order of brood

[Cuckmere couple]

either when creating a double bb or adding a nuc extension

is there a rule of thumb for how you arrange the brood

i have generally gone for more brood below and tried to ensure the mostly capped is below with few bia frames above (warmth for eggs and new foundation for drawing) with more stores in upper box too

thoughts and guidance very welcome please

thanks all

 

[Finman]

either when creating a double bb or adding a nuc extension

is there a rule of thumb for how you arrange the brood

i have generally gone for more brood below and tried to ensure the mostly capped is below with few bia frames above (warmth for eggs and new foundation for drawing) with more stores in upper box too

thoughts and guidance very welcome please

thanks all

I have not arranged brood, and I have not heard that anybodyeither does.
Combs have different thickness, and they are better to be in same order

Every now and then I swap the boxes, that bees consume combs evenly.

So, to change the combs order is a wrong habit.

 

[Ian123]

When sticking another box on I generally place it on top I will often place a frame of sealed/emerging brood into the top box. Just consider you are removing it from the bees natural cluster/brood area, sealed brood will deal with that better. It still draws bees up and the queen generally gets up there and lays as it emerges. The bees will sought out what order they want it in.

 

[Angry_Mob]

I'd keep the brood in the middle of the two boxes. If you think about how bees when swarming or naturally arranging their nest in trees stay in a ruby ball shape.

I've never differentiated in capped and unsealed when doing so.

 

[Ian123]

I've never differentiated in capped and unsealed when doing so.

Well 1 requires feed warmth and attention the other pretty much looks after it’s self. Much the same as when making up nucs sealed brood is a far better addition.

 

[Poly Hive]

When I add a 2nd BB I put it below and super above at the same time and leave them too it.

PH

 

[Finman]

I'd keep the brood in the middle of the two boxes. If you think about how bees when swarming or naturally arranging their nest in trees stay o.

Naturally in the box hive bees tend to keep the brood area round.

 

[ericbeaumont]

I have not arranged brood, and I have not heard that anybody either does.
Combs have different thickness, and they are better to be in same order
Every now and then I swap the boxes, that bees consume combs evenly.
So, to change the combs order is a wrong habit.

I do arrange brood and I've heard that everybody does!

Combs of differing thickness are a complete pain: why pay for Hoffmans and not use them? I work with flat combs throughout (and can swap combs) by keeping Hoffmans tight. Comb bulging at the top of a frame is flattened with a hive tool to keep it that way.

As with Ian and CC, I agree that as sealed brood needs less heat it can go below or near the nest perimeter, but usually in a compact block. If colonies are booming I may zebra frames here and there - frame of brood, frame of foundation or comb - to encourage rapid expansion, but that depends on what's in front of me and not a general recipe.

 

[Poly Hive]

Working the brood box is a phrase that is widely misunderstood and seemingly not only in the UK. It works and works well and increases the populations by a marked percentage as underused combs are bruised and or removed to make room for foundation which keeps the wax workers busy and out of mischief.

Nothing new about it, been done for decades.

PH

 

[Cuckmere couple]

thanks all, useful contributions

i wasnt suggesting shuffling it

i was meaning to encourage brood into a double bb when you are on say 9 frames of brood...would you have 5 below and 4 above etc

 

[Angry_Mob]

Well 1 requires feed warmth and attention the other pretty much looks after it’s self. Much the same as when making up nucs sealed brood is a far better addition.

If your double brooding a hive it should be fairly strong already; the minimal gains from faffing with categorising brood IMO doesn't warrant the effort, eventually those cells will be capped anyway. A split it would be worth while as they are generally not strong colonies.

Naturally in the box hive bees tend to keep the brood area round.

There is a number of factors I suppose such as the climate, shape of the hive, strain of bee etc, I was actually thinking of a double nuc with 6 over 6 frames when I replied which is closer to a tree cavity shape than a normal hive.

thanks all, useful contributions

i wasnt suggesting shuffling it

i was meaning to encourage brood into a double bb when you are on say 9 frames of brood...would you have 5 below and 4 above etc

I'd do 5 over 4.

 

[Finman]

i was meaning to encourage brood into a double bb when you are on say 9 frames of brood...would you have 5 below and 4 above etc[/QUOTE]

You cannot encourage brooding. Bees do it by themselves.

You succeeded to pick .a distaster model from advices.

The heat economy is the most important when you add boxes
.You spoil the bees' order with you ideas.

.

 

[Poly Hive]

Its time wasted and a disturbance the bees don't need. If you put the box under they will expand into it when they have the requirement to do so. Too much messing about goes on.

PH

 

[Finman]

If your double brooding a hive it should be fairly strong already; the minimal gains from faffing with categorising brood IMO doesn't warrant the effort, eventually those cells will be capped anyway. A split it would be worth while as they are generally not strong colonies.



There is a number of factors I suppose such as the climate, shape of the hive, strain of bee etc, I was actually thinking of a double nuc with 6 over 6 frames when I replied which is closer to a tree cavity shape than a normal hive.



I'd do 5 over 4.

Beehive has nothing to do with tree cavity.

6 +6 is not double brood, about what we are talking


If you have 6+6 double nuc. It has 4 cold side frames, to where the queen does not lay.

This simple issue goes now too far. Simple thing. Poly Hive has a good recipe.

 

[Finman]

There is a number of factors I suppose such as the climate, shape of the hive, strain of bee etc, e.

There are not those factors, that I need to arrange the frames special way. Too much imagination.

 

[JonnyPicklechin]

I do arrange brood and I've heard that everybody does!

Combs of differing thickness are a complete pain: why pay for Hoffmans and not use them? I work with flat combs throughout (and can swap combs) by keeping Hoffmans tight. Comb bulging at the top of a frame is flattened with a hive tool to keep it that way.

As with Ian and CC, I agree that as sealed brood needs less heat it can go below or near the nest perimeter, but usually in a compact block. If colonies are booming I may zebra frames here and there - frame of brood, frame of foundation or comb - to encourage rapid expansion, but that depends on what's in front of me and not a general recipe.

Ditto

 

[Finman]

.

Have you noticed, that when you put a swarm into a box, the bees start to build the nest from one side. The queen goes too into that side. Bees do not start from the centre.

 

[Finman]

As with Ian and CC, I agree that as sealed brood needs less heat it can go below or near the nest perimeter, but usually in a compact block. If colonies are booming I may zebra frames here and there - frame of brood, frame of foundation or comb - to encourage rapid expansion, but that depends on what's in front of me and not a general recipe.

Sealed brood, you are kidding that you are Moving frames all the time from place to place.

Madness !!!

All brood need same temperature because a frame has usually different age of brood. Frames are not in age classes.Today capped brood in this place and next week there are eggs. And next week larvae.

I use to move honey frames upwards from brood boxes, that bees do not need to move honey many Times.

 

[Finman]

Thousands of tricks what are not needed in hive Management. Good heavens...

A good thread title. It revieles how much vain things guys can do in hives in theory. I do not believe that many do there stupid things in practice. It is enough when you inspect queen cells weekly.

 

[Hivemaker.]

Beehive has nothing to do with tree cavity.

It does, a lot of them are still made from what goes around a tree cavity.