New renegade beekeeper Stirlingshire

[Moobee]

I'm not even sure what that is supposed to mean. What are "circumstantial lessons"?

I wonder how BDIs deal with inspecting such a colony and what the course of action is should they be found to be infected with foul brood? Would the entire thing have to go on a bonfire?

James

Just light the thing on a stick I reckon!

 

[JamezF]

Since Chris Parks got a mention earlier in the thread, I found an article he wrote some time back that says for a disease inspection of a colony in a skep he has to cut the combs out and then try to fix them back in somehow.

In the case of the Hiive it doesn't look like that's possible. I'd guess it would be quite likely to destroy the colony.

James

 

[Erichalfbee]

Since Chris Parks got a mention earlier in the thread, I found an article he wrote some time back that says for a disease inspection of a colony in a skep he has to cut the combs out and then try to fix them back in somehow.

In the case of the Hiive it doesn't look like that's possible. I'd guess it would be quite likely to destroy the colony.

James

How would that work James, I wonder
I do full disease inspections on my colonies once a year in the autumn and a less intrusive one in the Spring

 

[emmac79]

If I’m ever coming up your way, I’ll bring you some. Chris Parks is right, and his mead is gorgeous! He brought some with a talk he did, and we all had some.

Thank you! Yes, I'm booked on to his skep bee keeping course in July and I'm banking on him bringing some

 

[Mabee]

I’ve been following the thread with interest, lots of interesting views but I do have a genuine question for those of you who are interested in skep beekeeping.

Why the skep?

What I know about skeps: The skep is a man made invention for keeping bees, one which I assume (maybe wrongly) that won’t overwinter very well. It’s also probably too small for a colony. It was designed by us to keep bees before we realised a hive with moveable frames was a better invention. We can still choose to inspect or not but it is a better size and would overwinter better.

Is the skep purely about aesthetics? or is out somehow better for the bees? I can’t think how a straw basket is more natural than a wooden box…

 

[emmac79]

I’ve been following the thread with interest, lots of interesting views but I do have a genuine question for those of you who are interested in skep beekeeping.

Why the skep?

What I know about skeps: The skep is a man made invention for keeping bees, one which I assume (maybe wrongly) that won’t overwinter very well. It’s also probably too small for a colony. It was designed by us to keep bees before we realised a hive with moveable frames was a better invention. We can still choose to inspect or not but it is a better size and would overwinter better.

Is the skep purely about aesthetics? or is out somehow better for the bees? I can’t think how a straw basket is more natural than a wooden box…

I’d ask Chris Park

Horses for courses, I guess. I’m drawn to it for different reasons but it’s like asking why anyone is interested in anything?
They are certainly smaller than conventional hives, that’s very true.

 

[Mabee]

I’d ask Chris Park

Horses for courses, I guess. I’m drawn to it for different reasons but it’s like asking why anyone is interested in anything?
They are certainly smaller than conventional hives, that’s very true.

I’m asking anyone on here, including Chris if he’s here…?
I was asking quite a specific question about skeps so not like asking anyone about anything…
What are your different reasons? That’s what i’m interested to know.

 

[roche]

I’ve been following the thread with interest, lots of interesting views but I do have a genuine question for those of you who are interested in skep beekeeping.

Why the skep?

What I know about skeps: The skep is a man made invention for keeping bees, one which I assume (maybe wrongly) that won’t overwinter very well. It’s also probably too small for a colony. It was designed by us to keep bees before we realised a hive with moveable frames was a better invention. We can still choose to inspect or not but it is a better size and would overwinter better.

Is the skep purely about aesthetics? or is out somehow better for the bees? I can’t think how a straw basket is more natural than a wooden box…

It sort of speaks to me about some romantic rural idyll...
I am pretty sure that skeps are illegal in NZ, due to the inability to manage disease. Overall, you would have to think that hives with removable frames have got to be better for the bee, which is after all the point of beekeeping.

 

[Mabee]

It sort of speaks to me about some romantic rural idyll...
I am pretty sure that skeps are illegal in NZ, due to the inability to manage disease. Overall, you would have to think that hives with removable frames have got to be better for the bee, which is after all the point of beekeeping.

That’s what i’m thinking, it’s an aesthetic or romantic notion but happy for someone to explain otherwise.

Skeps were made by people with those materials and skills in order to keep bees to help feed their families, i’m sure it wasn’t romantic for them, simply a means to an end. They would have had little knowledge of bee behaviour or even if it was a good way to keep them. In order to keep the bees healthy, the comb would have to be replaced at some point so all the bees would have to be removed not just one frame. So i’m hoping to understand what benefit it has to bees over a waterproof wooden box with moveable frames.

 

[user 20297]

It sort of speaks to me about some romantic rural idyll...
I am pretty sure that skeps are illegal in NZ, due to the inability to manage disease. Overall, you would have to think that hives with removable frames have got to be better for the bee, which is after all the point of beekeeping.

