Hello jive I’ve just bought a flow hive and I’m in Cheshire too! Is yours set up yet?
Hey Steve,
Unfortunately not yet. The house we were looking to buy fell through and we haven’t found anywhere suitable to get it set up yet. I am going to be doing a beginners course at the Manchester Bee Keepers Association (up at Heaton Park). Have you got experience with bees already or are you a new-bee? If you will forgive the pun 
I’m a new-bee I’m waiting for my hive to come and I’ve ordered a Nuc of Buckfast bees for next spring
At my course they said its best to buy local bees, They said all the pure breed bees are fine for two generation but as the next generation queen bees mate with local bees, they have a tenancy to make more an aggressive hive. I don’t have an experience yet with so can’t say if that is true or not.
Got my bees from the local breeder and they are calm and great to work with.
No great shakes to re-queen every two years. Local bees can still be nasty.
What types of bases have people got in the uk for their bee hives? I’d love to see some pics as I’m going to make mine either this week or next week!
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My hives are on wooden stands. Each hive is on a stand big enough for three. They are in a field where the ground is uneven so the uprights are fence posts driven into the ground with pallet wood as the base. Our association hives are on two high breeze blocks with scaffolding poles along the top. That seems to work well
Are the wood stands just frames with an open bottom or is the bottom that the hive sits on solid wood? Which is best?
Open
All the rubbish falls to the ground
I have my hive on Railway Sleepers, and have raised it slightly with bricks. The spacing between the sleepers is a frame.
Hi Adam. Haven’t kept bees now for some twenty years. New Flow hive caught my eye, alleviating the most mucky job I remember in harvesting. The concept looks great on the face of it & relit my interest in starting again. Just wondering how their product would fare in UK climate. Seeing your not too far from me (I’m Horam Nr Heathfield) I wondered if I could get a look at a working system & your thoughts on it. Robin
My bees in my Flow Hive have not produced honey in the flow frames this year. I have been building up the colony in the brood box and hope to take honey next year.
Happy to show you the hive, but next year would be better.
Best
Adam
RobinS
August 30
Hi Adam. Haven’t kept bees now for some twenty years. New Flow hive caught my eye, alleviating the most mucky job I remember in harvesting. The concept looks great on the face of it & relit my interest in starting again. Just wondering how their product would fare in UK climate. Seeing your not too far from me (I’m Horam Nr Heathfield) I wondered if I could get a look at a working system & your thoughts on it. Robin
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In Reply To
AdamHUK
August 17
I’ll try to remember to get some pics next time I am able.
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Many thanks,
Its been so long I have very little left of any use, so looking for clean start.
My problem was that I lost use of neighbouring plot, with safe take-off & only place in my garden, to avoid take-offs into young children, was under trees & that did for my colony. Kids grown & in new house with long garden, so looking to do my bit to keep bees contribution to pollination needs & revive one of the most satisfying hobbies I’ve ever had.
I have given away several swarms over the years, but never kept a note of who took them.
Do you know of anyone else in south who has built up a functioning colony in FLOW ?
Robin
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Removed post answered elsewhere
Thanks for the advice Dee I will make an open bottom frame I thought that might be best but I’ve seen lots of closed bottoms so thought I’d ask! My flow hive arrived today so I’m looking forward to next spring already
Question to the UK Beekeepers, I am seeing few queen cups in the brood box.
Do I need to be worried about a swarm happening at this late in the season?
They may just be “play cups” if there are no larvae or royal jelly in them.
It is possible, but unlikely. If your brood box is overcrowded, they may feel a pressure to swarm, especially if the weather is good and you have a nectar flow from some late-flowering plants.
Nice one
What is your next plan now
Hi I have received my flow hive this year and I am now getting ready to go next year. My first time to bee keeping. I live in North Yorkshire and I am concerned about the lack of enthusiasm I have encountered by other Bee Keepers especially in regards to Rape seed saying the flowhive will fail because of this. I am pleases to see the support on this and recommendations . Any one who has advice in this or lives near North Yorkshire I would love t chat. Jason