super hive

[wtiger]

I had a quick question.  Would it be possible to build a super hive?  By which I mean say you had 4 or 5 hives and you stole a frame or two from each to strengthen another hive throughout the spring.  Would said hive produce exceptional honey yields, given good forage of course, or would it be nothing but a super swarm producer?  Everyone keeps saying that 1 really strong hive will produce significantly more honey than 2 weak hives.  This would seem like an excellent way to do that and in late summer or fall could be split 2 or 3 ways.  It shouldn't be all that detrimental to the dolor hives either since you would spread out the load.


Just brain storming.  What does everyone thing?

[Michael Bush]

Yes you can build a super hive.

"As was our custom, I had built up several colonies to great strength by adding frames of brood and bees from other colonies. One colony of great strength swarmed just as the picnickers arrived. Our State Inspector, Yost, weighed the swarm and reported it weighed exactly 25 pounds. It looked as though as many more bees remained in the hive so they estimated that colony must contain at least two hundred and fifty thousand bees - many more of course, than could be the product of one queen."--Better Queens, Jay Smith

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesbetterqueens.htm#The%20Desire%20for%20Better%20Cells%20Intensified

And you can see both how it is done and what the result often is by the above quote...

[bailey]

the cutout i did sunday was 2 feet wide, 12 to 13 feet tall and 3 combs deep.
i would call that a superhive for these parts.

they filled one deep and a medium on the spot and were bearding the first day at home.
i will add a second medium tomorrow if the swarm calls slow down.

bailey

[JP]

Yes you can build a super hive.

"As was our custom, I had built up several colonies to great strength by adding frames of brood and bees from other colonies. One colony of great strength swarmed just as the picnickers arrived. Our State Inspector, Yost, weighed the swarm and reported it weighed exactly 25 pounds. It looked as though as many more bees remained in the hive so they estimated that colony must contain at least two hundred and fifty thousand bees - many more of course, than could be the product of one queen."--Better Queens, Jay Smith

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesbetterqueens.htm#The%20Desire%20for%20Better%20Cells%20Intensified

And you can see both how it is done and what the result often is by the above quote...

25 pounds!!!!

...JP

[Brian D. Bray]

Yes you can build a super hive.

"As was our custom, I had built up several colonies to great strength by adding frames of brood and bees from other colonies. One colony of great strength swarmed just as the picnickers arrived. Our State Inspector, Yost, weighed the swarm and reported it weighed exactly 25 pounds. It looked as though as many more bees remained in the hive so they estimated that colony must contain at least two hundred and fifty thousand bees - many more of course, than could be the product of one queen."--Better Queens, Jay Smith

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesbetterqueens.htm#The%20Desire%20for%20Better%20Cells%20Intensified

And you can see both how it is done and what the result often is by the above quote...

Must have been as big as a wine barrel.

[wtiger]

nice. From that it looks like it could be a superb way to make splits if you're looking for some really fantastic queens.  build them up like crazy. Wait until there are swarm cells then split up the colony with a swarm cell in each nuc or hive body....