Screened bottom boards

[BILLY BOB]

Hello all!

I have a question, that I'm sure I could find if I keep reading back through the BB. I live in North Georgia 30 miles East of Atlanta. I want to know if the use of screened bottom boards are a seasonal tool (spring, summer) or a year around item. The winter temps. here average 40's high and 30's low, with a few weeks each year that the temp. drops into the 20's or teens. Thanks for any info. on this!

Billy Bob

[Robert Brenchley]

Use them all the year round. Your winter sounds colder than ours, but since I put my bees on mesh bottoms last summer, they've managed temperatures down to 20F with no problems at all that I could see. Both clusters look good, but the test will obviously come in the next couple of months.

The most obvious advantage I've seen so far is that I can keep them on permanently reduced entrances, which minimises robbing. there were very few wasps round the hives last year, while the year before they were a problem.

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Regards,

Robert Brenchley

RSBrenchley@aol.com
Birmingham UK

[tworedroseman]

Billy Bob: Don't know how many hives you operate but it's a simple matter to make or buy screened bottom boards with a slide in panel to handle the colder temps that we have on occasion here in the South. Roy

[Andrey]

I am in Marietta, GA. I have cople of hives with screened bottom boards all year around and they wintering just as good as ones with out it.

[ckinser]

Billy Bob
I am close to the same area as you and made my own bottom boards. I built my screen board with a bottom slot that has a cover that slides in and out.That way i can have a open board or switch to a closed one with just the slide of a cover. Twenty degrees cold and allot of wind might just do a colony in. If you are interested and have the tools to make them i will send you the plans. Cheers chris