Hello Peter & All,
In a prefect bee world what Peter describes is so. Of course many bees do
not read the books which says what the bees are supposed to do.

My opinion.

First when a strong honey flow is on with a hive of bees with say 60,000
bees. Enough bees when you pull all the supers all have a tough time even
fitting in the hive problems arise.

First consider:
*If* the nectar was all passed as the books and peter suggests then why
would the bees completely plug the brood nest forcing the queen to stop
laying or at least find it hard to find cells to lay in. A common issue in
strong hives especially early in a strong major honey flow. In my opinion
the reason is that the foragers when a bee to pass the nectar to is not
found simply place the nectar in the first cell ( not around the brood area
as is correct and head back for another load. Others when a house bee is not
found to pass the nectar to simply head up through the hive.

When I ran hives in poor repair ( first 30 years with a many different
former owners brands) I noticed in a strong honey flow the bees would many
times avoid the bottom entrance and use the various openings between boxes
or augur holes. For the first 30 years I cared little about the way my hives
looked as long as the equipment was sound enough to move. I built an
operation with other peoples cast offs.
Thus through observation I observed in a *strong* honey flow the orderly
system *described in books* fell apart.

I observed thousands of my foragers would sit evenly spaced on the front of
the hive trying to evaporate moisture from the nectar placed in the *brood
nest*. Wearing their little wings out.

Possible the Langstroth design was
wrong I pondered. I tried different designs.

 I then came to the conclusion
that crowding in the brood nest area was preventing the ventilation needed
to evaporate the honey. I needed to clear the brood nest of some of those
bees passing nectar I thought.

 I then opened entrances above the queen
excluder. House bees moved up (above the brood nest and excluder) to collect 
the nectar from the forager bees and place in the super cells. The bees 
outside fanning disappeared and my
honey crops (in side by side comparisons) improved.

Less swarming for sure.

In my opinion creating an upper entrance for the bees at a time when the
system written about in books (which the bees seem to never read much less
pay attention to!) fails to work as described helps with swarming and
increases honey production and in my mind without a doubt keeps brood
production at peak levels.

I do not want nectar stored in the brood nest during a honey flow. In fact
my prolific Italian line will lay solid brood (without all stages of brood
and with hundreds of holes from brood with a single varroa mite pulled and
dropped 20 feet out the entrance by hygienic bees) What a waste of bee
resources at the late stage of the pupae after tying up the cell for days.
Hygienic bees = shotgun brood pattern and all stages of brood.

My prolific Italian line = solid brood pattern to within a inch of the
outside of the frame. All bees emerge at the same time and the prolific 
queen
quickly fills the cells.

I almost did not write the above because so contrary to what some say.
However one has to have respect for the elders and I was keeping bees when
many of the so called experts were still in diapers!

The above is my opinion. Some will print this post and save or commit to
memory. Others will try and quote a research paper to try and prove the
above wrong.

Others will say "How dare Bob say a con about our beloved hygienic bees" . I 
will treat and kill varroa before I watch half the brood pulled in late 
stage and tossed 20 feet out the entrance. In my opinion a queen with poor 
brood viability and a hygienic queen can be similar in brood production. The 
bees are constantly pulling brood in both but one difference is with poor 
brood viability the bees are usually eating eggs which is better in my 
opinion than pulling brood.

The people on the hygienic side will say the bees are opening the cells and 
pulling varroa. If so then why the shotgun pattern? It is true apis cerana 
leaves a hole in its drone brood for this reason. I see very little of this 
in apis mellifera ( some for sure) but a bunch of pulling late stage pupae. 
researchers say the pupae is ate by the bees but not what I have observed. I 
see bees starving pulling late stage pupae and eating but in a normal hive 
it seems the pupae is simply removed from the hive. The cell is tied up for 
days. Royal jelly and nurse bee labor is wasted.

The above is my opinion .

 Let the roar begin!

bob

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