Hives Bring Bees Indoors

2015 - Volume #39, Issue #6, Page #18

[ Sample Stories From This Issue | List of All Stories In This Issue | Print this story | Read this issue]

Want to know how “busy” bees really are? Then you might consider buying or building an observation hive. Similar to an ant farm, you can watch bees go about their lives, year-round from the comfort of your living room.
  “I’ve found that they become intimate friends. The queen shows her personality by the way she moves around. You watch a baby bee come out of a cell. They become like family pets,” says Mark Launer, owner of Bonterra Bees.
  The lifelong beekeeper built his first observation hive about 6 years ago and was inspired to go into business building and selling them.
  “It’s unbelievable how enjoyable it is to watch the bees,” he says.
  His SwingView™, an 8-frame, wall-mounted shadow box, is the most popular with customers. Mounted on a hinge, it can be moved to view as many as 50,000 bees on both sides of the double hive.
  The concept is simple. An enclosed glass frame holds Langstroth-style deep frames with a tube that goes to an outside wall exit.
  “They aren’t honey production hives like the outdoor hives,” Launer says. “Observation hives are big enough for the colony to sustain themselves year-round.”
  Observation hive owners can watch bees bringing in nectar, the emergence of baby bees in the summer, drone bees getting kicked out in the fall and the winter slowdown.
  The only sound from the hive is a slight hum during the summer when the bees are most active, Launer says.
  His observation hives include feed pans, screened vents and a debris port. Customers purchase the glass and bees locally. Costs for hives range from a 6-frame TableView™ model for $675 to the wall-mounted SwingView™ at $800 to the CircleView™ that rotates 360 degrees for $805.
  The hives are a substantial investment, Launer notes, so he also offers “Do It Yourself plans” in a booklet for $32. He is pleased that customers from all over the world have purchased the plans.
  Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Mark Launer, Bonterra Bees, P.O. Box 275, Addison, Maine 04606 (ph 207 557-7044; www.bonterrabees.com).

Click here to download page story appeared in.

Click here to read entire issue

Hives Bring Bees Indoors FARM HOME Miscellaneous Want to know how “busy” bees really are? Then you might consider buying or building an observation hive Similar to an ant farm you can watch bees go about their lives year-round from the comfort of your living room “I’ve found that they become intimate friends The queen shows her personality by the way she moves around You watch a baby bee come out of a cell They become like family pets ” says Mark Launer owner of Bonterra Bees The lifelong beekeeper built his first observation hive about 6 years ago and was inspired to go into business building and selling them “It’s unbelievable how enjoyable it is to watch the bees ” he says His SwingView™ an 8-frame wall-mounted shadow box is the most popular with customers Mounted on a hinge it can be moved to view as many as 50 000 bees on both sides of the double hive The concept is simple An enclosed glass frame holds Langstroth-style deep frames with a tube that goes to an outside wall exit “They aren’t honey production hives like the outdoor hives ” Launer says “Observation hives are big enough for the colony to sustain themselves year-round ” Observation hive owners can watch bees bringing in nectar the emergence of baby bees in the summer drone bees getting kicked out in the fall and the winter slowdown The only sound from the hive is a slight hum during the summer when the bees are most active Launer says His observation hives include feed pans screened vents and a debris port Customers purchase the glass and bees locally Costs for hives range from a 6-frame TableView™ model for $675 to the wall-mounted SwingView™ at $800 to the CircleView™ that rotates 360 degrees for $805 The hives are a substantial investment Launer notes so he also offers “Do It Yourself plans” in a booklet for $32 He is pleased that customers from all over the world have purchased the plans Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Mark Launer Bonterra Bees P O Box 275 Addison Maine 04606 ph 207 557-7044; www bonterrabees com

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.

SUBSCRIBE OR RENEW NOW