Hear about my very first swarm capture and what I learned from it. We got some great film of the queen laying eggs! Also get a peek at what makes our top bar so special!
Cool ............a wonderful idea you have there designing the cover and the size of the top bar to facilitate the longstroth super for honey collection. certainly with the top bar you would have less lifting and interruption of the colony.
@@BloomWhereYourePlanted dont give up, beekeepig is a work of patience , sometimes things dont go as we wanted, if you can keep strong enough in the off season then they will have the advantage when the honey flow starts up.. the reall efforts are in the the off seasons i realize. Blessings.
Having comb in a top bar hive is certainly a good idea to attract and retain bees. If you build a TBH it is a good idea to make your bars the same length (not width) as the frames used in your area. Bars seem to work best with a width of 36-38mm or about 1.5 inches.
O.K. first of all I have followed your channel and I can't believe you are commenting on my site! EXPERT IN THE HOUSE PEOPLE! Yes, you are right. I have dislexia so length & width have always been a challenge for me! I leave all that up to my bee keeping buddy & master carpenter, who has crazy skilz! I will have to ask him the width of the bars because it is certainly not working out for us at this width. CROSS COMB! but it could be the width of the V of wood in the middle and the edges? Anyway thank you for entering my humble house of bee keeping. I am in awe of you! I have been looking into the horizonal hives & wondering why I did top bar in the first place? Cross comb is a huge problem for us.
@@BloomWhereYourePlanted if you start by putting bars into a Lang to get them started, between two drawn frames, you will have nice straight combs to start the TBH. After that, always add fresh bars between drawn bars and they should continue to build straight. The main thing is to keep the brood area on straight combs, it's nice to have in the honey area as well, but less critical: you always want to be able to check brood, but it doesn't matter so much if the honey area becomes a little creative. Good on you for making videos of your adventure! I don't consider myself an expert - that's a dangerous claim for anyone dealing with bees. I'm alway willing to look at new ideas and have an open mind about most things. And yes, the horizontal frame hive is a good option - I have one myself - as long as you remember that it is managed differently from both a standard Langstroth and a top bar hive!
Next time lock the queen into a queen cage for several days and feed them sugar water. If you have old combs throw them in there for the smell. Bees are more likley to stay if the hive smells used. Also pre-waxing the bars will help the bees to start building the comb.
I love your video n your hybrid top bar hive. I've ordered 2 packages for this coming spring and plan to work on splits this summer. I think I'll build a hive like yours n try it out. Thanks for the insights!! And good luck to you!
Thanks Matt, I have still not been able to use the top feature because of various set backs. My bees are healthy now & have filled out the bottom so I think this is the year! Good luck with your packages. I love hearing from other beeks!
A Swarm at the Door ~ It was the thought that count. NICE TOP BAR BUILD! I'm going to try and 'box 1 of 2 Wild 'hives' i have in yard. I'm hope i don't fail them - even though they do the work. : } Cheers!
Bees are Magic I got my first hive last year in May . And then ....27 swarms showed up Even experienced Scouts paying me a visit before a swarm ... Aloha
Wow, how wonderful!Bees are so amazing.God created so many magnificent creatures it boggles the mind.I don't know anything about bees.We are blessed with a bee keeper, the next town over from us.From what I understand, the honey you buy in the store, is boiled and a lot of the good stuff is killed off.How great is that to have your own bees! :)
Thank you! Bee keeping is amazing! Spring time is the time to start so if you study up & prepare this could be you in Spring! If you are going to buy bees you have to order them way in advance because they sell out. We order in Jan & Feb here.
I lost my first captured hive (captured from a friends cable box). But a new feral hive arrived in the same spot, so I caught the 2nd hive and it was way bigger. I was able to string 7 top bars worth of comb and they are much happier now.
Great Earl! I am so happy for you. I know it was such a let down to lose that first hive! I have 3 hives now, the one in the video and 2 I caught in a swarm trap. Welcome to the world of bees! Thanks for commenting. I love to hear other peoples bee adventures!
I obtained some bee was strips and melted them onto the top bar. The bees took to it immediately. The secret to keeping the bees there is to provide a mason jar full of sugar water configured so the bees to get at it while they go about their building a comb.
