Want to buy native bees and don’t know where to start?
Which bees do you like? There’s approximately 2000 species of native bees in Australia, most of those are Solitary Bees, with 11 species being Social Stingless Bees. Read More…
Should you build or buy boxes??
Many new hive owners contemplate that question and probably never work out what to do or waste money heading in the wrong direction. Read More…
Romina Rader – Wild Pollinators in Australian Crop Systems
Romina presented some of her work at the July meeting for the Brisbane Branch of the Australian Native Bee Association. It was another full house at the hall, so there’s plenty of interest in the more technical presentations from native bee enthusiasts. Read More…
Budding Kit Version 2
This is the new version of my Budding Kit (Budding also known as Eduction). The previous version was quite involved in the construction which made for a great box but was possibly overkill, so i’ve stripped the design right down to simplify the construction while still providing the same result Read More…
Solitary Bee Observation Block
When i want to have a peek i can open up the blocks without disturbing the nests… Read More…
Standard Pine Native Bee Box
This is 33mm thick x 100mm wide Hoop Pine, but you can use anything you have and adjust the measurements to suit. 33mm thick wood gives each frame the internal volume of around 2.9 litres, so the total box volume with all the frames together might end up around 8 to 9 litres. You might want to use anything from 25mm to 50mm thick wood. Read More…
Krystal’s Woodburning
Krystal does wood burning, known as “Pyrography”, burning all kinds of things from the chicken signs mentioned previously to kitchen cutting boards, wooden spoons or basically anything that can be burnt. Krystal is the creative type so enjoys the process which can take hours to days to finish the product to a high standard. Read More…
Native Bee Club Hive Expo
The Brisbane Native Bee Keepers Club filled the room with their annual Hive Exhibition at the Hut at Mt Cootha. (THECA)
Doug Irvine was guest Judge and also displayed some of his boxes, honey frames and honey extraction process which he showed how he loads the honey frame in to a stainless steel case and spins it by hand. Read More…
Honey Trays 
I thought i’d check on the Honey Tray progress. I made a bit of a mess taking them apart as the honey pots broke open and spilled honey all over the place. This is ok because it was completely separate from the internals of the colony. I placed the honey frames on a mesh grid to drain the honey. Read More…
Octagonal Boxes
A friend – Krystal, wanted to try some wood burning (Pyrography) on these boxes so she’s had them for a while burning the designs on. Below is one of the boxes with a floral design. It looks great. Read More…
Australian Native Bee Hives – Design and Construction of Boxes – Redcliffe Qld
