This website is devoted exclusively to collecting and distributing information about beekeeping with top-bar hives (tbh's). Tbh's offer many beekeepers an inexpensive but satisfying way of keeping bees that produces less (but better) honey and more beeswax.
Enjoy your visit to this website, learn about tbh's, and give them a try.
These top bar hives are on a stand, which permits them to be worked without bending over.
Files of frequently asked questions (FAQ's) are maintained at this website to answer most of your questions about this method of beekeeping. You may have other questions which, if you will ask, can be incorporated into the files as they are edited.
These files of "frequently asked questions" and "not so FAQ's" pertaining to beekeeping in top bar hives (tbh's) were compiled and edited with the help of many others, especially Joel Govostes. I include my personal opinions, but also those of others who made comments to the tbh thread that was on BEE-L. Please send me any corrections or offer different opinions to these questions if you wish. I'll edit this file to include them. If you make your comments referenced to section and question number, it will aid me greatly. For example, you will see how I have inserted responses from Tim Haarmann throughout the files.
I shall always be indebted to my email mentor, Paul Magnuson of Pretoria, South Africa, who gave me the initial information that started me into the delightful endeavors of beekeeping in tbh's. If you read this link first, you'll get a good overview.
James D. Satterfield
---a bit about your host
Many of you first visiting this site will undoubtedly be interested in plans for building tbh's primarily. Plans are on this site, but may be buried a little deeply in some of the pages. To help you, I've pulled the links out to be more accessible, but I urge you to read the text that goes along with the plans. Some of the suggestions will be helpful and vital.
The hive body with top bars removed
The five boards which make up the hive body
The dimensions and construction of top bars
An inexpensive solar wax melter
Conrad's site is very popular. Here
are links to his pages describing the use
of the Kenya top bar hives and plans
for construction.
Conrad has also recently done some interesting work in Nepal dealing with tbh's and other type of hives.
This page on observation
top bar hives has a number of photographs which will help you develop
an observation hive to fit your desires. The page also shows a beautiful
hive made from a tree section. And...would you believe a catenary
observation hive made from clear plastic????
Beautiful comb honey is produced
in tbh's, but if you want "extracted" honey, how can you get it
out of the comb? A honey press works well. This
link shows the construction and use of a press.
This section will contain links to pages with photos and information specifically dealing with manipulation of the tbh.
Working
top bar hives.
Preparation of Top
Bars and their use.
Queen rearing
in top bar hives.
Supering top
bar hives.
To begin, look at the questions which give an overview and history of top bar hives and their development as well as advantages and disadvantages of tbh's. What is a "honey cow" anyhow?
Next, you will surely have questions about the construction of tbh's and the associated items such as top bars, the use of foundation, and many related topics.
Questions on the management of tbh's include topics that relate growth of colonies, treating for diseases, making splits, hiving swarms, rearing queens, etc.
If you decide to establish a tbh, you will be dealing with the products of the hive. Questions about the harvesting of honey and wax will span the area of how to extract, how to render beeswax, uses of beeswax, and much more.
Finally, there are a lot of miscellaneous questions that always crop up...Where can I learn more? What is honey pop? These questions and others all relate to the wonderful experience of keeping bees in tbh's.
I have zipped the five sections of FAQ's into a 41Kb file which you may download if you wish, install the file into a directory on your computer, unzip the file, then use your browser to read the FAQ's locally. Of course, any links that are in the FAQ's will not work unless you are online.
Jimmy constructed a KTBH
based on an article in APIS and an article by Conrad Berube in the American
Bee Journal. Later he was able to download plans from Conrad's website and
found that his hive was very close to the specified dimension on that website.
There are seven excellent photos provided by Jimmy on this webpage. The photo of the hive hanging under the catalpa tree is worth the visit alone.
Peter provides us with a report of his beekeeping activities in his Langstroth
hives and compares them with his top-bar hives. He has some excellent photographs
including one of a queen excluder fitted into his KTBH's. His "bee
yard" is on the roof of his house!
John Caldeira has a website with good pages on the KTBH...
Go to John's
website and look at the splendid photographs of his tbh's. Read the
associated text, then visit the rest of his site as well. It will be time
well spent.
Here is a list of individuals who are keeping top-bar hives or who will be keeping them soon. If you wish to have your name added, send Jim Satterfield a note to that effect.
