Hello all,
My current setup isn't ideal. It wasn't planned and the stands were made last minute - just chunks of wood stacked, levelled then screwed together. I want to use the week I have off work to rearrange the garden a little bit. The hives are on the best side for protection from wind and they get the early morning sun too. As I'm going over 3 feet and under 3 miles (not a big garden ) I wouldn't mind a bit of advice. I treated them all Apitraz around the same time (one lagged behind some may remember) and I will trickle them at the same time too (I'm coming from the angle if treatment is relevant for bees drifting due to new positions).
So below are two images - one is how my apiary is setup, the second is how I want it set up. Any advice on how to do this and if it's possible without hurting the bees' chances of survival etc. would be appreciated.
The garden slopes, I would like to dig a section out level - probably more than I need so I can increase hives along the fence line. I was thinking of just digging it out and sticking some flagstones down for a solid base and then bark chippings on top. The soil in the garden is awful - full of clay and random bits and bobs. This was a farmer's field up until 7 years ago...
Any thoughts?
My current setup isn't ideal. It wasn't planned and the stands were made last minute - just chunks of wood stacked, levelled then screwed together. I want to use the week I have off work to rearrange the garden a little bit. The hives are on the best side for protection from wind and they get the early morning sun too. As I'm going over 3 feet and under 3 miles (not a big garden ) I wouldn't mind a bit of advice. I treated them all Apitraz around the same time (one lagged behind some may remember) and I will trickle them at the same time too (I'm coming from the angle if treatment is relevant for bees drifting due to new positions).
So below are two images - one is how my apiary is setup, the second is how I want it set up. Any advice on how to do this and if it's possible without hurting the bees' chances of survival etc. would be appreciated.
The garden slopes, I would like to dig a section out level - probably more than I need so I can increase hives along the fence line. I was thinking of just digging it out and sticking some flagstones down for a solid base and then bark chippings on top. The soil in the garden is awful - full of clay and random bits and bobs. This was a farmer's field up until 7 years ago...
Any thoughts?
Jazz