>Date: Sun, 20 Apr 1997 13:03:18 -0600 >To:[log in to unmask] >From:[log in to unmask] (Ed Levi) >Subject:Re: comb honey > >>> In one of Richard Taylor's books, he recommends crowding bees down >>> into one brood chamber just before the honey flow, in order to get the >>> maximum comb honey production. I've always kept two brood chambers for >>> fear of swarming. Have any of you used his method? Any cautions? >>> >>> Thanks, bill mares c.v.u. high school, Hinesburg, Vt. >> >>As a large commercial producer of Ross Rounds, I always used that >>(former) method. Yes, you will get swarms some of the time, but you will >>always get lots of comb honey. >> >>Allen > >Crowding or blocking the queen during a honey flow is something I learned >while keeping bees in France. It makes lots of sense when you think about >the fact that you want lots of bees duringr the flow and not necessarily >afterwards. Also, consider that most of the honey and nectar that bees >make is used to produce brood. By reducing the brood area, more surplus >is produced. Of course, swarming risks rise with more crowding. > >Ed Levi >couple hundred hives - 25 years of learning (& counting) >