Marty Hardison has been keeping tbh's
for 17 years in New Mexico, USA. He has held workshops to teach tbh beekeeping,
and he has published several articles. In the "Miscellaneous Questions"
FAQ, for example, there is a reference to his article on rearing queens
in tbh's which was published in "Developmental Beekeeping". Marty
shares some of his personal philosophy in this article, Toward
an Appropriate Beehive.
From Layne Westover...
A photograph of Layne
Layne removes some top bars from one of his hives.
Layne sends us this report on his class at College Station, Texas USA:
"My class this Spring was a success. I had 8 students register (up
from 4
the previous time), and several of the students either have bees now or
previously had bees and wanted to start up again. There was a lot of
interest and there were a lot of questions asked. I took in lots of
equipment for demonstrations and as visual aids for my presentations. One
student even had a package of bees arrive in the mail and they hived it
during the course of the class. They did some things differently than they
had previously planned to do because of what they learned in the course.
I
included a field trip to one of my bee yards in the course and demonstrated
smoker techniques and opening and examining a hive. I also showed them
what a queen cell looks like, and showed them several variations of home
made top bar hives. The students said that actually seeing the equipment
really helped them understand what I meant in my lectures much better. One
student was particularly interested in the top bar hives and plans to build
some since he only wants the bees for pollination. An interesting
observation was that before I started the class each evening after the
first one, the students would be in heavy discussion with each other about
what they had done or planned to do and asking and answering each other's
questions. I even decided to try a few things I hadn't done before because
of those discussions. The most common comment received in the course
evaluation was the answer to the question, "What other classes would
you
like to see us offer?" and the response was "an advanced beekeeping
class."
I judged the class a success and that the students were able to take away
useful and valuable information that will help them along their way in
keeping bees and that will help them keep bees in top bar hives if they
so
desire. My next course will be offered in the Fall of this year. The date
has not yet been set."
Marty will be teaching some TBH seminars this spring, and perhaps summer too, in Kiowa, Colorado. He is doing this in association with a business that is called ECOBEE which will be marketing TBH's and beekeeping equipment. Marty sent the announcement of the seminars to me. I converted the information to HTML and have posted it at this link.
Here's a link to a website that appears to be doing some important work: Apiconsult.com
Tom describes his website as:
"Information on sustainable beekeeping development in the African
context
focusing on honey and wax production and marketing from traditional African
systems of beekeeping and top-bar hives"
Allen Dick has brought to my attention the fact that a discussion is taking place with respect to cell size that honeybees build in natural combs compared to combs drawn from foundation. He would like TBH beekeepers to help generate some data for comparisons.
I encourage you to go to his webpage and view the discussions, then contact him to be added to the list that will deal with the matter.
Set aside some time to spend exploring Allen's pages. You'll find a delightful assortment of topics and information.
If, after browsing these pages, you decide that your interests lie more in the realm of conventional beekeeping, then here is a link that will connect you to major resources in the world of beekeeping: List of Resources
Many have assisted me in getting this web page together. I'm indebted to my brother, Gary Satterfield, who scanned images for these pages. A delightful friend, Kathy Duggleby, has been of immense help in my wrestling with HTML, and she has offered many helpful suggestions. My thanks to all who have helped in any way, but especially to Georgia State University for providing this old retired biology faculty member an account and space for creating this website while continuing to piddle with the wonders of living organisms.
Learn about the wonderful world of Arthur Ransome's books.
Get acquainted with The Arthur Ransome Society. The first Georgia TARSUS
event is over, but click on the photo to see the fun that we had. Join
TARS and read the adventures of John, Nancy, Peggy, Susan, Titty, Roger,
and others.
Detachment 45, 848 AC&W Squadron, Hokkaido, Japan
I was in the USAF 1953-56. From 1955-56
I was stationed at this radar detachment. We were the ground control intercept
station for northern Japan, playing "games" with the Russians
who were on adjacent islands during this period of the Cold War. We were
the first line of defense for the armed forces. Come along and see what
life was like in this remote, sometimes cold, but also beautiful area of
the world.
Mother is 92 years old now, and her arthritis prevents her from using
her hands well... not much crocheting now. But do go to the web page to
see some of her beautiful creations.
Come along and meet the Indian runner ducks, Charliedog, and the celebrated Private Detective Sam Drake. Read my "Ode to Mucking Boots", and, no, you don't need a license to drive a chicken tractor.
