How To Get Bees For Your Flow Hive

The process of harvesting honey is dangerous and undoubtedly tricky. It requires a lot of experience and expertise to raise a healthy colony of bees that earns you money. The process of collecting honey is not only messy but also difficult and dangerous because you might get stung by the bees. This is also a traumatic experience to your bees as well. Thus to make this process easier for you and your bees, two Australian beekeepers invested a new type of beehive. The beehive is known as Flow hive as the honey flows directly from the hive into the honey collectors.

The beekeepers just need to turn on the spout to collect honey from their backyard beehive. Flow hive is similar to other artificial hives. There are flow frames where the bees can build their hive and a brood box for the queen to lay eggs, which expands the colony.

Setting up a flow hive is pretty easy, but getting bees to your new hive might isn’t, I mean, bees are not going to move in you empty house themselves. So here is how you can get your bees for flow hive.

1.    Go and Purchase a Nuc

The best way to get your bees is by purchasing a nuc or nucleus. A nuc generally includes a small bee colony, including a queen, drones and some workers. There are also some brood frames and of course, honey. You can get your nuc from any beekeeper. They will arrive in a box and you just need to transfer them to your beehive.

2.    Buy A Package of Bees

If nuc is not available, you can go for a package of bees. This package of bees consists of a few thousand who are ready to build a new home in your flow hive. But in this package, you will not get broods or honey. Do not disturb bees for the first few weeks, but make sure you keep an eye on them and observe their behavior.

3.    Split A Hive

If a nearby beekeeper is ready to split his hive, you should not miss that opportunity. It is a great task and is beneficial for bee colonies as it prevents them from swarming. The good thing about splitting hives is that you will get 4 to 5 brood frames similar to buying a nuc.

4.    Catch Your Bees

Catching a swarm of bees in the spring is not so difficult because bees generally look for their new home in this season and you can easily catch them. If you don’t have much experience with bees, then it is recommended to take the help of a nearby beekeeper who is ready to help you out. You can also ask for help from a bee club member. Catching a swarm might be difficult if you are inexperienced.

So these are a few of the best ways to get your first bees for your flow hive. At the beginning you may find it bit tricky, but with experience things will be easier for you.