Some pics to amuse and even inform?

[Queens59]

I love the Stewerton Hive! Were they practical?

 

[Poly Hive]

There is a story about the Stewerton men. It is a village in Argyl and Bute.

Now this hive is a top bar style, and is arguably dependant on bee space: so who discovered bee space first? *grin*

Now there was a huge exhibition in London so the story goes and the beekeepers from Stewerton swept the board with their comb honey.

Then went home, pulled out the BEST combs, and set to in the LOCAL honey show where the real competition was.....LOL

 

[nonstandard]

I love the Stewerton Hive! .......

It seems you can buy one if you want, and have enough money!

Stewarton Hive

 

[Queens59]

Ha! I'd have to sell the kids and even then I'd probably only manage the delivery charge!!

 

[Poly Hive]

Friom Wikipedia

Langstroth was popularly credited with discovering the "bee space," though this discovery had already been implemented in European hives. In Europe, both Jan Dzierżon and August von Berlepsch had been focused on side-opened hives. Land resources in Europe had been limited, and traditionally bees were kept in beehouses. The presently so-called “bee space” had been incorporated by Berlepsch following Dzierzon’s discoveries, from the years 1845-1848, into his frame arrangement (Bienen-Zeitung, May 1852). Langstroth made many other discoveries in beekeeping, and contributed greatly to the industrialization of modern beekeeping.

Langstroth revolutionized the beekeeping industry by using bee space in his top-opened hive. In the summer of 1851 he found that, by leaving an even, approximately bee-sized space between the top of the frames holding the honeycomb and the flat coverboard above, he was able to quite easily remove the coverboard, which was normally well cemented to the frames with propolis, making separation hard to achieve. He later used this discovery to make the frames themselves easily removable. He found that, if he left a small space (less than 1/4 inch or 6.4 mm) between the combs, or between the combs and the sides of his hives, the bees filled it with propolis, cementing the combs into the hive. On the other hand, when he left a larger space (more than 3/8 inch or 9.5 mm), the bees filled it with comb.

On 5 October 1852, Langstroth received a patent on the first movable frame beehive in America. A Philadelphia cabinetmaker, Henry Bourquin, a fellow bee enthusiast, made Langstroth's first hives for him and by 1852 Langstroth had more than a hundred of these hives and began selling them where he could. Langstroth spent many years attempting to defend his patent without success. He never earned any royalties because the patent was easily and widely infringed. Langstroth hives are still in common use today.

So the Stewerton was invented in 1819, and Langstroth took his patent out in 1852.

Says it all really....

PH

 

[Poly Hive]

Some wax pics.

Some of there were submitted in the Photo class of the Nat honey show.

PH

 

[Poly Hive]

More

 

[Poly Hive]

More wax... plus wiring!

PH

 

[Poly Hive]

More foundation of various types and aphids! Honeydew!!

 

[Poly Hive]

Honey judging now...Aberdeen and District Honey Show.

Alaistair Lilburn of Aboyne, judging. He knew Mr Wood personally, and who was he I hear you ask: think of Acarine....

 

[Poly Hive]

The Hon Sec hard at work, and I bought my very first bees from him.

Some lovely honey.

PH

 

[Poly Hive]

Judging in progress.

Tools of the trade.

 

[Poly Hive]

Some good ones and some not so good...

PH

 

[Poly Hive]

Mead class and checking viscosity.

 

[VEG]

LOLhe looked like he was going to enjoy testing/tasting the mead.

 

[Bee-Key-Pur]

Great photos, what happened to the judges glasses?

 

[Poly Hive]

Judging a section.

 

[Poly Hive]

Very good but wet cappings. Will lose against cappings to the same standard but with a good air gap.

The Bakery classes, hotly competed for by the women folk mainly but the odd brave man ventures forth...lol

PH

 

[Poly Hive]

Three nice frames and the cut comb class.

Missed them out so next one down. LOL

PH

 

[Poly Hive]

Two lots of cappings let down by lack of air gap, and the wax class.

PH