michael, 3 tbh questions

[markalbob]

1. You seem to favor top openings, for a variety of reasons that seem quite practival. I was just wondering about your thought son cleaning out the bottom of the hive though--I see some recommend bottom entrances for the bees to clear debris, dead bees, etc. Thoughts? What do you do?

2. Reducing the entrance opening is also quite common in winter. In your case you just shim the one end of your cover up. Do you partially block the entrance in the winter or leave it open alll the way across?

3. In tbhs, many start bees with a false back and say 10 bars--is this done rather than just popping them in with all 24-30 because otherwise they draw comb all over and end up with a sloppy and hard-to-defend nest?

Thanks,
Mark

[Michael Bush]

>1. You seem to favor top openings, for a variety of reasons that seem quite practival. I was just wondering about your thought son cleaning out the bottom of the hive though--I see some recommend bottom entrances for the bees to clear debris, dead bees, etc. Thoughts? What do you do?

My observation hive has a bottom entrance, yet I see house bees all the time hauling bees to the top to try to take them out and eventually find their way to the bottom and out the tube. It makes no difference. Dead bees accumulate sometimes on the bottom over winter and get cleaned out sometime in late spring regardless of where the entrance is.

>2. Reducing the entrance opening is also quite common in winter. In your case you just shim the one end of your cover up. Do you partially block the entrance in the winter or leave it open alll the way across?

I partially block it. More to prevent robbing than for any other purpose.

>3. In tbhs, many start bees with a false back and say 10 bars--is this done rather than just popping them in with all 24-30 because otherwise they draw comb all over and end up with a sloppy and hard-to-defend nest?

It gives them a space they can manage better and they are more likely to build straight comb when they are restricted some. I have not bothered to build a follower board. On my TTBHs which will take regular medium frames, I start them in a five frame nuc, move them to an eight frame box and then a ten frame box and then the top bar. On the KTBH, I just put them in.

[markalbob]

thanks Michael!