💥A Good Story in a Tough Year of Beekeeping

[@628DirtRooster]

I’m liking horizontal hives more and more

[@brucesbees]

Yes. This has been fun! Thanks for checking in Randy!!!

[@GeorgeCMcRae]

Yes, fill with frames!!!!!

[@johncoleman6218]

I made myself a 30 frame horizontal lang and put in a Kamon Reynolds 5 frame deep nuc and this hive is so brood productive that it now supplies my capped brood frames for making cell builders, boosting colonies and filling mating nucs with nurse bees. It’s become a great resource hive!

[@brucesbees]

That is great stuff. Sounds like a good colony!

[@zztechs]

Rocky Top You’ll always be, home sweet home to me... Nice Video...

[@royboyd717]

Dang Bruce. Looking good! You need to share some of those bees.😅

[@brucesbees]

Lol. I am thinking about trying to make a few queens from this amazing queen. I like everything about her.

[@davidlewis4179]

I have 6 LLHs. All mine have a single entrance on one end. My experience is that the bees build the brood section near the entrance, and the honey is away from the entrance. As you can see, with 19 frames of bees packed in there that there isn't room for Nucs on each end. I'm surprised that you didn't have to do a cutout in that empty space! I have a piece of 2x12 as a follower board in my hives. Watching you struggle removing the inner cover boards, I think I'll stick with my 1x6 inner cover boards. I have to admit that I am of the 1 colony 1 hive crowd.

[@brucesbees]

I have been checking them fairly often but glad I checked them when I did or o might have had the problem you described.

[@MikeBarryBees]

Great growth. They decided it was time to go and they were probably chuckling right along with Greg. I built a top bar in my second year and I did a center entrance, and I never quite figured it out with growth. They seemed to just go both ways. Thanks for sharing that beautiful hive that Rickey built!!

[@brucesbees]

Yes that is what they are doing I think. Just like a standard hive body but wider. I don’t mind it though. Works fine for me. I can see the wisdom of having the entrance on one end or the other but this hive is actually set up to be manipulated many different ways. Actually can have a nuc on each end if you want.

[@9realitycheck9]

Thanks for sharing. Perhaps I should attempt a horizontal hive next year. As I've grown older, I have switched from the 10 frame to the 8-frame boxes. Maybe these horizontal highs will allow me to continue to 'bee keep' into my 70s and 80s. #kudos

[@brucesbees]

I think so for sure. Would love to have more of them. So much easier on the body.

[@jamestownsendjrtbees3226]

Hey Bruce, that colony and hive is looking great! I'd say in a week or so spin out some of the deep frames that are capped and give them right back for instant space.

[@brucesbees]

Yep we are going to harvest this coming weekend.

[@evonnewhalen9794]

Beautiful horizontal hive. I have one of Rickie’s horizontal Layens hive and I love it

[@brucesbees]

Yes it is very well built and the bees have done well in there this year.

[@keithspillman]

That is a beautiful hive......and very calm too!! I might have to try one of those!! Great video Bruce!!

[@brucesbees]

Thanks Keith. It has been fun.

[@horizontalbees]

Bruce, that Queen from Greg really knows how to fill up a box. Love watching you experiment with this horizontal hive. You did a great job on adding frames to the brood nest during the flow. My biggest problem with my horizontal hive is for the queen to run out of room which causes swarming. Thanks for sharing your experience!!!

[@brucesbees]

Great product Rickey. I might want to order a couple more. I have some ideas of things I would like to use them for. Have already talked to Greg about some ideas.

[@thehiveandthehoneybee9547]

did you give a hive to master kpr David burns? he wont say who made it but I think it was you!!!!! nice hives!!!!!!

[@horizontalbees]

Mr Dave Burns did buy a hive off of us. We did make some modifications to fit him better with a few custom looks. Thanks for the great comment on our hives!! 😊

[@thehiveandthehoneybee9547]

@@horizontalbees i thogutht it was you guys!!!! he wouldnt tell us! thanks!!!!

