Northern TBHs should be more vertical...yes/no?

[MrGreenThumb]

Suggestions and comments welcomed.

thx

[Paraplegic Racehorse]

[DISCLAIMER: I have no personal experience with TBHs.]

From what I have read on Alaska and Canadian mailing lists, yes. Colder climates should be deeper hives.

I suspect this has much to do with temperature transfer and stores-thawing. It makes sense that honey stored above the cluster would stay marginally warmer than those stored off to the side. Also, bees have a natural inclination to move vertically rather than horizontally, making stores above the cluster more "available".

My own experiments with non-Lang hives will, this year, be Warre hives. Some are calling these vertical top-bar hives. See http://www.biobees.com/warre/

[enewbold]

From what I have read on Alaska and Canadian mailing lists, yes. Colder climates should be deeper hives.

I suspect this has much to do with temperature transfer and stores-thawing. It makes sense that honey stored above the cluster would stay marginally warmer than those stored off to the side. Also, bees have a natural inclination to move vertically rather than horizontally, making stores above the cluster more "available".

My own experiments with non-Lang hives will, this year, be Warre hives. Some are calling these vertical top-bar hives. See http://www.biobees.com/warre/
I also plan on trying TBH this year. I'm planning on building/installing a "standard" TBH and a Warre to see which one fares better over the next few years.

Ed in Bladensburg, OH

[Michael Bush]

>Northern TBHs should be more vertical...yes/no?

IMO it doesn't matter. Mine are in the north and the TTBH are made of one by eights:

http://www.bushfarms.com/beestopbarhives.htm