Lovely video. Where did you get the plans for your hive. I want to use a Langstroth as a swarm hive then move them into a top bar. Love the high lid for honey super too.
Hi Lois, Thank you , I am loving my bee keeping adventure. I started a swarm in a Lang Nuc box all Winter then tranfered it in the Spring. Here is a link to a video(not the best quality, I have a new camera now, but might be nice to see it done) th-cam.com/video/NkYv5PHTIgw/w-d-xo.html I don't have plans for that top bar because my brother in law helped me build it and he is a wood working wonder! There is an easier hive design that a friend of mine has that is also a Lang/Top bar hybrid. Let me send an email to him and see if he can send us plans.
Awww. The same thing happened to me. I was just painting it though so I was able to finish up & hive the swarm up. Were you able to get it? One trick though is to shut up the hive once you have them in there with net/wire. Because I have had swarms leave before. That was so disappointing! Oh I hope you were able to get it!
Thanks for reminding me. I saw that once, but had forgotten. That might really help to prevent that cross comb. I was so frustrated when I did my Fall check. Both hives were building across the bars. I couldn't tear up all their honey stores so I had to leave it for Winter. I will get into them this Sat & I am sure it will be a mess! Maybe I will spead a weekend putting that foundation strip in! Thanks again for taking the time to tell me.
Thank you Herbert, No it is not too late. Where are you? I ask because you might have to feed them sugar syrup during the dearth(dry time) if you are near Dallas.Good luck!
A caught swarm is anxious to build comb, but your hive was not the spot they had chosen. In cooler temperatures one can staple a bit of window screen over the entrance for a day or two. If the bees had another location that they wanted to move to this (locking them in) will erase that from their mind. Once a bit of comb is created the queen will begin to lay, eggs will anchor the swarm. Do not try attempting this in extreme hot temperatures as the bees will die. Feed is not needed as the honey crop will be full. Good luck
Sorry such a late reply. We were on vacation camping. We had fun! We have not been able to use the honey box yet. The bees keep building cross comb so we really tear them up getting them straight. I am hoping we have them on the straight now and can add the boxes soon. cross your fingers!
@@BloomWhereYourePlanted Start some additional bars in the Langstroth and insert a nice straight comb every couple of bars until you have more bars drawn out.
Hi Jess (is that your name, right?) Northern Italy call Texas. :) I've built a ten bars top bar hive as a swarm trap but also as a hive (in my plans it will become a modular hive in the future) and I'm starting this new adventure all alone :) You've been so inspiring for me. You can't imagine how much. In Italy your honey box is the Virdis Method for avoiding swarming in spring. I've got just a question: why did you remove a frame also from the honey box? Aren't you afraid that bees filled all the space in the cover-roof?
Hi all the way from Italy! So fun to hear from bee keepers from all over the world! Oh it is hard to do bee keeping alone, but you can do it. Pray for a bee keeping friend & God will send one your way! So glad I could be an inspiration. Not sure I understand your question? I have to let the hive open for the honey box to be filled. Oh maybe I should put covers on the honey boxes! Great idea! See that is why I love making friends on the net because you guys help me learn to do bee keeping better. thank you. My name is Dash it is a nickname. My real name is Anne-Marie, so it is from the dash - in my name;)
I will ask my brother in law, He built it for me. I haven't been able to use the top honey boxes yet. The bees I have in there seem to be taking their time to fill it out! I can't wait to put those boxes on! Cheers, Dash
I just recently looked into horizonal hives. I am in agreement! I really like the idea of the support of the comb & a solution to cross comb which has been a problem. Thanks, love to hear from other beeks. There is so much to learn! Cheers, Dash
Thank you Jesus for sending a swarm, how wonderful.
Watching from kenya ,I 💕 this!
What a great video! I like the honey box idea. It'll be great to see how well it works.
This helps start the bees also dip your bottom strip of your frames in 100% bees wax it helps with the scent and they usually stay
Cool ............a wonderful idea you have there designing the cover and the size of the top bar to facilitate the longstroth super for honey collection. certainly with the top bar you would have less lifting and interruption of the colony.
Thank you it works in theory, but unfortunately I have had bad luck getting the colony strong enough to use that feature?! Maybe this year?
@@BloomWhereYourePlanted dont give up, beekeepig is a work of patience , sometimes things dont go as we wanted, if you can keep strong enough in the off season then they will have the advantage when the honey flow starts up.. the reall efforts are in the the off seasons i realize. Blessings.
