Technically, I am an engineer. I know, writing software may not seem to be very engineer-y to you, but it does classify as engineering. We design, implement, test, and improve our product until the software does exactly what it should do. Why else do you think your apps are always updating? Engineering.
Having said that, me being an engineer kind of also makes me a nerd/geek. I say I lean a little bit more to the geek side of that classification, because I just love anything that is science and/or technical. Well, anybody who likes technology and science needs to spend time learning about bees. They just know how to build stuff to the specifications of their own instincts. That brings me to todays blog entry: Housel Positioning.
Housel Positioning gets its name from a beekeeper by the name of Michael Housel. Michael Housel discovered through observation, that feral bees build the honey comb with a specific order. If you were to take a look at honeycomb, and look closely at the bottom of any given cell against the light, you will notice either a "Y" shape or an inverted "Y" shape. Housel observed that the side of the comb with the regular "Y" shape was always facing away from the center of the hive. Conversely, the inverted "Y" shape toward the center. In feral hives, the bees also build a center comb that has on both sides the inverted "Y". So what does this mean for beekeepers? Well, I think it means we should also try to simulate this within our own man-made hives.
Let me point out, before I get too far, that this observation made by Housel is merely a theory based on his own observation. I imagine it would be possible to further research this apparent building technology, yet to the best of my knowledge, no extensive research of that kind has been made. I did some preliminary browsing through forums here in Germany, and I must say, the majority of the users were kind of naysayers. So, one could surmise that while this observation may have implications, it is by no means mainstream.
Now, I personally think there may be something valid about this theory. Let me give a little background as to why. As most of you know, I just began this grand adventure of beekeeping this past summer. I have received adequate training and mentoring from some experiences beeks, so I felt that I had a good shot of starting out with little to no hiccups. When I received my three nucs in July, I moved them into full size boxes. That means, that I placed them into their future homes and filled in the empty spaces with frames containing wax foundation. Seems legit, right? Well, yes and no, and this is where Housel Positioning comes into play.
Wax foundations are just sheets of beeswax that have been stamped with a basic hexagonal pattern on both sides. If one looks close enough, it is possible to identify the "Y" shapes (both regular and inverted). So, if one were to introduce wax foundation frames into a newly established hive, but had neglected to pay attention the Housel Positioning, the frames would be backwards as far as the bees are concerned. OK, so what, the frames are in backwards, surely the bees will still work with them. That is a fair statement, but maybe it is not true. Perhaps the opposite is true and can have serious consequences when building a hive.
Other beekeepers have in turn observed that when hives are started with wax foundations that did not adhere to the Housel Positioning, the behavior of the bees was often times curious and inexplicable. One beekeeper mentioned in a YouTube video that after going through all of his colonies and implement this particular ordering of frames, he observed a decrease in swarming behavior down to 5% of the time. In other words, the order of the frames determine if the bees will swarm or not because they are under a lot of stress. It would be like have your bed fastened to the ceiling of your bedroom, you probably would want to move too! The bees were also gentler and were easy to handle.
So, back on point, I too have noticed since I hived the nucs, that one colony in particular had a very difficult time drawing out new comb and increasing in number. Since it is now deep winter, I have not the opportunity to inspect the hive to see if I set the ladies up for failure or not. This is a very interesting observation, one that I will be sure to implement here on out. Regardless of whether the theory proves to fact or fiction, I can't imagine it hurting to try it out. The geeky and nerdy engineer in me wants to dive in and see that if by revising and improving my beekeeping skills, it will help the colonies thrive and bring in a plentiful honey surplus this season.
If you have interest in learing more about Housel Positioning, I suggest Googling it, there seems to be plenty of material and discussions out there. I will also post an update in about six weeks after I have had my first peek inside the hives.
Having said that, me being an engineer kind of also makes me a nerd/geek. I say I lean a little bit more to the geek side of that classification, because I just love anything that is science and/or technical. Well, anybody who likes technology and science needs to spend time learning about bees. They just know how to build stuff to the specifications of their own instincts. That brings me to todays blog entry: Housel Positioning.
Housel Positioning gets its name from a beekeeper by the name of Michael Housel. Michael Housel discovered through observation, that feral bees build the honey comb with a specific order. If you were to take a look at honeycomb, and look closely at the bottom of any given cell against the light, you will notice either a "Y" shape or an inverted "Y" shape. Housel observed that the side of the comb with the regular "Y" shape was always facing away from the center of the hive. Conversely, the inverted "Y" shape toward the center. In feral hives, the bees also build a center comb that has on both sides the inverted "Y". So what does this mean for beekeepers? Well, I think it means we should also try to simulate this within our own man-made hives.
Let me point out, before I get too far, that this observation made by Housel is merely a theory based on his own observation. I imagine it would be possible to further research this apparent building technology, yet to the best of my knowledge, no extensive research of that kind has been made. I did some preliminary browsing through forums here in Germany, and I must say, the majority of the users were kind of naysayers. So, one could surmise that while this observation may have implications, it is by no means mainstream.
Now, I personally think there may be something valid about this theory. Let me give a little background as to why. As most of you know, I just began this grand adventure of beekeeping this past summer. I have received adequate training and mentoring from some experiences beeks, so I felt that I had a good shot of starting out with little to no hiccups. When I received my three nucs in July, I moved them into full size boxes. That means, that I placed them into their future homes and filled in the empty spaces with frames containing wax foundation. Seems legit, right? Well, yes and no, and this is where Housel Positioning comes into play.
Wax foundations are just sheets of beeswax that have been stamped with a basic hexagonal pattern on both sides. If one looks close enough, it is possible to identify the "Y" shapes (both regular and inverted). So, if one were to introduce wax foundation frames into a newly established hive, but had neglected to pay attention the Housel Positioning, the frames would be backwards as far as the bees are concerned. OK, so what, the frames are in backwards, surely the bees will still work with them. That is a fair statement, but maybe it is not true. Perhaps the opposite is true and can have serious consequences when building a hive.
Other beekeepers have in turn observed that when hives are started with wax foundations that did not adhere to the Housel Positioning, the behavior of the bees was often times curious and inexplicable. One beekeeper mentioned in a YouTube video that after going through all of his colonies and implement this particular ordering of frames, he observed a decrease in swarming behavior down to 5% of the time. In other words, the order of the frames determine if the bees will swarm or not because they are under a lot of stress. It would be like have your bed fastened to the ceiling of your bedroom, you probably would want to move too! The bees were also gentler and were easy to handle.
So, back on point, I too have noticed since I hived the nucs, that one colony in particular had a very difficult time drawing out new comb and increasing in number. Since it is now deep winter, I have not the opportunity to inspect the hive to see if I set the ladies up for failure or not. This is a very interesting observation, one that I will be sure to implement here on out. Regardless of whether the theory proves to fact or fiction, I can't imagine it hurting to try it out. The geeky and nerdy engineer in me wants to dive in and see that if by revising and improving my beekeeping skills, it will help the colonies thrive and bring in a plentiful honey surplus this season.
If you have interest in learing more about Housel Positioning, I suggest Googling it, there seems to be plenty of material and discussions out there. I will also post an update in about six weeks after I have had my first peek inside the hives.
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