[@CastleHives]

That colony is booming. I'm not sure what to do as far as arranging the frames.

[@brucesbees]

Yeah I just kind of add them and see what the bees do. They will figure it out. Fun experiment.

[@GrammyMidwife]

Wow! Just wow! I can’t wait to get my horizontal hive now. Great stuff, Bruce!

[@brucesbees]

Yeah. I love this hive. Would love to have more of them!

[@kentcostello5286]

I want to make one they look awesome.

[@brucesbees]

Yes it has been fun!

[@agpilot711]

Thanks for posting all the great content, I know how time consuming it can be! Me and my wife don’t miss a one!

[@brucesbees]

Thanks for checking in. It is a challenge but I enjoy it.

[@agpilot711]

@@brucesbees keep up the good work!

[@MarionMakarewicz]

You do such a great job with our videos. I like your pace and your way of interacting with the viewers, even though we can only answer in these comments. Good luck and thanks again for sharing your knowledge. I am a first year bee keeper and am praying that my first swarm capture makes it. They had to reproduce a new queen, but they are bringing in the pollen and nectar, but not a big colony yet. I have understood that patience is a necessary thing for beekeepers. KZbin videos compress all the work and waiting, like this one does. I have to factor time in my aspirations for keeping bees.

[@brucesbees]

Absolutely true. Patience and determination are required, but if you are willing to put in the work and gain the experience is can be a fulfilling experience. Thanks for the kind words about the videos. I do put a lot of work into producing them. And comments like this keep me going.

[@hildebrandtrius]

Maybe try an entrance at one end instead of the middle so the queen will hang out there and the honey should be at the other end.

[@brucesbees]

I know lots of long hives are set up like that. This one is actually designed to be 3 hives if needed. It’s an experiment for me. Thanks for the suggestion.

[@johnhudson412]

I ordered some of towels and they are working great! Thanks for the previous video Bruce!

[@brucesbees]

Glad they are working well for you!

[@viklund2725]

Nice to see, I myself have built 5 horizontal with full-sized Langstroth and 30 frames. Works fine even here in Sweden with our cold winters and lots of snow. Started today 12 new Queens that will be ready in a week or so.

[@brucesbees]

Awesome! Thanks for checking in from so far away. I really like this setup!

[@kennith.]

Bruce will be interesting to see what you are going to do with this for winter.

[@GeorgeCMcRae]

Checekboard is good too.

[@citrumpet1]

Thanks for your videos. I've been keeping about 10 horizontal hives alongside my normal langs for about 6 years. I agree with some other commenters regarding keeping your entrance on one side.... The side that gets first morning sun. That way your brood will be concentrated near the entrance and honey storage on the opposite end. Otherwise you'll get brood more scattered around in the hive. If you have 2 entrances it's a mess and a center entrance isn't as good either for separating brood and honey frames because you'll get more honey on both sides.

[@brucesbees]

Thanks for the tip. I think both configurations can have their benefits. This particular setup allows for splits to be made in the same hive body. Could also be an easy way to make queens. I may get some more with the prominent entrance in one end.

[@framcesmoore]

Great video I am geting 10 queens from Greg next week hoping I have not heard from him but they are ordered. for that week. mine will be shipped hope they will be ok with shipping. Have a great day Bruce and thanks for the video

[@brucesbees]

I believe you will be happy with them. This long hive has been a fun experiment.

[@bradgoliphant]

The issue I have with super large hives like that is if there isn’t a great nectar flow they eat all their honey-so no honey crop. I’m experiencing this right now in my apiary.

[@brucesbees]

It can happen. Has been strange year.

[@josephrawls]

I love it. A very nice colony. All my long hives have the entrance at the end. They normally have around 11 or 12 frames of brood and the rest is honey. Im not sure what they will do with the entrance in the center. I guess they will go both ways.