Having comb in a top bar hive is certainly a good idea to attract and retain bees. If you build a TBH it is a good idea to make your bars the same length (not width) as the frames used in your area. Bars seem to work best with a width of 36-38mm or about 1.5 inches.
O.K. first of all I have followed your channel and I can't believe you are commenting on my site! EXPERT IN THE HOUSE PEOPLE!
Yes, you are right. I have dislexia so length & width have always been a challenge for me! I leave all that up to my bee keeping buddy & master carpenter, who has crazy skilz! I will have to ask him the width of the bars because it is certainly not working out for us at this width. CROSS COMB! but it could be the width of the V of wood in the middle and the edges? Anyway thank you for entering my humble house of bee keeping. I am in awe of you! I have been looking into the horizonal hives & wondering why I did top bar in the first place? Cross comb is a huge problem for us.
@@BloomWhereYourePlanted if you start by putting bars into a Lang to get them started, between two drawn frames, you will have nice straight combs to start the TBH. After that, always add fresh bars between drawn bars and they should continue to build straight. The main thing is to keep the brood area on straight combs, it's nice to have in the honey area as well, but less critical: you always want to be able to check brood, but it doesn't matter so much if the honey area becomes a little creative.
Good on you for making videos of your adventure! I don't consider myself an expert - that's a dangerous claim for anyone dealing with bees. I'm alway willing to look at new ideas and have an open mind about most things. And yes, the horizontal frame hive is a good option - I have one myself - as long as you remember that it is managed differently from both a standard Langstroth and a top bar hive!
Next time lock the queen into a queen cage for several days and feed them sugar water.
If you have old combs throw them in there for the smell. Bees are more likley to stay if the hive smells used. Also pre-waxing the bars will help the bees to start building the comb.
I love your video n your hybrid top bar hive. I've ordered 2 packages for this coming spring and plan to work on splits this summer. I think I'll build a hive like yours n try it out. Thanks for the insights!! And good luck to you!
Thanks Matt, I have still not been able to use the top feature because of various set backs. My bees are healthy now & have filled out the bottom so I think this is the year! Good luck with your packages. I love hearing from other beeks!
A Swarm at the Door ~ It was the thought that count. NICE TOP BAR BUILD!
I'm going to try and 'box 1 of 2 Wild 'hives' i have in yard.
I'm hope i don't fail them - even though they do the work. : } Cheers!
Nice hive... 👍...
Bees are Magic I got my first hive last year in May .
And then ....27 swarms showed up Even experienced Scouts paying me a visit before a swarm ...
Aloha
Thank you. I’m in Georgia. The Atlanta area.
Wow, how wonderful!Bees are so amazing.God created so many magnificent creatures it boggles the mind.I don't know anything about bees.We are blessed with a bee keeper, the next town over from us.From what I understand, the honey you buy in the store, is boiled and a lot of the good stuff is killed off.How great is that to have your own bees! :)
New sub. That was so amazing. I want to start a hive.
Thank you! Bee keeping is amazing! Spring time is the time to start so if you study up & prepare this could be you in Spring! If you are going to buy bees you have to order them way in advance because they sell out. We order in Jan & Feb here.
Agreed. Keep the queen there and they'll stay
I lost my first captured hive (captured from a friends cable box). But a new feral hive arrived in the same spot, so I caught the 2nd hive and it was way bigger. I was able to string 7 top bars worth of comb and they are much happier now.
Great Earl! I am so happy for you. I know it was such a let down to lose that first hive! I have 3 hives now, the one in the video and 2 I caught in a swarm trap. Welcome to the world of bees! Thanks for commenting. I love to hear other peoples bee adventures!
I obtained some bee was strips and melted them onto the top bar. The bees took to it immediately. The secret to keeping the bees there is to provide a mason jar full of sugar water configured so the bees to get at it while they go about their building a comb.
Lovely video. Where did you get the plans for your hive. I want to use a Langstroth as a swarm hive then move them into a top bar. Love the high lid for honey super too.
