BEE-L Archives

Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

BEE-L@COMMUNITY.LSOFT.COM

Options: Use Monospaced Font
Show Text Part by Default
Show All Mail Headers

Message: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]
Topic: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]
Author: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]

Print Reply
Subject:
From:
Ken Hoare <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Fri, 30 Jul 1999 00:16:44 +0100
Content-Type:
text/plain
Parts/Attachments:
text/plain (132 lines)
May I use these pages to answer both online and offline enquiries regarding
Open Mesh Floors.

I believe these floors originated in Germany and 'Observations on the
Overwintering of Honeybee Colonies in Hives with OPEN and SOLID
Floorboards' by Helmut Horn was written up in the July, 1990 issue of
Beecraft - The Official Journal of the British Beekeepers Association. The
article originally published in A.D.I.Z. (sorry cannot help with the full
title)
November, 1987. A footnote states, "Permission to publish kindly granted by
Helmut Horn" so given more time I will scan in the original and e.mail it to
any
interested party (this may take a few weeks - does everyone's beekeeping
assume a totally chaotic situation as the season winds up? It's not only
bees,
but other jobs to do before winter sets in).

I will need to continue my research but Alistair Reid, a retired architect
from
Leicester exhibit his version of the floor at the 1990 UK National Honey
Show
and was awarded a second prize and a certificate of merit. It was at about
that time that Alistair (is he still into beekeeping??) invited many to join
him in
testing these floors, and personally enjoy experimenting with my colonies,
consequently I willingly accepted the challenge.

An Open Mesh Floor is constructed by making an open framework to the
external dimensions of the brood box, i.e. Langstroth 20" x 16 1/4". To this
is
fixed a wire mesh with 8 wires to the inch. This allows ventilation, in my
recent
experiments varroa mites to drop through, but at the same time prevents the
ingress of predators such as wasps, and of course robbing bees. A small
entrance is cut on one side, obviously above the mesh. The floors are used
on their own, the normal floor being removed.

In use Alistair stated that the stands to the hives need to be about 12" to
18"
high - a good thing in itself saving much strain on the back during
examinations. His idea was that the colony needed to be well away from the
damp soil. The mesh floors are used both summer and winter but during the
winter months about 3" of wood wool insulation is placed between the crown
board (cover board) and normal roof. As previously stated I will need to
wade
through my literature on these floors but from memory the science behind
this
insulation was to reduce condensation dripping onto the colony during winter
months.

I used the floors for about three years and can honestly say that my bees
have never been healthier, and the final analysis of Alistairs researchers I
believe formed the same opinion. I know when I started my experiment I
imagined hoards of wasps clustering below the mesh in the autumn thinking
that was an easy entrance, but have never seen a single wasp trying to gain
entrance via the mesh floor, they had obviously tried but given up finding
the
mesh impenetrable. I never suffered mouldy combs and didn't even bother
about mouse guards, relying on very small entrances. When using these
floors I have never observed bees clustering on the exterior of the hive and
although I have never truly monitored and compare the honey harvests they
all seem to do extremely well. Those that suffer wax moth problems - use a
mesh floor as obviously no detritus forms as on a normal floor (winter
months)
and consequently the moth is out of business (or rather food). But it still
has
the brood combs but did I read that the moth does not like laying her eggs
in
light conditions, such as will be experienced with mesh floors? Did I also
read
that colonies are quieter and easier to handle in such conditions?

Why I discontinued using these floors I cannot tell you, maybe it was some
other experiment that I undertook as it was at about that time that we first
detected varroa in the UK.

As previously stated I read in BEE-L pages of someone's belief that these
floors could be used as a management technique for controlling varroa, the
idea being that many mites fall from the bees, some to fall upon bees lower
down the comb, some to fall to the floor. It is those that fall to the floor
that
manage to scramble back up into the box and onto the bees, hence the
reason that in the UK (and I believe in the States) we were using sticky, or
petroleum jelly covered inserts to 'glue' them down. With mesh floors they
just
drop through the mesh onto the ground below to be consumed by ants and
the like, if it works a totally environmentally friendly method of
controlling mite
populations - but don't forget, it will not control infestations on its own,
chemicals are also likely to be needed but maybe less often.

Some offline enquiries have been along the lines of, "Can I use these floors
in
our severe winters?" I have always firmly believed that cold does not kill
bees
but a damp environment does, BUT ADMIT I HAVE ONLY EXPERIENCE OF
THE UK WINTERS. My advice to those beekeepers is try it on maybe just
one colony, I believe it will have to be extremely cold to kill them (based
on
my method of killing extremely angry colonies by putting the whole hive into
the deep freezer - it takes a long time for the coldness to percolate
through
the cluster). One writer enquired whether with nearly 100% humidity during
the summer and possibly 70% during the winter if these floors would be an
advantage to his colonies. I have no hesitation in stating an emphatic
"Yes", I
am sure the bees would enjoy the fresh, but maybe damp air. But enclose
them in box with just the entrance block removed and they are going to be
damper. There are other alternatives to mesh floors, i.e. the tube design
and
the slatted floor that I have seen used in Germany, but what could be
simpler
than stapling a sheet of wire mesh to  simple wooden surround?

Will help with further information if I can, but when time allows. Have just
received a volunteer to steward in the honey section of the Shrewsbury
Flower Show, but regrettably no beekeepers from the other side of the pond
appear to be visiting the UK on the 13/14 August, pity that, it would be
nice to
make it an international list of stewards.

To the offline writers I apologise for not replying personally, as stated
lack of
time, but don't be surprised if you suddenly hear from me during the winter
months, when I WILL HAVE THE CENTRAL HEATING TURNED UP HIGH
BUT MY BEES WILL BE HEALTHIER, BEING INSTALLED OVER 'OPEN
MESH FLOORS', WITH ALL THEIR ADVANTAGES - AND NO
DISADVANTAGES THAT I HAVE FOUND.

Ken Hoare
[log in to unmask]

ATOM RSS1 RSS2