In need of additional supers, I picked up two mediums, each with 10 wooden frames of wired wax starter foundation, from a local supplier (roughly $70). Apparently, there is tremendous demand right now for equipment, so I was lucky to find a place with same-day pickup.Time to paint. I bought a gallon of reject exterior latex paint from the hardware (oil-based paint probably is not good for the bees) and applied one coat primer and two coats paint. Only the exterior of bee homes are painted.
This morning at 7:30 am (not the ideal time to be making adjustments, for me or them), I lit the smoker and added one medium to the Italians and one medium to the Russians. The Russians were not happy at all; the Italians were oblivious.I think the bees will be quite pleased with their lovely new blue additions.
So: the Italians have 3 hive bodies and the Russians have 3 hive bodies and 2 honey supers. The equipment apparently is exactly the same, but hive body refers to brood chambers and honey super refers to the area dedicated to honey storage. I was confused about that for a long time.
Did you know? It is best to inspect hives on a warm, sunny day at the time when most foragers will be in the field.
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