[@brucesbees]

Yes it is an experiment for me for sure. This hive is actually setup to have up to 3 colonies in it. May play around with some queen breeding here soon while that queen is still kicking. She is something else.

[@edwardclark5211]

Hey Bruce, I caught my 7th swarm today 11 June 23 in Hbrg Ms since March 1st.

[@brucesbees]

Wow! Busy times for you!

[@Amigatech]

Last year I had a colony on both sides of my horizontal hive with a separation board. They didn't survive the winter. This spring, I sprayed Swarm Commander at one opening, and a swarm moved in the very same day. I was amazed!!! After noticing that both openings were getting heavy bee traffic, I did an inspection and turns out that it's just one colony. One end has brood, and the other only has honey. Interesting that they are using the two entrances this way.

[@brucesbees]

Wow interesting stuff. Sounds like you’re the story. Bees are amazing.

[@andrewklahold2880]

When you posted your really tall hive, and did not think of it then, but as Mike barry would say, That's no biggy lol

[@dcsblessedbees]

odd this didn't show up in my subscription feed. 👍They are doing good Bruce.

[@brucesbees]

Hmm I wonder why. It has been difficult to gain traction on KZbin lately.

[@brucesbees]

Thanks for checking in and for your support!

[@dcsblessedbees]

@@brucesbees I have wondered, I have seen it happen from time to time with ppl I am subbed to.

[@brucesbees]

Yeah man I don’t understand the algorithm. It keeps me guessing.

[@ellenl.5581]

Put on a queen excluder and add a queen. Give the one queen a rest.

[@larryschoenberger7957]

I like that, for a while you could have 2 queens, when they fill it up, pull it down to one, or split...Interesting thought though

[@brucesbees]

I don’t know that she will rest. Bees are programmed to work. And a queen’s main function is to lay eggs. But if the flow stops and we go into a dearth she might shut it down a bit.

[@rachelwilliams4423]

where brood meets honey on both sides add enpty brood come if u got it and throw 2 new foundations on the outside of the hive to keep honey flow going if they get honey bound they are gunna make a new queen and leave with half the hive

[@brucesbees]

Thanks for the tip. Gonna Harvey soon though and may try to make some queens.

[@austinvickymoore3656]

I would love to build out a few of these horizontal hives.. for my first one im sticking with traditional Langstroth hive setup.. im in north Florida and cant wait to get my first hive going!

[@brucesbees]

Yes the other 100+ of my colonies are in traditional equipment. But I really do like this hive.

[@GeorgeCMcRae]

Hey, Bruce. Experiment. In my horizontals, they "seem" to like brood at one end or the other.. in one configuration i tried to have them in the middle, but they gravitate. To one end. I love horizomtals.

[@michaelshelnutt3534]

I would: 1. Add more frames to fill the space. 2. Move the only open entrance to one end. They will put brood near entrance and honey opposite.

[@brucesbees]

Thanks for the tips.

[@larryschoenberger7957]

Most I have seen keep the Brood area at one end, they build honey out from there..They look great anyways, I think from where you are on this, you did about the same as I would have done, a few frames checkered, the rest at the end, just like you did.. Great Share!

[@larryschoenberger7957]

Maybe a queen excluded near the end of the Brood area?

[@brucesbees]

Good stuff. Thanks for checking in. There is a Queen excluder in the hive but it using it. Doesn’t look like I need it. Will just go through and pull frames of honey and if the my have brood in them will leave them alone.

[@larryschoenberger7957]

You will figure out what works best for you, it's still a new toy, Lol

[@aaronheard1988]

Be cool if you could split the top and put queen excluders and medium supers on top!

[@brucesbees]

Yep that might work! There actually is a following board set up as queen excluder but I don’t think this hive needs it. It’s just so easy to manipulate and move frames around. I really like it. There are many designs of Horizontal Hives out there. And Rickey at horizontalbees.com can customize it pretty much anyway you want.

