Marty Mitchell wrote:
I am thinking that the smaller hive size will...
1. Help the hive be nearly invisible to the neighbors(Stealth!)
Marty Mitchell wrote:2. Decrease the swarm size so they can have more options for a new location(more places to fit) and be less likely to be seen/attacked by humans when they find a new home
Marty Mitchell wrote:3. Increase the amount of times they can swarm in a given year.
Marty Mitchell wrote:4. Make it easier for bees to keep the atmospheric conditions right for a healthy population.
Marty Mitchell wrote:I want something that I can mount high up in a tree permanently and move away for four years. I am in the military.
find religion! church
kiva! hyvä! iloinen! pikkumaatila
get stung! beehives
be hospitable! host-a-hive
be antisocial! facespace
It's never too late to start! I retired to homestead on the slopes of Mauna Loa, an active volcano. I relate snippets of my endeavor on my blog : www.kaufarmer.blogspot.com
Su Ba wrote:Before varroa and hive beetle showed up, we could just open hives for honey harvest. Swarms were common and easy to capture. No more. Regular attention is now required. I hope your area has a healthier bee situation.
find religion! church
kiva! hyvä! iloinen! pikkumaatila
get stung! beehives
be hospitable! host-a-hive
be antisocial! facespace
Using the STUN technique, we can now ignore our trees on purpose.
What might that purpose be? Aside from the obvious cost and labor savings when you don’t hand weed, hoe, cultivate
or mow around trees, one of the most significant benefits of using STUN is the discovery of superior genetics. Think
about it. If you plant 100 trees and ignore them , the only ones that will survive did so because they had some sort of
competitive advantage. Maybe they developed deep roots more quickly than the others around them . Maybe they require
less water or nutrients than the ones that died. Everybody has seen trees growing out of cliffs and observed that som e
trees can survive without any soil at all. STUN allows us to discover which trees are adapted to surviving in the
unamended soil type that exists on a farm .
Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
http://www.permies.com/t/80/31583/projects/Permie-Pennies-France#330873
David Livingston wrote:
If they are wiped out does that not mean that their genetics were not strong enough ? Which is what you want ? Leaving space for those that are "strong " enough
The problem I have with your idea is two fold firstly is practical - bees swarm taking with them the queen ,the sole repository of her genetics so while the queen in year one leaves in the prime swarm leaving her daughter who is only 50% her genetics behind . Over 4 years the queen of the third generation will only have 12.5% of the genetics of the origional queen . So if she fails is this the failure of the genetics of the origional queen ?
Secondly bees are not chickens we cannot deliberatly mate them, who decides what are strong genetics ? Death is the only sorting mechanism ,its very Darwinian the world of bees
I see nothing wrong with either setting up a hive and see who comes after all ,there are many wild places that have had bees for many many years uncared for . Yes sometimes the bees die off but then in a couple of years come back again when the hive has been " cleaned out " by wax moth and the like. There are number of sites in churches I am aware of where this happens .
As for wild vs honey bees for me its not an issue as the honey bee is native here in europe
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I also have lots of mason bees too
Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
http://www.permies.com/t/80/31583/projects/Permie-Pennies-France#330873
David Livingston wrote:If we select ? on what basis would you select and how would you ensure that bees you select dont dissapear with the next swarm ? What happens to those you dont select?
Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
http://www.permies.com/t/80/31583/projects/Permie-Pennies-France#330873
David Livingston wrote:I think we will have to agree to differ I prefer that the bees choose for themselves . I trust the bees and Darwin.
Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
http://www.permies.com/t/80/31583/projects/Permie-Pennies-France#330873
Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
http://www.permies.com/t/80/31583/projects/Permie-Pennies-France#330873
David Livingston wrote:Firstly making a space for bees to be bees is not a new idea it's quite old.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/8594724.stm
Secondly I was thinking about the point made earlier about beekeepers breeding hygienic bees . I have always been a bit doubtful of this idea and have given it some thought about it over the last couple of days .
I wonder about looking at this issue from another direction thinking about evolution and BOTH the bees and the parasite ( continue in next post )
find religion! church
kiva! hyvä! iloinen! pikkumaatila
get stung! beehives
be hospitable! host-a-hive
be antisocial! facespace
Marty Mitchell wrote:If the increase is only 20% I would still be impressed to be honest. If a large hive were producing 200 pounds of honey a year(Just a number someone threw out one time that stuck in my head) and it were to increase by 20% it would then be producing 240 pounds of honey. If selling honey at $8 a pound... that would equate to an extra $320 of income a year per hive. Throwing a few hives into a building could theoretically pay for the building in a single year depending on what/how it is built. Just crunching some made up numbers.
Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
http://www.permies.com/t/80/31583/projects/Permie-Pennies-France#330873
John Wolfram wrote:If we observe nature, we see that bees tend to make their hive in trees, so it would seem that we could get most of the benefits of a hut structure simply by putting the hive underneath a tree. By selecting a distance from the tree trunk, and possibly removing some of the lower branches, the timing and duration of the light exposure to the hive could be adjusted.
find religion! church
kiva! hyvä! iloinen! pikkumaatila
get stung! beehives
be hospitable! host-a-hive
be antisocial! facespace
tel jetson wrote:
John Wolfram wrote:If we observe nature, we see that bees tend to make their hive in trees, so it would seem that we could get most of the benefits of a hut structure simply by putting the hive underneath a tree. By selecting a distance from the tree trunk, and possibly removing some of the lower branches, the timing and duration of the light exposure to the hive could be adjusted.
bees are naturally adapted not just to living under tree canopies, but actually inside of tree cavities. I'm not certain that just being near a tree approximates that arrangement terribly well. the walls of a tree hive, for example, are likely to be several inches thick and with sap flowing through parts of them. there's also likely to be a fair amount of active decay inside the cavity, something that isn't typically encouraged in constructed hives, though some folks are having good luck encouraging a layer of decomposing debris at the bottom of their hives.
that isn't to say that placing a hive under a shelter approximates the natural habitat any better, but it does have some things going for it. most of those advantages can be accomplished without a purpose-built structure, though. supposing it is secured against blowing over, a wide roof placed directly on a hive can provide plenty of shelter from winter precipitation and midday summer sun. windbreaks can be made of living vegetation. a stand can easily be built to accommodate raising one hive above ground-level moisture.
I built a shelter for my beehives several years ago. at the time, I thought it would be a good way to shelter up to 15 hives together. since then, I've realized that I don't actually want that many hives in one place. like David mentioned, hives in close proximity share pathogens. I do still keep five hives in that shelter, but that's the only place I keep more than one hive, and I won't replace them there if any colonies die.
Marty Mitchell wrote:My Favorite... Are there any type of lifeforms that could live in soil placed inside the bottom of a hive that would also eat the invasive mites and such that fall down there? Could be fungi or else.
find religion! church
kiva! hyvä! iloinen! pikkumaatila
get stung! beehives
be hospitable! host-a-hive
be antisocial! facespace
tel jetson wrote:
Marty Mitchell wrote:My Favorite... Are there any type of lifeforms that could live in soil placed inside the bottom of a hive that would also eat the invasive mites and such that fall down there? Could be fungi or else.
book scorpions (Chelifer cancroides) have been observed killing mites (and wax moths). they'll eat dust mites in our homes, too. helpful little critters.
Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
http://www.permies.com/t/80/31583/projects/Permie-Pennies-France#330873
David Livingston wrote:There has been a lot written about sub lethal effects which is a more sciency was of saying worn out . I think its a combination when you have a strong hive with a warm nest they can take on anything but add some weakness due to insecticide , verroa , small hive beatle and it becomes too much for them . Remember though that on average about 50% of feral bees hives die every year which is a good thing because if you do the math otherwise we would be soon up to our necks in the little darlings
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David
David Livingston wrote:
Check out warre hives if you are going to build your own .
David
Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
http://www.permies.com/t/80/31583/projects/Permie-Pennies-France#330873
David Livingston wrote:Another advantage is cost as you can build them yourself
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Compare with the WBC hive now that is beyond my ability although it looks good
David
Marty Mitchell wrote:I do like the houseofbees upgrades they made by using steel mesh instead of canvas on the top insulation support. Steel would be better at keeping rodents out that are likely to be an issue in my neck of the woods. I also like their observation windows and would want some for minimal monitoring and education for the kids and guests.
I am thinking some 2"x8" boards for both strength and insulation. Having a design that is easy to take apart is not as important for me. Just easy basic maintenance.
find religion! church
kiva! hyvä! iloinen! pikkumaatila
get stung! beehives
be hospitable! host-a-hive
be antisocial! facespace
Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
http://www.permies.com/t/80/31583/projects/Permie-Pennies-France#330873
Marty Mitchell wrote:What are your opinions and experiences on that matter?
find religion! church
kiva! hyvä! iloinen! pikkumaatila
get stung! beehives
be hospitable! host-a-hive
be antisocial! facespace
When all four tires fall off your canoe, how many tiny ads does it take to build a doghouse?
Native Bee Guide - now FREE for a while
https://permies.com/wiki/140436/Native-Bee-Guide-FREE
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