[oregonsparkie]

I have read several posts about orientation of brood comb when extracting from a feral hive. Everyone seems to place the brood comb in a hive frame the same way it was in a wall.

WHY??

Does it really matter?? It is more effecient to place the comb horizonally(requires less cuts of the brood comb since the frame is longest horizonally) into a frame rather than several smaller pieces of comb vertically.

 

[bjerm2]

I just never gave it a thought. Guess if you orientate it differently the bees might just let the brood emerge and then abandon it, which isn't all that bad of an idea. This way you would have good brood frame as they develop out of the old stuff.
If you do it the way your thinking let me know how it went. I think most of us would be interested to see if it works. I personally don't see a problem. Might be from the olden days when that was a means of increasing your hives by cutting out the comb and trying to save a little.
Dan

 

[Michael Bush]

Once it's capped it will emerge regardless of the orientation. But it seems like it would be best to put it in it's natural orientation. I tend to leave the comb there and let them fill it in. So I prefer to have it in it's normal orientation.

 

[oregonsparkie]

what about uncapped cells???

It just make sense to me to have 1 longer piece rather than several smaller pieces in the frames.

 

[Michael Bush]

You do understand what the orientation is don't you? The cells are stright, for the most part right and left but they run slighlty downhill. About 12 to 15 degrees or so. That's to hold the honey so it doesn't run out. Of course the bees also use the surface tension of the honey to hold it in as they fill the last of it up.

 

[bjerm2]

<You do understand what the orientation is don't you?>

Michael

Well said.

Dan

 

[oregonsparkie]

I "DO" understand about the nature and angle of the cells within comb. I just wanted to know if this made any difference when extracting a feral hive and putting the comb into empty frames.

 

[BULLSEYE BILL]

When I remember to, I put the cut out comb in upsidedown. That way they either abandon it or rebuild it. I just as soon they abandon it so I can remove it later. It is never as good or as productive as a nicely full drawn frame.

 

[Michael Bush]

>I "DO" understand about the nature and angle of the cells within comb. I just wanted to know if this made any difference when extracting a feral hive and putting the comb into empty frames.

I just wanted to make sure we are all on the same page.

I think partly it depends on what you want to happen. If you want them to abandon it or you want them to fill it in and keep it.

Since cell size and orientation are someting I'm inteested in seeing, I kind of like them to keep using it and I can make more observations and the comb will be the size they originally made it.