm plywood contruction...Bl~~dy Heavy brood and supers

Bolt on long legs, so top Heavy,.... so it has built in tie down straps ..whats wrong with a normal strap?..but good working height

Varroa floor is removal...? it needs to be to clear the dead because the bees can't

comes with half width feeder and half width queen box/tool box

Mono pitch roof..fairly good at shedding water (no galv)

comes with horizontal QEx and also a verticul QEx

suppers are of a good design with replacable wearing edges ( where your hive tool breaks the joint)

expensive £300 for a plywood hive
 

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