Patty, said "I'm only a second year beekeeper with three hives comprised of
two deep brood boxes and medium honey supers.  I have found that I am so
intimidated by "dismantling" the bee hive that I do not tend to the
brood nest as I should.  I think the long hive system will be of benefit
in this respect."

Patty, I, for one, would hate to see you embark on using the long hive
described.  I once saw one of these hives in France, where a beekeeper kept
it as a novelty.  They have also been the subject of much experimental work
in the US, for just the reason you mention.  However, the fact that they
have not caught on is because they just don't work very well!

This type of hive is best left to the more expert beekeeper who is willing
to constantly fool with the bees to get them to occupy the entire "long"
hive.  When wild bee nests are examined, they always are built up and down,
as bees are very reluctant to move sideways.  I once saw comb from a feral
hive in a barn that had to extend 12 feet in length, but only about 3 feet
in width!  Yet the bees could have easily built it 10 or more feet wide.

However, I can certainly understand your intimidation as a deep is very
heavy to move, and in mid summer is certainly "full" of bees!  Perhaps the
following will help you enjoy your bees more:
* You may be inspecting your bees too often.  Every time you inspect the
bees you disturb their somewhat fragile organization and communication
systems and they take several days to recover.  Inspections too often reduce
the honey crop and mean that one has to contend with upset bees more than
necessary.  Try the following schedule:
* When the dandelions bloom, look at the brood nest.  Do this by taking out
one of the end combs and setting it aside.  Move the next comb into its
place (don't pick it up to look at it).  Pick up the third comb.  See brood
in a nice pattern?  If yes, put the comb back in its place, move the other
comb back into its place, and put the end comb back in.  You are done!  If
the brood pattern wasn't nice, look at the following comb.  If that is nice,
you are done.

Refer to any one of the general books on beekeeping to see pictures of what
a "nice" brood pattern should look like.  It is very unlikely that you will
see a brood nest that requires intervention.  If you think you do, contact a
member of your local bee club and ask them to come over and look at it with
you.  Take my word for it, they will be glad to do so!

* Every month thereafter, do the same.  A quick look for eggs and/or larvae.
When you see them, put the frame(s) back, and you are done!

* When you put on supers (when the dandelions bloom), take them off for
extraction, medicate, and put on mouse guards, you do not need to disturb
the brood nest.  In fact, it is best if you do not!

* Change from using deeps for a brood nest to using mediums.  Three mediums
are roughly the equivalent of two deeps.  A medium full of honey weighs
about 55 pounds.  A deep weighs about 80 pounds.  In addition, there are
fewer bees in a medium than in a deep, so less intimidation.

I suggest you do this in two stages.  This year, when the dandelions bloom
take away the bottom deep.  The bees will be mostly in the upper hive body,
and the bottom will be mostly empty.  Carry it a dozen or so feet away, put
a cover on, be certain the bees inside have a way out, and leave it.  Most
of the bees will go back to where the other deep is all by themselves.  Two
or three days later, look in the hive body you carried away.  There will
probably be very few bees.  If there is some brood, put it back in the other
deep, taking out a frame with no brood (be certain you leave the hive at the
original location with at least two frames filled with sealed honey).
Hopefully, the queen will not be in the body you carried away.  If she is,
carefully carry the frame she is on back to the original location and put it
in the remaining hive body.

Put two extracting supers on top of the hive body at the original location,
the bees will use these to expand their brood nest.  Sell or trade your now
empty hive body you set aside; or use it to make a new hive.  Have the bees
draw new extracting frames.  Overwinter with the deep on the bottom and two
mediums above.

In the spring of 2001, the deep on the bottom will be empty, move it aside
and, again, add one extracting super for the final expansion of the brood
nest into three mediums.


Once you have a couple of years under your belt of really enjoying your
bees, and not being intimidated, you can get into more specialized areas of
beekeeping, that require more manipulation.  These areas, such as production
of comb honey, collecting pollen, and even queen production, will greatly
increase your satisfaction and expertise.  I think a key to it will be
changing your hive set up to a more manageable system of using mediums as
your brood nest.

Good luck,

Lloyd
Lloyd Spear, Owner, Ross Rounds, Inc.  The finest in comb honey production.
www.rossrounds.com