Apiary Diary - August 2021
Updated: Dec 23, 2021
August activities – Top bar hives explained: Hive construction - Colony organisation – Hive management - Honey extraction – Finding out more
August activities
August was a busy month—for us and the bees. We harvested our midsummer West Oxford Honey, which is fairly dark, runny, and strongly flavoured, and it has proved a real hit with our regulars!
We were delighted to provide mini-pots of honey as wedding favours for a local couple (now added to our Shop range).
We also rendered more beeswax in our solar wax melter, and started a new range of pure beeswax candles, melts and mini-melts (more on this next month).
Top bar hives explained
Our focus this month is on the ‘horizontal top bar hive’ (TBH)—its special features, how it compares with UK conventional hives, and its growing popularity. (Strictly speaking the wider family of TBHs includes other 'non-horizontal' hive types such as the vertical Warré hive.)
Our new TBH colony has flourished during its first year. It was from a prime swarm (strong with a ready-mated queen) collected last May from Harcourt Hill, just to the west of Oxford. The hive itself was donated by a wonderful and experienced beekeeper from Old Marston, who constructed it himself. Though pretty much retired from beekeeping, he remains a fount of knowledge and advice!
It is based on the ‘Kenyan’ TBH—a design much used by African farmers to manage colonies economically and sustainably. Unlike commercially produced hives requiring precision tooling, KTBHs can be constructed using materials on hand and basic tools. Key features are explored below, but it's worth noting that TBHs can be good for people who find it difficult to lift the honey-laden boxes of National or Langstroth hives.
Hive construction
The TBH comprises a long, deep box (with sloping sides if Kenyan, straight if Tanzanian), mimicking a hollow log. It is propped up by four legs (splayed for stability), and is
protected by a light roof, which can incorporate insulation. Inside, wooden ‘top bars’ straddle the sides of the box to form a ‘ceiling’ for the colony.
Within the main body are one or two vertical spacer boards that can be positioned to compartmentalise the void, or to regulate the volume of space to be managed by the bees. There is a small entrance (at one end on ours, but on some TBHs they are side-mounted) this can be further reduced to help defend against predators.
The top bars normally have a small, waxed strip on their underside; this encourages comb-building vertically from each bar (we hope!), making for easier inspection and honey extraction. By contrast, more conventional hives employ stacked boxes, each containing rectangular frames (rather than bars) for comb building.
There is a variety of hive models on the market, but they can be made comparatively cheaply and easily if you have reasonable carpentry skills.
Colony organisation
When introduced to the TBH, our current colony was placed within the entrance end, and the initial space was restricted to about half a dozen top bars (less than a quarter of the total space). This concentrates the brood comb (with eggs and larvae) near the entrance, so that ‘nurse’ bees are more readily available should they need to join guard bees to defend against wasps or other attackers.
As the colony has grown, we have periodically moved the spacer board rearwards into the vacant space, adding more top bars each time. This gives the bees space in which to expand, while keeping the comb direction orderly. Spare honey tends to be stored in combs away from the entrance, and can be harvested from that end without disturbing the colony unduly.
Hive management
TBHs are often used by beekeepers who favour natural---or low intervention—methods. TBH management tends to involve less frequent inspection, and so less disturbance of the colony. This approach brings certain benefits.
The bees are freer to build their comb optimally. (Conventional hives often ‘guide’ bees into building what the beekeeper wants.) This means that they can more efficiently construct the right comb configuration, which can vary according to its purpose, when and where it is needed. It could be for raising worker bees, drones or queens, or storing honey or pollen, or for structural purposes, such as ventilating, strengthening or defending the hive.
Being less interventionist reduces the chance of damaging hive structures; consequently, instead of spending their time fixing the beekeeper's clumsy mistakes, the bees can concentrate their energy on the important tasks of hive hygiene, grooming, ejecting pests, and getting the ventilation just right—making for a healthier colony!
Comb and honey extraction
A preoccupation for TBH beekeepers is encouraging comb to be built the ‘right way’ from the start. It needs to be suspended from each bar along its long edge, since comb that is built across adjacent bars (‘cross-comb’) makes removing them later for extraction an extremely difficult and messy job!
Honey extraction is normally achieved through removing a bar with full comb intact, and then crushing and straining the comb. It is normally fixed to the sloping inner sides of the hive, so needs to be freed with a long-handled L-shaped cutting tool. The combs can be large and may have more pollen than conventional honey frames—especially those nearer the brood. The large sheets of comb are often excellent for ‘chunk honey’ (comb section in a jar of honey), or for ‘cut-comb’ honey (a simple block of honey-filled comb).
As with other hives in their first season, we did not take any honey this summer. It will see the bees through the winter and early spring, and help them get off to a good start next year.
Finding out more about TBH beekeeping
There is growing interest in TBHs amongst UK beekeepers, and there is a wealth of web-based information and videos, such as those produced by TBH 'guru' Phil Chandler.
In August I attended a wonderful ‘top-bar’-themed meeting of the Oxfordshire Natural Beekeepers Group, held in stately home grounds in North Oxfordshire. Group members run an impressive range of hive types, ranging from conventional, to top bar (horizontal variants and Warrés), and even traditional skeps. It was a great opportunity to exchange ideas and experiences, and after lunch, we were was shown two Kenyan TBHs in the field, and observed a wild colony living high in a tree hollow (the bees’ natural home!). This was all topped off by freshly cut honeycomb spread on home-made sour dough bread—unforgettable!
Social media interest groups sharing advice include Facebook UK Top Bar Beekeepers https://www.facebook.com/groups/537317383059293/ .
Mark, Botley Meadow Bees, 30 August 2021