Hi Lois, Thank you , I am loving my bee keeping adventure. I started a swarm in a Lang Nuc box all Winter then tranfered it in the Spring. Here is a link to a video(not the best quality, I have a new camera now, but might be nice to see it done) th-cam.com/video/NkYv5PHTIgw/w-d-xo.html
I don't have plans for that top bar because my brother in law helped me build it and he is a wood working wonder! There is an easier hive design that a friend of mine has that is also a Lang/Top bar hybrid. Let me send an email to him and see if he can send us plans.
I built some new hives, a neighbor called with swarm before I was done☺️
Awww. The same thing happened to me. I was just painting it though so I was able to finish up & hive the swarm up. Were you able to get it? One trick though is to shut up the hive once you have them in there with net/wire. Because I have had swarms leave before. That was so disappointing! Oh I hope you were able to get it!
On my bars, i inserted about a 2 inch long honeycomb plastic and covered it with beez wax, so the new bees have something to attach the new comb to!
Thanks for reminding me. I saw that once, but had forgotten. That might really help to prevent that cross comb. I was so frustrated when I did my Fall check. Both hives were building across the bars. I couldn't tear up all their honey stores so I had to leave it for Winter. I will get into them this Sat & I am sure it will be a mess! Maybe I will spead a weekend putting that foundation strip in! Thanks again for taking the time to tell me.
Hello, great video btw. In your opinion, is it too late to start a top bar hive from a strong Nuc?
Thank you Herbert, No it is not too late. Where are you? I ask because you might have to feed them sugar syrup during the dearth(dry time) if you are near Dallas.Good luck!
A caught swarm is anxious to build comb, but your hive was not the spot they had chosen. In cooler temperatures one can staple a bit of window screen over the entrance for a day or two. If the bees had another location that they wanted to move to this (locking them in) will erase that from their mind. Once a bit of comb is created the queen will begin to lay, eggs will anchor the swarm. Do not try attempting this in extreme hot temperatures as the bees will die. Feed is not needed as the honey crop will be full. Good luck
Didn't watch the video, just gave a like for the piano intro.
Thank you! My talented daughter does all the piano for our channel. I will tell her you liked it!
Did the added honey box work?
Sorry such a late reply. We were on vacation camping. We had fun!
We have not been able to use the honey box yet. The bees keep building cross comb so we really tear them up getting them straight. I am hoping we have them on the straight now and can add the boxes soon. cross your fingers!
@@BloomWhereYourePlanted Start some additional bars in the Langstroth and insert a nice straight comb every couple of bars until you have more bars drawn out.
Hi Jess (is that your name, right?)
Northern Italy call Texas. :)
I've built a ten bars top bar hive as a swarm trap but also as a hive (in my plans it will become a modular hive in the future) and I'm starting this new adventure all alone :)
You've been so inspiring for me. You can't imagine how much.
In Italy your honey box is the Virdis Method for avoiding swarming in spring.
I've got just a question: why did you remove a frame also from the honey box?
Aren't you afraid that bees filled all the space in the cover-roof?
Hi all the way from Italy! So fun to hear from bee keepers from all over the world! Oh it is hard to do bee keeping alone, but you can do it. Pray for a bee keeping friend & God will send one your way! So glad I could be an inspiration. Not sure I understand your question? I have to let the hive open for the honey box to be filled. Oh maybe I should put covers on the honey boxes! Great idea! See that is why I love making friends on the net because you guys help me learn to do bee keeping better. thank you. My name is Dash it is a nickname. My real name is Anne-Marie, so it is from the dash - in my name;)
can you share design plans for the hive you have?
I will ask my brother in law, He built it for me. I haven't been able to use the top honey boxes yet. The bees I have in there seem to be taking their time to fill it out! I can't wait to put those boxes on! Cheers, Dash
где Вы находитесь?
muy buen video, un saludo y si quieres pasate por mi canal, me suscribo el tuyo, un saludo.
Where are you located?
I am in Dallas Texas. Where are you at? Do you have bees or thinking about getting them?
Dash
Bloom Where You're Planted Toledo Ohio I have one top bar that overwintered well!
I don't like top bar as the combs are so fragile....Know from 5 yrs experience. I went to horizontal Langstroth
I just recently looked into horizonal hives. I am in agreement! I really like the idea of the support of the comb & a solution to cross comb which has been a problem. Thanks, love to hear from other beeks. There is so much to learn! Cheers, Dash
🙄