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« Last post by Lesgold on Today at 06:39:56 pm »
Hi Terri,
As others have said, the brood nest can get quite large in some colonies but it will vary from hive to hive. I generally don?t run queen excluders so at times, some of my hives turn into monsters. It makes checking of brood a slow and painful exercise. With varroa now an issue in Australia, I will have to change this method. From next season I will run single deep brood boxes with a queen excluder in order to control the mite. It will help to keep treatment costs down and also give me better control of frames in relation to chemical buildup and residue. The size of a hive is also determined by the local environment. If good supplies of pollen and nectar are coming in, the hive will grow. Reagan?s comment about the summer solstice is a good, general guide to follow in relation to hive growth. In most years, this is the case but if good supplies are coming in, the colony will maintain higher numbers of bees until food starts to diminish. I can have big, strong hives throughout winter if there is a honey flow on. A lot depends on your local climatic conditions and the approach can vary according to this. After a few seasons, you will adjust, modify and improve your techniques to suit your area and give the bees the best chance of survival. Contacting local beekeepers in your area would be a good starting point.