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Hi Chris, thanks for the link (some other really interesting stuff on that site too). Not sure that I'm totally sold on the idea but it is an interesting perspective -I like beekeepers who think outside of the usual confines.Quote:
Originally Posted by chris
If you use a fine mesh on your Snelgrove board you have most all the brood above the board and the laying queen in a different box below with 2 supers between
That's a similar to a tall hive in that most of the varroa are now a long way from the broodnest
On the subject of shallow boxes this is quite an interesting perspective:
TWO-QUEEN COLONY MANAGEMENT FOR PRODUCTION OF HONEY United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service, August 1958 ARS-33-48 by C. L. Farrar, Entomology Research Division—
Full manual can be read here: http://archive.org/stream/twoqueenco...8farr_djvu.txtQuote:
A shallow hive body for both brood chambers and supers has advan-
tages when intensive management practices are applied to either single-
or two-queen colonies. Early in the evolution of hive equipment, shallow
brood chambers fell into disrepute because they were used to restrict
brood rearing in order to force more honey into the supers. The
resulting small colonies neither produced nor survived the winter as
well as those in deeper hives. All these early hives were small by
present standards, because multiple brood chambers are now used with
all sizes of hive equipment. The size and shape of the hive units have
little effect on production if enough are used for brood rearing, food
reserves, and the storage of surplus honey. Success is determined by
the skill of the operator in providing space at the right time and in the
proper place to conform with the bees' normal behavior.
----------------
Shallow super combs will be filled and sealed more rapidly than
standard combs. This permits prompt removal of supers for extracting
so that they may be returned for refilling, thus reducing the amount of
equipment required to produce the crop. Shallow square hive bodies help
to limit the height of the hive and reduce the gross weight of full supers.
Beekeepers who have used them like them even though they must handle
more units.
Shallow equipment has advantages not only for the productive season
but also in the overwintering of large colonies. The space between brood
chambers favors the movement of bees within the winter cluster.
Eleven-frame modified Dadant shallow supers or even standard 10-frame
shallow supers can be used, provided there are a sufficient number to
give adequate hive capacity.
Shallow equipment is more expensive than deeper equipment, since
more frames and hive bodies are needed for a given hive capacity. Cost
is not proportional to size, because labor costs are greater than mate-
rials in the manufacture and assembly of beekeeping equipment. This
disadvantage may be offset by gains from labor saved in management
and higher yields from better colony control. Consideration of shallow
equipment will generally apply to the purchase or construction of new
equipment rather than to replacement of usable equipment of a less
desirable type.
Taken from the CL Farrar quote above:
I also wonder whether this same arrangement using shallows may help optimize pheromone distribution through the brood nest.Quote:
....Shallow equipment has advantages not only for the productive season
but also in the overwintering of large colonies. The space between brood
chambers favors the movement of bees within the winter cluster.