my first problem with warré beekeeping

[benji]

hey this is my first time on this forum and i posted this problem in the top bar thread but im gonna post it here to coz its seems more appropriate... help me out if u can !
i have just started my first warré hive and everything thing has been going great , except due to the fact that my frames are top bar only and have no side bars to the frames the comb is being attatched to the side of the box, ( in future i think i will build with a side bar to the frames to stop this) so far this has been fine as i just loosen it with my hive tool, but being a learner (!) i didnt loosen one properly and 2/3rds of the comb has dropped off to the bottom of the box. if it was just honey comb id take it out but it has brood in it. what should i do ? take it out and let them start again? leave it and will they continue to look after the brood in the fallen comb? lets us know what u thnk !!

[KQ6AR]

If the hive is strong I'd recommend just removing it. If they really need the extra bees you might be able to tie it to a frame like us lang guys do.

[benji]

ok cool , they are only a young hive, but they seem to be doing well, but maybe ill see if i can tie to the frame first . thanks mate!

[Paul McCarty]

If tying it doesn't work, you can rig up a set of wire hooks to hang it from a top bar. Usually a piece of heavy gauge hardware cloth stapled with heavy duty staples and bent at an angle will work - if you cut out the horizontal wires where the comb can be pressed onto it.

[odfrank]

If you don't want the combs attached to the box, change to a modified Warre with frames or a Langstroth. It is my understanding that classic Warre beekeeping is minimal intrusion, and worked by the box, not the individual comb.

[Steven Ogborn]

If you really think you need it, use two hair clips and cable zip-tie them to the top bar. You can also just stand it up in the
corner or against the wall of the hive until the brood emerge, then remove it.

[benji]

excellent, thanks everyone! i reckon ill build some modified warré frames and replace the few they havent built comb on and just be more careful with th remaining , and ill try one of the above methods to try and get the broken comb reattached

[Zonker]

Its not legal here but dealing with boxes instead of frames really works. I open my bees twice a year and am giving away hives to all my fellow bee keepers that can't keep their hives alive. I think old Warre had it right.

[benji]

yeah i don thinks its legal in australia either, how are you able to check to make sure there are no extra queen cells growing/check for disease etc, if you are only checking 2x a year? is it not a problem?

[Zonker]

I don't mess with them. They're on their own. but .... I've got a group of friendly old winos that sit on the porch across the street. They come get me when the bees swarm. Catching swarms makes up for a lot of mistakes.

[benji]

damnit! i need a coupla winos to sit watch over my bees !

[Zonker]

They're very handy to have around but you end up having to share your beer. They were very suspicious of the honey I gave them. Never seem the stuff before, but once they figured out what it was they were the kings of the neighborhood. Bragged all over the place. I had every bum in a three mile radius stopping by to beg for honey. They also bragged about not being scared of the bees, which was a complete lie. The entire block evacuated the first time it happened. They came running down the street yelling "your bees got out, your bees got out!"

[Bubbles]

To Zonker:

[SteveBee]

I think anyone who decides to use Warre hives has done quite a bit of reading and understands the different style of minimal beekeeping. Warre's goal was to keep bees as naturally as possible. In a natural hive, there is no one to look for extra queen cells or disease. The bees survive if they can and swarm when they want. The beekeeper has some control over swarming by providing enough space for the colony to expand instead of leave.

As far as having to cut the combs from the side to inspect, we use a long bread knife (the same tool used in TBH) to cut the combs from the wall. But, the whole idea is to NOT inspect but once or twice a year. I'm no expert...we installed a swarm in our first Warre last summer and they seem to be doing well.

We have a link to a free pdf to Beekeeping For All by Warre on our website under the Book Tips tab if you'd like to read it.

I'm going to talk to my partner and see if he'd be interested in selling packages of winos this spring. I'll keep you posted.