[@aaronheard1988]

@@brucesbees yeah looks cool I’ve never had one, looks easy on the back lol

[@sharonparsons8997]

You can

[@taddrienstra7247]

Uh, yeah, now about that logo smack dab center of that box...😂

[@brucesbees]

Roll Tide!!!

[@brettellis1837]

Bee good to see queen cells in that for split. To get another good queen to see how that genetics goes . Make sure she is marked.

[@brucesbees]

She is marked. Yes I might just see if I can get a few daughters off her.

[@brettellis1837]

@@brucesbees yer I see she was I stand corrected.still a ripper queen top blood line for big number's.

[@billsmith2423]

I like mine so much I built 4 of them, ROLL TIDE!

[@brucesbees]

Nice! Roll Tide!!🏈😎

[@rpeebles]

I build and use long langs and their horizontal management is definitely different from standard langstroth vertical boxes. That colony is strong enough they could use the entire hive body. So I would fill up the whole thing with frames just make sure to add a couple extra frames between the brood and stores. Then I would checkboard the rest of the frames in with the honey frames. Some colonies will "see" the extra space on the ends and some colonies will not "see" the extra frames past the honey and will swarm. So the frames between the brood and food always seem to help with this issue. Since you are running it in the middle you can have extra frames on both sides of the brood which will definitely help. The management is similar to top bars but normally they have entrances only on one end so you have a bit more flexibility with side entrances, especially when they have gates that close.

[@brucesbees]

Hey thanks for the feedback. I basically did as you suggested in the video. Amazing colony of bees.

[@rpeebles]

@@brucesbees Yep, I posted before I finished the video. You did a great job. The fun part will be when you do some splits on that box and just drop the splits on each end, add your dividers and hopefully have 3 colonies in a month. Then you are have worry about where to put them when they pack it out. :)

[@brucesbees]

Yep. That might be coming up soon. Thinking about letting them draw out some queen cells for some late season splits. I definitely want to propagate that queen’s genetics.

[@jamescarter7752]

The only drawback I've found is the bees have a harder time controlling the Hive Beatles. I dont checkerboard, and only give them 1 or 2 enpty frames st a time. Enjoyed the video.

[@BucksBeesS.C.]

Use the peppermint oil on sticks and put them in hives for shb

[@brettellis1837]

Holy shit don't stop whT ya are doing brilliant condition ripper amount of bees clone queen lol she would be worth a packet. Wow and wow cheers from north Queensland. 😂😂

[@brucesbees]

Hey thanks from checking in from so far away. I might see if I can get a few daughters off this queen while she is still productive!

[@mikeconley3031]

Awesome !!!

[@khraila_RockyRillFarm_Apiary]

Love it

[@JamesGilley-i6o]

Do horizontal hive use avQueen excluder to keep honey and brood separate??

[@brucesbees]

They have a divider board with a queen excluder. But I just let the bees do what they wanted in this case. I harvested a few frames of honey Friday.

[@BrownAndDaughters]

You know, as a Physical Therapist, people should take note of your endorsement of the horizontal hives for those with back issues, etc. I'm sure you've seen more torn up backs than most can imagine and ergonomics and injuries are probably always in the back of your mind. Take care, Conner

[@brucesbees]

Yes this is a great point. Waist high all on one plane. One frame at a time. Ergonomically a great set up. Of is get to the point that I cannot continue to lift the heavy boxes I will probably watch over to more of these. Thinking I could use a couple more right now.

[@ronhaymore]

I treat all mine like bees build in between joist. Start on one side and let them work back.

[@brucesbees]

Good to know. Thanks to the tip. So many ways to do things!

[@thehiveandthehoneybee9547]

how did comb get on the inside of your cover??? on the right???

[@brucesbees]

I initially had the bees in a small nuc sized area in the right side of the comb and moved them over to the center when they began it grow a few weeks back.

[@thehiveandthehoneybee9547]

@@brucesbees thanks!!!

