F.A.Q.

We get lots of questions. Here are a few good ones.

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How big is the Garden Hive?

The hive interior has 25 bars, the clear height inside is a little over 8″ and the bars are 14 1/2″. The volume is around 1 1/3 cubic feet. The top bars are 36″ above the ground. Overall the hive is nearly 4′ long and about 13″ high without the stand.

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Can I paint my hive?

Yes, you can and you should. Cypress is weather resistant and will age to a silver gray if left alone, but for ultimate longevity we recommend a good coat of exterior paint. White is the traditional color but darker colors work well in cold climates. What the heck – be creative! Just don’t paint inside the hive. The queen likes to do her own decorating.

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What is the feeder like?

The feeder is a standard quart glass canning jar with several small holes punched in the lid and set upside down in a cypress block that allows the bees to get at it from underneath. The bees can reach the syrup with their long tongues, but the small holes keep drips to a minimum. There is also no danger of drowning.

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How do I know if I have a 2.0 Garden Hive?

All hives sold after October 1 2010 are 2.0 hives. You can also tell by the four entrance holes versus three for the previous model. We will continue to service all of our hives.

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How do I keep my bees warm in the winter?

Believe it or not, bees can survive sub zero temperatures with no problem so long as there are a couple of 50 degree F days in each winter month so that frozen honey stores can be thawed and moved closer to the cluster. In very cold weather the bees will not travel more than an inch or so to retrieve honey for nourishment and frozen honey will not be accessible to them. If you have very cold winters you have a few options. You can let your bees die and replace them in the spring (not our favorite option and a bit expensive), or you can place your hives in a shelter heated to around 40 degrees or so and provide them access to the outside. In this way you will prevent the honey from freezing, but not have the temperature so warm that the bees are lured outside where they will perish in the cold. I have heard that some folks winter their hives in unheated basements, providing access to the outside through an opened window or vent. It is quite important that the hive is ventilated so that the condensation of water from the bees’ respiration and from atmospheric conditions does not build up in the hive and chill the bees, resulting in the death of the colony. If you find the hive window glass fogged or frosted you will need to remove the bottom board immediately. Why ventilate from the bottom? Ventilating from the top of the hive allows heat to escape and will make for a hard winter indeed for your bees. If you want to insulate your hive for winter be careful to not wrap it too tightly. Too much moisture in the wintering hive will kill your bees!

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I live in a hot climate. How do I keep my bees from overheating?

Bees cool their hive by evaporating water. They do this by moving air through the hive with their wings. Hundreds of bees will coordinate their wing movements to cool the hive to their preferred temperature of 92-95 degrees F. The beekeeper must make sure there is a constant source of water near the hive. The keeper in extremely hot climates should also place the hive so it is sheltered from the midday sun. Beeswax melts at only 140 – 150 degrees Fahrenheit and softens at around 100 degrees so anything the keeper can do to help is important. Opening the ventilators at the top of the hive box will be helpful in very hot weather.

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How do you help me get bees?

We can find the nearest beekeeping groups in your area. Fellow beekeepers are by far the best sources of knowledge and of bees. While many beekeepers have never used a top bar hive like The Garden Hive, the basics of caring for bees are the same. We also have a page on the site we call “Looking for Bees?” which lists suppliers of hybrid disease resistant and pest resistant bees and queens throughout the U.S.

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I already have a veil and hive tool. Can I save money by not including them?

Of course. We offer a la carte pricing for those who do not need one of our complete packages.

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How long does it take to receive my Garden Hive after I order it?

This year we will have a good inventory of hives for the start of “bee hive season” which for us begins December 1st. Unlike past years when we more or less built to order and kept some folks waiting while we struggled to keep up with demand, this year we will sell out of inventory and when we are out of stock we will pull the sold out items from the web store. Still, you should allow us a week to wrap your purchase and get it to FedEx for delivery to your home.

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The folks in my beekeeping group are telling me not to get a top bar hive. Why?

A couple of reasons. One is that they have never used or possibly even seen a top bar and are thus reflexively opposed to anything different. They do not realize that the Langstroth hives they know are a Victorian-era refinement of the traditional top bar. The Langstroth hive is designed for the commercial production of honey. That’s why they are square and heavy and require mechanical extractors to harvest the honey. Another reason is that some experienced keepers may be worried that a beginning beekeeper might have difficulty managing their bees in the unfamiliar top bar design. Actually, managing a colony in a modern top bar is much easier than in a Langstroth because the observation window lets the keeper view the heart of the hive with no disruption to the bees, and working inside the hive does not require the heavy lifting and angry upset bees that are the result of disassembling the hive down to the bottom box. Bees all have the same requirements and problems no matter what the design of their home and the beekeeping techniques are the same.

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I’m getting a copper roof. How do I care for it?

Good news – you don’t have to do a thing! Your copper covered roof will naturally age and turn darker as time and atmospheric conditions tarnish the surface. If you would like to control the end result there are various formulations which will speed the process along. You can find more information on our copper roof and patinas by clicking here.

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Why is the Garden Hive more expensive than a Langstroth?

The Garden Hive is unique in that it has been designed to not only be a functional beehive but also to be an attractive addition to the home landscape. Our design is meant to serve the various needs of the hobbyist but our focus is and always will be on the needs of the bees. We are careful to never introduce any toxins such as those found in some plywood, paints, or certain plastics into the interior of the hive and we do not need to bring beeswax of uncertain origin into the hive in the form of purchased foundation. In these days of unregulated Asian imports (including the Varroa mite, nosema and small hive beetle!) we feel that our insistence on purity pays off not only for the bees but also for the consumers of the bees’ gifts of honey, beeswax, propolis, and royal jelly.


Each hive is made to order in our shop in North Carolina by an experienced cabinetmaker using the finest of materials. From the select sustainably-grown cypress lumber to the solid brass fixtures on the exterior of the hive you can be assured that your purchase will maintain its quality through many years of productive and ecologically responsible beekeeping. Enjoy!

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