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Hi guys,
I'm still very new to beekeeping and I noticed that some apiaries have two or three brood chambers and one or two supers. Is there a reason why there are not more supers? I mean, it's certainly possible that I've missed some that have more than two but I haven't seen any so far.
And is the reasoning for three brood chambers that it will create more bees and thus, give you a higher output with more frequent honey extractions?
Any advice you could provide would be greatly appreciated.
In FLorida, I can't imagine you needing three brood chambers. It is my impression most get along with one in your endless summer. Unless you are talking about mediums and then two would probably serve. The number of supers you require depends on how strong your bees are when the plants in your are are blooming and putting out nectar. It also depends on what is growing in your area. For a hobbyist three supers should be a great plenty. That way you can have two on while you extracting the fullest one and putting it right back on wet from the extractor. Small hive beetles of course have something to say about this too--and I don't have them, yet at least.
Always remember the brood chamber is not the size of the box, it's whichever ones the brood is actually located in.
Welcome to Beesource!
> I noticed that some apiaries have two or three brood chambers and one or two supers. Is there a reason why there are not more supers?
You must not visit the right apiaries! :D
http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/f...l/DSC_0337.jpg
The photo above is linked from a Michael Palmer post in this thread:
http://www.beesource.com/forums/show...ers-off-safely
Thank you for the responses guys, I greatly appreciate it.
So with the supers, how do you decide the right amount to put on there?
With proper frame manipulation, one deep is all you need for a brood chamber. Only super when you have bees to fill/occupy it. We usually end up with 3 deeps above the excluder, but then again we do not have a small hive beetle issue either.
Crazy Roland