Amateur beekeeping itself "speaks to me about some romantic rural idyll.".
Why on earth do any of us keep bees at all? So far, two years in, my honey has cost me hundreds of pounds per kilo. For that money, I could have bought a greater quantity of the best, most accredited, genuinely good, commercially-produced honey, and avoided all the effort and angst and given myself more time and brainspace for other things....but I enjoy my ham-fisted beekeeping the way it is.

People like a challenge and some people don't measure the wellbeing of their bees in terms of their productiveness. Is it possible that with skeps and with some other non-mainstream forms of beekeeping, the bee ill-health that we regular beekeepers are rightly obsessed with, are less likely to occur? No genuine beekeeper will continue with a more challenging form of beekeeping if they find that it harms their bees.

 

[pargyle]

I’m asking anyone on here, including Chris if he’s here…?
I was asking quite a specific question about skeps so not like asking anyone about anything…
What are your different reasons? That’s what i’m interested to know.

It's a very valid question and the lack of a specific answer probably tells you something. Some people are drawn to an esoteric principle and the antiquated acoutriments that go with it ... is there a practical reason for even considering using skeps these days to keep bees ? ... Probably not.

I have a friend who has an 1890's penny farthing bike which he occasionally rides .. is it practical (no), does it work (yes of a fashion), is it easy to ride (No) ... it's not even comfortable to ride. Would it be made today for people to use (No - for a variety of reasons, time has moved on)

Why does he do it ?... He says he enjoys being different and likes the attention he gets from onlookers when he rides past. His day to day ride is a carbon fibre frame modern bike which meets all the cycling criteria that the penny farthing does not.

So... perhaps in that analogy you can find your answer to the question ....I accused my friend of being an exhibitionist (nicely) and he agreed.

 

[Anduril]

Skeps have been around for about 2,000 years, so not really a romantic idyll. In medieval days those who kept skeps for candle making for the church, if they committed murder they were beyond reproach, their trade was too important. One way of moving bees from one skep to another, would be by beating the side of an upturned skep and driving them into a skep above. There used to be competitions, who could drive the queen up and be the first to find it. Some skeps had another skep on top the one below had a hole with queen excluder iirc. Covering them in cow pat and keeping them in bee boles was enough against the rain, wind and cold. Other ways for collecting the honey would be to kill the bees with sulphur and crush and strain the honey and render the wax.

 

[Anduril]

Drumming the sides

 

[Boston Bees]

Drumming the sides

After this they moved on to the human sacrifice part of the day

 

[Anduril]

https://www.bee-craft.com/articles/the-skeppistIn one of the photos he has used skewers to put the comb back in place.

 

[Mabee]

https://www.bee-craft.com/articles/the-skeppistIn one of the photos he has used skewers to put the comb back in place.

I know this is one of the processes but I can’t see how that is kind to the bees at all, it’s a bit like a shook swarm. Making the bees move out of their hive and start again, abandoning brood in the process doesn’t seem very fair to the bees.

 

[Mabee]

I have a friend who has an 1890's penny farthing bike which he occasionally rides .. is it practical (no), does it work (yes of a fashion), is it easy to ride (No) ... it's not even comfortable to ride. Would it be made today for people to use (No - for a variety of reasons, time has moved on)

Why does he do it ?... He says he enjoys being different and likes the attention he gets from onlookers when he rides past. His day to day ride is a carbon fibre frame modern bike which meets all the cycling criteria that the penny farthing does not.

I think that’s fine, he’s enjoying his hobby without any harm to anyone or anything else, good on him!

Beekeeping is completely different i’m sure you’ll agree, as it affects the whole bee colony, a living organism, and as others have mentioned with regards to possible diseases, could affect other bee colonies.

 

[Mabee]

Skeps have been around for about 2,000 years, so not really a romantic idyll. In medieval days those who kept skeps for candle making for the church, if they committed murder they were beyond reproach, their trade was too important. One way of moving bees from one skep to another, would be by beating the side of an upturned skep and driving them into a skep above. There used to be competitions, who could drive the queen up and be the first to find it. Some skeps had another skep on top the one below had a hole with queen excluder iirc. Covering them in cow pat and keeping them in bee boles was enough against the rain, wind and cold. Other ways for collectingj the honey would be to kill the bees with sulphur and crush and strain the honey and render the wax.

The only issue I see there is the modem hive wasn’t invented for those 2000 years. Had they thought of it sooner and been able to produce it easily enough, surely they would have seen the benefits to both beekeeper and bees?

 

[Erichalfbee]

The only issue I see there is the modem hive wasn’t invented for those 2000 years. Had they thought of it sooner and been able to produce it easily enough, surely they would have seen the benefits to both beekeeper and bees?

Yes it’s a bit like saying bees are better off in trees.
When bees first appeared on this planet that’s all there was.
Now we have bee boxes and house roofs and compost bins and traffic cones ….

 

[emmac79]

They would have had little knowledge of bee behaviour.

Respectfully disagree.

I’d love to go into my own reasons but I don’t have a death wish