How to build a Native Bee Hive on the Central Coast
When walking I found a native bee hive that had come down in a storm, it had smashed apart when the branch had come down and was in a sorry state covered in ants. I picked up as many pieces as I could find and put it in a cardboard box, taping the sides and leaving it closed up for a few days while making a new native bee hive, under the guidance of native bee and bee expert Paul Peterson. The internal dimensions are based on the native Bee Box Design by Tim Heard.
I placed the carboard box on top of an upside down yogurt container in water with detergent in it to act as a moat to protect it from ants in the meantime.
Here is the bee hive we made and 1:1 A3 pdf templates.
As it is too cold here in the Central Coast to harvest the honey, you only need to make two boxes. We also made it with a tropical roof to help regulate the temperature.
What you need:
45x90mm x 2.4m dressed timber, untreated - no insect resistant treatment as it will harm the bees
40x140mm x 2.4m dressed timber, untreated - no insect resistant treatment as it will harm the bees
20x30mm x 2.4m dressed timber, untreated - no insect resistant treatment as it will harm the bees
Make the following cuts in the 45x90mm:
320mm x 4 mitre cuts (at 45 degrees like a picture frame)
240mm x 4 mitre cuts (at 45 degrees like a picture frame)
Make the following cuts in the 40x140mm.
320mm x 2 cuts
360mm x 4 cuts
Make the following cuts in the 20x30mm
360mm x 4
50mm x 1
