Flow Hive Beginner Beekeeping QnA

We’re joined today by a new member of the Flow Hive team. Bija experienced er first ever brood inspection under Cedar’s guidance, and he answered her and your beekeeping questions along the way.
Happy Beekeeping from Flow Hive! Website go.honeyflow.com
Join email honeyflow.com/join
Facebook / flowhive
Instagram / flowhive
#flowhive #broodinspection #honeybee #honey #beginnerbeekeeping
00:00 - Open hive
06:30 - Remove frames
12:55 - Smoker fuel & hive beetles
19:00 - Bees feeding larvae
27:00 - Bees rejecting queen?
31:45 - Bees bearding at night
41:45 - Installing a nuc
46:37 - Pack up hive

[@rigiklasky.thefunniestcats6591]

Thanks Danika, I forgot to tell you. I am in Los Angeles California. Anatoly

[@shanevillis4079]

Hessian smoulders pretty well for the smoker as well.

[@mrgarypitman]

hi. i am thinking of starting a flo hive. just for my first one. but i wonder. your hives are exposed on that hill. right open to all elements.. so does it not matter to give shade from wind and rain ? My main concern is where to put the hive in the garden. but if bad weather is not a factor i have way more options.

[@FlowHive]

The hives on our apiary get regular rain and some strong winds. We rarely have a day over 40ºC /100ºF so its a great spot and doesn't matter too much about them being exposed, although keep in mind the afternoon sun is mainly casting shad from the hillside so the hives are somewhat sheltered from the hottest part of the day. You want to ensure they are not in a damp location. Have a look here: support.honeyflow.com/where-do-i-locate-my-flow-hive/-Kieran

[@LoneWolf0568]

When using a Flow Super, is there any way to harvest the wax from it to sell or do I just let the bees reclaim/repurpose the wax after I harvest the honey?

[@FlowHive]

Hey Kenneth,
Thanks for your question. You can't harvest wax from a full Flow super but you can if it's a Hybrid Flow super - see about how to harvest the wax in it here:
support.honeyflow.com/how-to-harvest-wax-from-timber-frame-in-flow-hive-hybrid/
If you have a full Flow super, yes just let the bees chew through the cappings and they'll repurpose it :)
- Danika

[@monthapril6441]

Very interesting- would have loved to participate in this Q&A but missed it because of time difference. 😔

[@michaelwhalley3495]

Hi from Perth.
I have recently check my hive after a great spring/summer, the bees are eating some honey which i assume is because there is a low nectar flow, however the numbers look to be lower than a month ago. They seem happy, queen looks great, and i still have plenty of brood is this normal for the numbers to drop?

[@FlowHive]

Hey Michael,
Thanks for your question. Hmmm it's really hard to advise on something like this accurately without knowing more about your unique colony and climate.
Are you connected with your local beekeeping club or a mentor in your area?
If not, here is a link to our online directory of Flow ambassadors/related beekeeping clubs, and our online community forum's Connect With Local section:
www.honeyflow.com.au/pages/bee-club-directory
forum.honeyflow.com/c/connect-with-locals/23
Have you added the super yet, or are they only in the brood box?
Have you done a recent inspection to see if there's any pests and disease happening that might be inhibiting the brood's health?
Maybe best to email us at [e-mail] with some photos/more info so we can help troubleshoot what's happened?
- Danika

[@rigiklasky.thefunniestcats6591]

I just purchased one flow hive from you 10 days ago. So far I didnt see any honey in flow hive. I use two breed boxes in the bottom.. If frames full with the honey, can I take it and replace it? Or I have to keep all frames with honey all time inside?

[@FlowHive]

Hey there,
Thanks for your question. It is really important when first introducing your bees to the hive to first only establish them in the brood box.
They need time to fill out the brood frames first, otherwise there will be far too much space/cold air for them and they'll likely die due to being unable to moderate the temperature to their relative size, as well as being vulnerable to staying on top of pests/diseases such as hive beetle.
See the first video on this page about how to know when to add your Super:
support.honeyflow.com/how-do-i-add-the-flow-super-to-my-brood-box/
If you're referring to honey in the brood box, no, you leave this for the bees rather than taking it.
After some time you may wish to cycle out the frames, but not for the purpose of harvesting honey from these boxes.
See this page:
support.honeyflow.com/do-i-need-to-rotate-my-brood-frames/
We really can't recommend enough the importance of connecting with your local beekeeping club to learn responsible, informed beekeeping specific to your climate. See a non-comprehensive list of clubs and ambassadors here to:
www.honeyflow.com/pages/bee-club-directory
We also have an online beekeeping course with a free one month trial that you might find helpful:
thebeekeeper.org
Please do email us if you need to further trouble shoot anything related to your Flow hive/bees - we remain here to help! [e-mail]
Thanks, hope this helps! - Danika

[@littleg9985]

I got a nuc,unfortunatly it was slimed, but we still had a queen, unfortunatly a geko move in to the hive and i lost more , he took out the queen and is picking them off one at a time, How to keep geko out?

[@iampennane652]

Bears... I live in Maine. We have Black bears. Will they bother the hives?

[@FlowHive]

Hey there,
Thanks for your question. Wow - where we are here down under bears seem like such a surreal predator to have to contend with, so we're not the authority on this matter - however we have a great online community forum where other Flow beekeepers who do contend with bears have written about their experiences and approaches - see it here:
forum.honeyflow.com/search?q=bears
Connecting with your local beekeeping club/community/mentor is a really highly recommended way to get informed about managing the bees in your unique climate.
Here's an online directory of some clubs/ambassadors:
www.honeyflow.com/pages/bee-club-directory
I hope this helps! - Danika

[@margaretdecker2776]

I haveone or two bees that they look like they are fighting , is that common?

[@FlowHive]

Hey Margaret,
Hmmm... if you are noticing bees fighting it might be a guard bee that has spotted an intruding bee from a feral hive or another beekeepers colony. Or it might be a worker bees working to remove deceased bees from the hive?
Great that you're observing them & noticing such things, keep observing and see what you think it might be! - Danika

[@Rockinjm1]

Using newspaper, paper with writing are these good or not good for fuel?

[@FlowHive]

Hey there,
We find newspaper burns a bit too hot, and prefer using organic sugarcane mulch or some such thing instead :) - Danika

[@PhongNguyen-kt6is]

Cho tôi làm quen với bạn được không ạ, tôi thích chương trình này

[@rigiklasky.thefunniestcats6591]

Anatoly Taldykin