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> I think it's safe to say it doesn't have anything to do with humans taking the bees' food. > we don't really understand colony collapse disorder Look at the

by bpchaps 10y ago

> I think it's safe to say it doesn't have anything to do with humans taking the bees' food. > we don't really understand colony collapse disorder Look at the bee expert here. ;) But really, the parent post didn't make a direct connection to the two. More of an implication of a combination of the two being pretty disastrous.

0xffff2 10y ago
I mean, humans have been harvesting bee products for at least a few thousand years...
- JoeAltmaier 10y ago
  The title of "Sealer of the Honey" was given in the First Dynasty, Egypt! So yes quite a long time.
- bpchaps 10y ago
  And bees have been around a lot, lot longer than that. Also, thousands of years ago, there wasn't the capability of mass production like we have today.
- yawz 10y ago
  Actually, up until very recently (relatively speaking), it was not really "harvesting", but it was "destroying the hive while getting the honey". Modern hive design (there are a few popular ones) allows us, beekeepers, to harvest the honey without harming the bees. It also allows us to manage the hive and the colony much more productively.
  - kawsper 10y ago
    Could you link to the modern hive designs, and maybe tell a bit about them?
    - yawz 10y ago
      Certainly. Langstroth Hive (that I use): https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Langstroth_hive https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Langstroth_hive Top-bar Hive: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Horizontal_top-bar_hive https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Horizontal_top-bar_hive There are also less popular choices: - Warré - WBC - Long box hive Here's a list by Wikipedia: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Beehive https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Beehive
    - pvaldes 10y ago
      In a few words: In the old middle age hives didn't have methods to keep the queen putting eggs anywhere she wanted. Thus all the larvae where distroyed when collecting the honey. Currently we know that there is a measure that permit all bees enter except the queen. You can put a metallic mesh splitting the hive in two areas that the queen can not cross. In the upper area only workers (smaller) can enter and they store honey and other products as usual, but there aren't eggs, so there is not any dead larvae in your honey. It was a big revolution.
      - yawz 10y ago
        ...If I may add: And through good management (most of the time) one doesn't even need a queen excluder (which is called a "honey excluder" by some beekeepers :) ). A beekeeper who has time to invest on his/her hives can manipulate the frames (that are in the boxes) in a way to "encourage" the queen stay away from the honey boxes. Also there are other matters, such as swarm protection etc. that can be done thanks to modern hive design. For example, I can give my colonies more room (adding more boxes with empty frames) and/or split a colony by taking some brood frames (and nurse bees) and putting them in a brand new hive (which lets the queenless nurse bees to raise a new queen). Beekeeping (I can only speak as a hobbyist) is lots of fun... and some stress :). Highly recommended!

by bpchaps 10y ago

0xffff2 10y ago

I mean, humans have been harvesting bee products for at least a few thousand years...

JoeAltmaier 10y ago
The title of "Sealer of the Honey" was given in the First Dynasty, Egypt! So yes quite a long time.
bpchaps 10y ago
And bees have been around a lot, lot longer than that. Also, thousands of years ago, there wasn't the capability of mass production like we have today.
yawz 10y ago
Actually, up until very recently (relatively speaking), it was not really "harvesting", but it was "destroying the hive while getting the honey". Modern hive design (there are a few popular ones) allows us, beekeepers, to harvest the honey without harming the bees. It also allows us to manage the hive and the colony much more productively.
- kawsper 10y ago
  Could you link to the modern hive designs, and maybe tell a bit about them?
  - yawz 10y ago
    Certainly. Langstroth Hive (that I use): https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Langstroth_hive https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Langstroth_hive Top-bar Hive: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Horizontal_top-bar_hive https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Horizontal_top-bar_hive There are also less popular choices: - Warré - WBC - Long box hive Here's a list by Wikipedia: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Beehive https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Beehive
  - pvaldes 10y ago
    In a few words: In the old middle age hives didn't have methods to keep the queen putting eggs anywhere she wanted. Thus all the larvae where distroyed when collecting the honey. Currently we know that there is a measure that permit all bees enter except the queen. You can put a metallic mesh splitting the hive in two areas that the queen can not cross. In the upper area only workers (smaller) can enter and they store honey and other products as usual, but there aren't eggs, so there is not any dead larvae in your honey. It was a big revolution.
    - yawz 10y ago
      ...If I may add: And through good management (most of the time) one doesn't even need a queen excluder (which is called a "honey excluder" by some beekeepers :) ). A beekeeper who has time to invest on his/her hives can manipulate the frames (that are in the boxes) in a way to "encourage" the queen stay away from the honey boxes. Also there are other matters, such as swarm protection etc. that can be done thanks to modern hive design. For example, I can give my colonies more room (adding more boxes with empty frames) and/or split a colony by taking some brood frames (and nurse bees) and putting them in a brand new hive (which lets the queenless nurse bees to raise a new queen). Beekeeping (I can only speak as a hobbyist) is lots of fun... and some stress :). Highly recommended!