I have done some research, You Tube Videos etc., concerning using only one deep instead of two. (Year round) It seems that most of my "lower" bees are in the top deep and very little activity in the bottom. I am wondering how others feel about this method and has anyone overwintered with just a single deep..???
My main concern would be having enough food in just a single deep to get them through the Winter....or maybe having a single deep and a medium ??? Lots of possibilities . Supposedly most Ontario beekeepers use the single deep method so it is not just in the South. University of Guelph has some very good videos. But, does it work here ?? Thanks, Peter
My main concern would be having enough food in just a single deep to get them through the Winter....or maybe having a single deep and a medium ??? Lots of possibilities . Supposedly most Ontario beekeepers use the single deep method so it is not just in the South. University of Guelph has some very good videos. But, does it work here ?? Thanks, Peter
I've successfully overwintered 5-frame nucs, so I can say that singles can work well—it really depends on the colony strength going into winter. Over winter, the bees naturally move their cluster upward as they consume honey, so by spring, it's normal for most of the activity to be in the top deep.
However, if it's already June 7th and the bees are still mostly in the top box with little activity or resources in the bottom, it’s a good idea to do a hive inspection. If the colony is on the smaller side and the bottom box is mostly empty, you could consider reducing to a single deep. On the other hand, if you have a strong population, you might simply reverse the boxes—put the top deep on the bottom to encourage better use of space and give the queen room to lay.
-Austin
However, if it's already June 7th and the bees are still mostly in the top box with little activity or resources in the bottom, it’s a good idea to do a hive inspection. If the colony is on the smaller side and the bottom box is mostly empty, you could consider reducing to a single deep. On the other hand, if you have a strong population, you might simply reverse the boxes—put the top deep on the bottom to encourage better use of space and give the queen room to lay.
-Austin
Hi Peter,
I’ve had good success overwintering some hives in single 8-frame deeps. I still monitor them closely through the winter and add feed when needed. Typically, I use double deeps for overwintering, but last year I had a few colonies that hadn’t filled their second box, so I left them in singles rather than combining. After how well that went, I’m planning to overwinter more hives in singles this time around.
I’m also curious about running singles during the honey flow, though I haven’t tested that out yet, maybe next season.
I really enjoy the content Paul Kelly and the University of Guelph put out, their videos and plans are excellent. I’ve probably watched all of them a few times over. I even picked up some canvas to use as inner covers like Paul does, similar to the feed bags some folks here in Vermont use. I have extra if you’d like to try a few.
Another thing I would like to pick up are the polypropylene winter hive wraps(https://www.ontariobee.com/sales-and-services/polypropolene-winter-hive-wrap-program) that University of Guelph as well as many other Canadian beekeepers use. However, I have not been able to source a place in the US and I'm not sure I'm dedicated enough to drive 4 hours each way for a pickup.
I’ve had good success overwintering some hives in single 8-frame deeps. I still monitor them closely through the winter and add feed when needed. Typically, I use double deeps for overwintering, but last year I had a few colonies that hadn’t filled their second box, so I left them in singles rather than combining. After how well that went, I’m planning to overwinter more hives in singles this time around.
I’m also curious about running singles during the honey flow, though I haven’t tested that out yet, maybe next season.
I really enjoy the content Paul Kelly and the University of Guelph put out, their videos and plans are excellent. I’ve probably watched all of them a few times over. I even picked up some canvas to use as inner covers like Paul does, similar to the feed bags some folks here in Vermont use. I have extra if you’d like to try a few.
Another thing I would like to pick up are the polypropylene winter hive wraps(https://www.ontariobee.com/sales-and-services/polypropolene-winter-hive-wrap-program) that University of Guelph as well as many other Canadian beekeepers use. However, I have not been able to source a place in the US and I'm not sure I'm dedicated enough to drive 4 hours each way for a pickup.
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