Welcome to "Hive Talkin," a six-week journey designed to equip you with the knowledge and confidence to embark on your beekeeping adventure. Each week, we'll delve into a different aspect of this fascinating world, culminating in your ability to choose the right beehive and equipment for your needs. I'll also be sharing insights gleaned from my 25 years of beekeeping experience, from hobbyist to commercial beekeeper and back again.

Part 1: Why Keep Bees?

This week, we're tackling the fundamental question: Why do you want to keep bees? This is a deeply personal question, and the answer should be equally personal. While the plight of bees is a valid concern, it shouldn't be the sole reason you decide to become a beekeeper.

Let's be realistic. Like many species, bees face numerous challenges, and humans are a significant factor. Poor beekeeping practices, the use of harmful chemicals, and the disruption of natural ecosystems through the transportation of species and goods across the globe all contribute to the pressures they face. Human activity, with its globalised movement of goods and species, has eroded natural barriers and created new vulnerabilities. It is widely thought that the Asian Hornet made its way to the UK via a shipping container of vegetables.

However, despite these challenges, beekeeping remains an incredibly life enriching and fascinating hobby. It offers a connection to nature unlike any other, perhaps rivalled only by the experience of space exploration. The world of the honeybee is endlessly captivating, offering a lifetime of learning and discovery. 

The Social Structure of the Hive: A Reflection of Family

If you have a family, you'll find that the skills you learn in beekeeping are directly transferable. The dynamics of a bee colony can offer insights into human relationships, and vice versa. What you know about your family can inform your beekeeping practices, and observing your bees can help you better understand your own family.

Consider this: a bee colony has no single "boss." All the bees work together in remarkable unison for the good of the colony. While we often think of the Queen as being in charge, her reign is finite. Like all bees, her life has a natural span. She may die of natural causes, but more often than not, the colony itself will orchestrate her replacement when her egg-laying rate declines. Even in her passing, she contributes to the future by laying the drones that will mate with the next Queen.

Let's take a simplified look at the four types of bees within a hive. First, there's the Queen. Usually, there's only one per hive. She originates from a worker egg, chosen by the worker bees to become a successor or to establish a new colony.

Next, we have the Workers. A single hive can house tens of thousands of these industrious females. For our discussion, let's use 50,000 as a working number. These 50,000 workers dedicate their lives to the survival of their species, a role they've played since nearly the dawn of life on Earth.

Their lifespan varies. During the active season, when temperatures rise above approximately 8°C, worker bees live for about six weeks. They cycle through various tasks within the hive, starting as "nurse" bees. This encompasses a range of duties, from feeding larvae and cleaning cells to processing nectar into honey, attending the Queen, and distributing pheromones throughout the hive. As they mature, they transition to foraging, travelling miles in search of nectar and pollen. While the typical foraging range is up to three miles, studies have shown they'll venture even further if necessary. Sadly, many worker bees meet their end during these foraging flights, either succumbing to exhaustion or falling prey to birds and other predators. Others perish at the hive entrance, defending their home. It is worth remembering that Honeybees can only sting once then they die, so this is the last thing they want to do, unlike wasps who have a differently shaped sting that allows them to sting multiple times.

Then we have the Drones, the male bees. The Queen begins laying drone eggs before the start of the active season, ensuring they're mature and ready for their crucial role. Their sole purpose is to mate with virgin Queens. A virgin Queen needs to mate with 12 to 20 drones to ensure she has enough sperm to last her entire egg-laying life. The drones die shortly after mating. Any drones remaining in the hive at the end of the season are expelled by the workers to starve they have no purpose and the female workers won't keep them– a harsh reminder of nature's pragmatism.

Finally, we have the Laying Workers. This phenomenon occurs when a hive loses its Queen – either through natural death, accidental killing during inspection, or swarming. In the absence of a Queen, some worker bees will attempt to take over the egg-laying role. This is often a sign of trouble for beekeepers. Laying workers typically lay multiple eggs per cell, often on the cell walls due to their shorter abdomens. These eggs are unfertilised and will only produce drones, leading to the eventual decline and death of the colony. Reversing this situation is notoriously difficult.

If you are looking for a Nuc or Queen for your Hive, we have these available at Hagens, have a look on our website or give us a telephone call to find out more.

Choosing Your Hive: WBC, National, and Langstroth

Now, let's talk about getting you started with your own beehive. There are numerous hive designs, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. For this introductory lesson, we'll focus on three popular options: the WBC, the National, and the Langstroth.

First up is the WBC, named after its creator, William Broughton Carr. This is the hive that often comes to mind when people picture a beehive. Its distinctive double-walled construction, gabled roof, and overlapping lifts provide excellent insulation and weather protection. While it may seem complex at first, the WBC offers significant benefits, particularly in its thermal regulation. The air gap created by the double walls helps maintain a stable temperature within the hive, crucial for brood rearing and overall colony health. The WBC typically houses 10 frames in the brood chamber. One advantage of the WBC is that the outer lifts can be decorated, which helps the bees orient themselves to their hive. A potential drawback is its smaller brood area compared to the other two designs, which can lead to earlier swarming. Inspecting a WBC hive also involves more steps due to the extra components, but there's no need to rush this part of the inspection process.

Next, we have the British Standard National Beehive. Developed through a collaborative effort involving the British Standards Institution, the British Beekeepers Association, and other organisations, the National hive was designed to standardise beekeeping practices in Britain. It's a popular choice in the UK, and you'll likely be encouraged to use it if you join your local beekeeping association. The National hive typically holds 11 frames in the brood chamber. Its widespread use makes it readily available in various materials, like cedar and pine. While it's a common choice, it does have its critics.

Finally, we have the Langstroth hive. Named after Reverend Lorenzo Lorraine Langstroth, who is widely credited with its development, although some credit goes to Johann Dzierzon with the initial concept of the movable frame. Regardless of the exact origins, the Langstroth hive, with its emphasis on easily removable frames, is the most widely used beehive in the world. Larger than the WBC and National hives, the Langstroth typically holds 10 frames in the brood chamber. Its larger capacity can be advantageous, providing the Queen with ample space to lay eggs, which can help reduce swarming. The Langstroth frames also hold more honey, making it potentially more efficient for honey production. However, this also makes the frames heavier to handle. Of the three hives we've discussed, the Langstroth is generally the most affordable, while the WBC tends to be the most expensive. The National falls somewhere in between, and is the most common in the UK.

We stock all of these types of Hives at Hagens, along with Top Bar Hives, Langstroth Thermo Hives, Flow Hives and more. Have a look on our website or drop us a line!

I recommend that you research each of these hive styles and determine which one best suit your needs and preferences. I also highly recommend supplementing these lessons with some reading. "Guide to Bees & Honey" by Ted Hooper is an excellent book, often copied but never equalled. This book is available on our website.

In our next session, we'll discuss acquiring your chosen hive and the essential equipment you'll need to get started.

As always, I welcome your questions. Please feel free to contact us using the Contact Us form below, keeping your questions brief and to the point. We shall post these Q & As on our website as a guide to hopefully help others.