BBKA Forum

http://tbbk.co.uk/beekeeping-timetable/

Glyn Davies produced this beekeeping timetable detailing the yearly schedule for beekeepers in Devon.

Glad to see ventilation is still in fashion from October onwards...

It's interesting that fashion changes in many things. I don't wear flares any more that would hide my shoes if I stood still and swoosh as I walked, as I did when I was a teenager. This means that I am not old enough to have been around when quilts stopped being used and a 1/4" or 3/16" (as it was then) piece of plywood was deemed suitable for a colony to nest underneath all winter. Worse that the plywood was cracked open at a time of the year when it was too late for the bees to seal it up - which they would have inevitably done if permitted. I think it happened after the war in the 40's or early 50's. [Perhaps there was shortage of something due to rationing (!)]. Many books I have read are very vague about winter preparation so someone must have written about ventilation and it stuck. However I have a book somewhere written by an experienced beekeeper at that time who was witnessing around 3% winter losses whilst using quilts and some form of insulation. The accepted norm nowadays seems to be much higher than 3%. There is no need for it to be so.
http://www.norfolkbee.co.uk/beekeepers- ... reparation

AdamD wrote: ↑

04 Nov 2018, 10:58

I think it happened after the war in the 40's or early 50's. [Perhaps there was shortage of something due to rationing (!)].

Derek Mitchell has an interesting talk about this, linking the Mosquito (plane), available resources, and the design of the National Hive.