Okay, this is a weird one . . . . for reasons we won't get into, I had to put a medium super with no frames in it on top of a brood box that I was installing a swarm in to the other day. 48 hours later (I know, waited too long) I went to remove the hollow medium and leave them to the deep hive body . . . but low and behold, they have build a MASSIVE amount of natural comb off the roof of the inner cover.
Here's the deal - I'm afraid cutting that comb loose would be paramount to evicting them with their residency so brief . . . I have tmporarily placed the medium and the inner cover directly on the screened bottom board, then placed the deep over that. I am very seriously considering making this an experiment in "bee freedom" - letting them keep the medium with the "natural area" and then giving them a deep to keep above it (with frames) and adding supers on top as usual . . . .
Other than not being able to track down the queen easily (or occasionaly at all) does anyone see any reason not to just go with this? I know it's not "right", but the bees are not reading the same books as I am, and I can't really see any harm, as long as I drill another couple holes in the inner cover so they have lots of access to the deep on top of it?