How do people afford multiple hives?

[maddydog]

20 production colonies can get 2000lb honey that's £8K profit & if he keeps the same number of support double 6 frame nucs that's another £4K from selling the Q+ half of each nuc in spring:
So is £12,000 a year pin money?

If he can consistently hit those numbers as a teenager then he's wasted as a beekeeper!!

 

[Finman]

20 production colonies can get 2000lb honey that's £8K profit & if he keeps the same number of support double 6 frame nucs that's another £4K from selling the Q+ half of each nuc in spring:
So is £12,000 a year pin money?

And no production or delivering costs!

Hives can....
Average yield 10-15 kg in Britain.

 

[wightbees]

Hammer,saw,nails, square,nail punch,glue, tape measure,
That will get the nipper up and running, yes power tools help but builder yard can cut for you. Butt joints will do for the minute, use shanks nails and D4 glue ( tool station£4 liter!)

(If you using nats the above is ok. If Lang's so on, your need to cut rebate!)

 

[philipm]

If you are living in an area with loads of other beekeepers there is no way that the hives will ever achieve what some are quoting on here,There is always a demand in each area on the forage hence more beekeepers and hives the less honey per hive.If you are lucky the farmers in the area will be planting bee friendly plants or there might be some other source but you can guarantee that others will be using it as well.Sorry to burst the bubble but I still think it would be worth a try, honey isnt the only thing he can sell.

 

[sipa]

Halve your expected income and double your expected costs. If you can still see a margin it might be worth a shot.

 

[Finman]

.
It takes 5 years to understand, what is beekeeping.
The result depends how good teacher a beginner gets.

Everyone can buy nails and glue and calculate costs and incomes.

To foresee own skills... Compared to whom..

To get yield depends on pastures...

 

[Jambo]

20 production colonies can get 2000lb honey that's £8K profit

Er I think you mean revenue?

 

[Beefriendly]

20 production colonies can get 2000lb honey that's £8K profit

That works out at £4/lb...where are you getting that wholesale?

 

[Beefriendly]

More hives with locally adapted productive honey mountain bees, would be better than lots of hives with Mediterranean bees huddling together on huge frames just to keep warm and not producing any honey!

If you keep chanting this mantra often enough, eventually you will believe your own propaganda.
Shame we have to keep putting up with this constant misinformation.
I'm now expecting your usual response of living under bridge, yawns again, scratches ...nether regions etc.

 

[B+.]

More hives with locally adapted productive honey mountain bees, would be better than lots of hives with Mediterranean bees huddling together on huge frames just to keep warm and not producing any honey!

How much do your bees produce?

My biggest hive this year filled 6 Langstroth deeps (drawing 40 frames of foundation - https://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/album.php?albumid=751&pictureid=3832). Average seems to be about 3 deeps though.

 

[Finman]

How much do your bees produce?

My biggest hive this year filled 6 Langstroth deeps .... Average seems to be about 3 deeps though.

Average 75 kg/ hive and others must feed hives...

From what plants you got that? And you do not even mind about pastures.

 

[B+.]

Average 75 kg/ hive and others must feed hives...

From what plants you got that? And you do not even mind about pastures.

That's not true Finman. I don't migrate my hives around but I do choose good sites in my area. I work with local estates which grow a mixture of osr and field beans, but, it is quite a varied agricultural landscape including lots of mixed hedgerows and mature woods.
This year, the weather was poor in the Spring so I think they missed most of the osr. There was no granulation at all.

 

[Finman]

.
Osr fields change place every year. If you want good yields from it, you must move hives after fields.

Most of my yield came from **** thus dumme. IT bloomed whole July.
.

 

[B+.]

.
Osr fields change place every year. If you want good yields from it, you must move hives after fields.

Most of my yield came from **** thus dumme. IT bloomed whole July.
.

I have a number of apiaries. Each site has a number. I just set up my test queens in the apiary with the most beneficial mix of crops being planted for the following spring.
This year, I used site 2. Next year I'll use site 1 - my test colonies are already set up and will overwinter there. I don't like having to move full colonies around if I don't have to so I introduce the queen to a nuc in mid July and let them build up and overwinter so they are ready to go the following Spring.
**** flowers in April here. Beans flower in June.

 

[Finman]

This year, I used site 2. Next year I'll use site 1 - my test colonies are already set up and will overwinter there. I don't like having to move full colonies around .

I move because I get double yield with moving. Then I collect all hives to home yard where they are 9 months.

I save driving the whole year to hives. I drive only 2-3 months.

I feed all hives in my cottage yard and I must carry syrup 10-20 metres to fill feeders.


.

 

[Poly Hive]

In the Uk and probably elsewhere the breeders have been at it.

20+ years ago the OSR in my experience flowered in the 3d week in April and carried on until the 2nd week in June. It poured nectar and from 50 colonies allowing for the strong and the crap I extracted at least a ton. Not a tonne but a ton.

Now it pops into flower, then sheds the petals and if you get 3 weeks that's pretty good. Yield? No idea as I try to avoid it as I now work for comb.

Never had much yield from spring sown but ITLD says he has.

Is it worth chasing now in the northern UK.. I hae ma doots ye ken.

PH

 

[Eyeman]

Er I think you mean revenue?

Sold at £4.60 / lb . That's £4.0 profit per jar. So £8K in total.

 

[Jambo]

Sold at £4.60 / lb . That's £4.0 profit per jar. So £8K in total.

I'm out.

 

[Finman]

Sold at £4.60 / lb . That's £4.0 profit per jar. So £8K in total.

IT is 9 if you do not use decimals.
.

 

[mazzamazda]

If you keep chanting this mantra often enough, eventually you will believe your own propaganda.
Shame we have to keep putting up with this constant misinformation.
I'm now expecting your usual response of living under bridge, yawns again, scratches ...nether regions etc.

I couldn't agree more. If you look at the quote at the bottom though, really says it all

"I find the Langstroths and the 14 x 12 National hive sizes far to big for the bees I keep.. the OSB are just about right"

I struggle to keep my bees in double brood 14 x 12, wall to wall.