[@johnhudson412]

When they get close to filing it. 75% or so split it.? What other options do you have?

[@davidlewis4179]

It's time to harvest honey.

[@brucesbees]

Yep gonna harvest soon.

[@eddevault4604]

How do you keep the brood and honey separated for extraction….looks like a disaster for raising bees for honey….

[@brucesbees]

There is a divider board set up as a queens excluder but as I went through this colony many of the frames only had honey on them. I think honey production will actually be quite easy because I can go through them quickly. Shake the bees of the honey frames and set them in a box and then move the frames with brood all together. I will find out soon. We are going to harvest honey this weekend.

[@markespich8574]

Roll tide!

[@brucesbees]

Yes! RTR! Football season is just around the corner!

[@BucksBeesS.C.]

I like the deal wih using the reg deep frames from other hives

[@brucesbees]

Yes me too. Makes it compatible

[@benjamindejonge3624]

They not real high honey producer’s, it man what a great healthy hives they do this top bar’s

[@brucesbees]

Yes a healthy hive for sure. I think we will do ok on honey production as well but we will see. It’s been a fun experiment for sure. Hope to get some more of these one day.

[@thehiveandthehoneybee9547]

Hi Bruce!!! masterkeeper DAvid burns has one an dhe won't say who built it but I think its build by the same man frim Hive Life. nice hive made reallly good!!!! do you follow David burns for your learning???? he can help you out.

[@thehiveandthehoneybee9547]

why dont you have a follow board in there? just open at the end???

[@brucesbees]

Yes I know David. An icon in the industry. When I moved the bees over the colony was much smaller. Not sure why I did that exactly. But I caught them in time to get things filled up before they filled it with comb.

[@brucesbees]

I believe David’s first live was actually one of our StreamTeam Beekeeping chats awhile back. He has been doing his own ever since.

[@thehiveandthehoneybee9547]

@@brucesbees thanks!!! yes DAvid is the reason that the hive life gathering was such a success!!!! hes a celebrity for sure!!!!! he promoted it!!!

[@brucesbees]

David is a great promoter and teacher of beekeeping. He definitely has a positive impact on the beekeeping world! He and many others like him are the reason for the success of Hive Life. It is a community effort. I have to give kudos to Kamon and Laurel though. The brains behind the whole thing and the people who were willing to take a risk and put in the work to make it happen. I have truly benefited from the Hive Life movement as have so many beekeepers out there. Thanks for checking in and for the support. It means a lot to me.

[@markespich8574]

The long hive doesn’t seem to be practical. How do you hall the honey frames back to the barn.

[@brucesbees]

I will probably just put the frames in deep boxes. And haul them to the honey house.

[@barry552010]

O k so help me out what is the difference between a standard ten frame Hive stacked for high cause I only use deeps and you're long high which still doesn't have that many frames as the 4 deeps a good. Honey flow. The bees will have no issues drawing out that wax foundation. And there's no reason in God's green Earth. Why you can't harvest? 80 pounds per super and still leave the bees with 6070 pounds for the Winter so you don't have to feed them ever. I'm an old school. He keeper so I find all those new things or relatively new things unnecessary except as an experiment that's fine if you're in for,

[@brucesbees]

Ok.

[@brucesbees]

I figure folks can just do things the way they want. I will be pulling some honey from this hive this weekend. It is fine to run all deeps if you want. Its fine to run all mediums. It’s fine to run deeps and mediums if you want. And it’s fine to use long hives if you want. The long hives definitely have their place. Easy management without having to lift boxes that weigh 80 or 90 pounds. So folks can work them with disabilities or when older or maybe they just prefer the method. I run mostly mediums for my honey supers due to weight. Just my preference. Thanks for the input though. I know a lot of people prefer an all deep system and that is perfectly fine. I think all beekeepers should figure out what works best for them and roll with it. Best wishes to you and your bees and thanks for checking in.