Why Choose a Long Hive?
A lot of time went into deciding on which direction to take. The goal was to produce a hive that gives bees the best possible environment in which to do their thing while also enabling beekeepers to check and care of the colony without upsetting the bees too much!
In the end, it was obvious that a long hive would give the most benefit to both bee and beekeeper.
The big benefits of long hives are:
There is no lifting of supers to get to inspect the brood.
The whole hive is at a comfortable height to work in. If you’re doing a full inspection, your back will thank you for this!
Long hives are also accessible from a seated position, which makes beekeeping a real option for a lot of people who use wheelchairs.
The space needed by the colony is different at different times of the year. The long hive grows and shrinks through the seasons depending on the needs of the colony: smaller in winter and larger in spring/summer. This is done by simply moving the divider board.
No additional hive boxes are needed. The colony has enough space to expand in the spring and summer, and the extra space in the hive can be used to store tools or extra frames in the autumn and winter.
Inspections are easier for the beekeeper as it’s possible to simply open the hive and start working in whichever part of the hive you need to.
It’s also a bit easier on the bees as only specific frames are moved during an inspection. The rest of the colony can go about their work with almost no disruption at all.
Long hives are very versatile and the extra space makes more complicated hive manipulations and advanced beekeeping procedures possible.
There are drawbacks to long hives and these are:
They have a bigger footprint and so need a little more space than a vertical hive.
Long hives cost more initially, however this investment is recouped quickly as there is no need for additional hive parts like supers or ekes. A Noochii Hive will last for decades longer than other timber hives thanks to the Accoya.
Long hives are heavier and not easy to move without help, but once they’re setup in your garden or apiary, you’re probably not going to need to move it too often.