Che Guebee Apiary: How NOT to manage a Top Bar Hive

Monday, December 31, 2012

How NOT to manage a Top Bar Hive

I would like you to see this video. This beek never learned how to properly inspect a top bar hive and as you will see he is making a few cardinal mistakes;

1. he is not brushing off the bees before tossing the comb into the bocket, killing many bees and pissing off those who survived the drop

2. he is starting to pull out top bars from the middle of the colony instead from one end.

3. he is not detaching the comb braced to the walls before pulling out the top bar comb

4. top bars in a Kenya Top Bar Hive are not spaced but are tightly fit together forming a closed roof underneath the actual roof. In his case you can see the bees gluening the top bars to the roof. As he takes off the roof some of the top bars follow with the roof braking away from the comb which later collapse causing much stress to the bees and possibly can kill the queen.
I have never seen such bucher-style-top-bar-hive-manipulation before!

Please dont follow his example!

If you want to learn how to manage Top Bar Hives go to youtube and search for OutOfaBlueSky , he makes very good educational videos on top bar hive beekeeping.

2 comments:

AnonymousJanuary 2, 2013 at 1:38 PM
Che,

I couldn't watch the video to the end. He's so clumsy and unthinking - sad for him and for the bees. Hopefully, he will learn and move forward.

Regards,
Mike
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Dusko Bojic aka Che GuebuddhaJanuary 5, 2013 at 11:50 PM
Hi Mike.

A few of us from biobees.com forum left comments on this vid with some very good advice but he deleted them (roll eyes
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What is Natural Beekeeping?

"Natural Beekeeping" is a concept, an idea which springs from a human mind and as such will differ from one person to another, from one culture to another, depending on our limited and conditioned perception about what it IS being a Honeybee. Since natural beekeeping is an idea and not the actuality it is not to be taken rigidly. Instead it is to be directly inspired by the Actuality. But let's avoid going too philosophical about it and let me simply describe how I see "natural beekeeping" benefiting honeybees (these are only guidelines not a dogma);

- free wax comb construction resulting in clean wax and various cell size

- bees overwinter on their own honey stores (feeding sugar syrup ONLY if absolutely necessary)

- lots of peace (low interference from the beekeepers part)

- treatment free (The only way to have a sustainable system of beekeeping is to stop treating, instead making splits from survivor colonies seems the most natural way to me)

- bees are allowed to raise as many Drones as needed (no drone culling)

- natural Queen selection resulting in the strongest Queen (no queen cell culling and only working with local Queens or my own)

- pesticide free bee zone and supporting organic farming (this is a global issue and must be dealt with locally first through environmental organisations and by buying and growing organic food/clothing, etc ...)

- expanding my apiary every year by making splits using Queen Cells from my own strong survivor colonies or catching local swarms. This is the best way to counteract winter losses.

- planting for the bees flowering trees, bushes and plants covering all seasons. Biodiversity is the best healer for the bees and all other creatures.

Natural Beekeeping

Monday, December 31, 2012

How NOT to manage a Top Bar Hive

2 comments:

Catching my very first Prime Swarm