I have been back and forth with some hard core Langstroth fans and I would like to remind everyone that the Langstroth hive is a commercial design invented in Victorian times (1851 or thereabouts) for the purpose of making beekeeping profitable, while the top bar hive is a wonderfully simple design which has come to [...]
From Kim Flottum of Bee Culture magazine, slightly modified for top bar users.
1) When you get your packaged bees home, spray the sides with a 1:1 sugar mist to settle and feed the bees.
2) Get your hive ready by removing half the frames or top bars from the middle of the box.
3) Pry off the [...]
The following is excerpted from an article found on Mr. Chandler’s excellent website, biobees.com. Mr. Chandler is British and a seminal figure in the sustainable beekeeping movement. The brackets and illustrations are mine.
“Whether you approach it from the point of view of conservation, entomology, crop pollination or simply a love of honey, beekeeping [...]