Farmer Ed

Keep in mind, we don't claim to have carpentry skills.  We got the plans here http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?=f155490ac5b87c8d2d3026fe84a6ab1c

Here are the layout instructions http://topbarbees.wordpress.com/about/design/  The big plus to this project was learning how to use free google sketchup CAD program. 

The boys and I have enjoyed learning some carpentry skills.

We 1st made a template for the faces of the hive.

 

So far so good it looks like the drawing

Notice on the lower right of the hive we cut in a window to peek in on the bees.

If you look real close you can see blood strains where we got lacerated trying to bend the roofing aluminum.  There has to be a better way of bending it or use a different material.

We put a door on the hive body window

Now for the top bars

The bees are suppose to build their comb on the sharp edge... you can encourage them by painting some wax on the edge also.

 

Bees didn't find much nectar this fall so their winter stores of honey aren't what they should be... We feed them sugar water in a bird bath to give them a hand.

The owner said the paint job cost $75,000. 

 

 

We have 1 colony of bees that started hard and fast early in the spring and hasn't slowed down since... the bottom 2 boxes are the bees home and the top 4 boxes are where they are making honey for us. Those 4 boxes represent 120 honey bears of honey which we sell for $3.00 ea at the farmers market. Needless to say, I talk real nice to this colony. 

Here is a colony that we started from scratch this spring...  To start a colony you take some frames of bees, eggs etc and put them into a new box the bees will make their own queen and if everything goes right you can make a box of honey the very 1st year.   As you can tell we make all the boxes ourselves from plywood and need to purchase very few things for our apiary.