In Issue 70

Dear friends

There is more than one way to crack a nut, and the same rule applies to keeping bees in top-bar hives. In her regular articles, Pam Gregory has described top-bar hive beekeeping and in BfDJ 69, Bernhard Clauss added to the debate on top-bar width, insisting that top-bars must be made accurately and consistently, to fit together snugly along the top of the hive. This prevents bees leaving the hive by this route - keeps predators out - and is especially helpful when working with the bees. According to Bernhard, for African bees, 32 mm is the minimum width. Now André Romet writes from Cameroon (page 6) to describe the top-bars he advocates. These are 22 mm wide with a 10 mm space between each one. Here the hive is covered with a plastic sheet, that is easily removed. According to André, this method leads to less disturbance of the bees when opening the hive.

Meanwhile Johann Leyer of Austria (page 7) describes frames made of bamboo in which the top-bars and side bars stack together to achieve effective containment of the bees.

In this edition Pam describes how to choose a good site for bees, and attract them to occupy a hive. However, the article by Ichire and O I Ojating on page 10 describes how six hives were baited patiently for nine months before the first colony arrived!

All these experiences go to show the challenges that confront us when working with bees, and to be wary of those who would tell us that there is only one correct way to crack that nut.

Nicola Bradbear, Director Bees for Development

Bees for Development

1 Agincourt Street, Monmouth NP25 3DZ, UK Tel: +44 (0)1600 714848 info@beesfordevelopment.org www.beesfordevelopment.org