Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
The crown board
Often called the 'inner cover', especially in America, this is just a board that sits on top
of the top box under the lid. I don't use them and in fact I can't think what they are for.
It was only when I looked at a diagram of a hive that I remembered they existed. I then
recalled using them when I started because they came with the hive.
Crown boards often have a round hole in them so that you can invert a bucket feeder
of sugar syrup over the hole, but you can do the same directly on top of the frames. I
don't think using them makes any difference - they are just another item you have to
put somewhere when looking into the hive.
The lid
Lids have a variety of designs. Some are telescopic and fit over the hive completely.
Some just sit on top of the hive and rely on strapping to keep them there (these are used
mainly by commercial beekeepers). Some fit over the hive at the front and back. Some
have integral sugar-syrup feeders, as described above. Most, however, are flat, but gabled
lids are available that make a hive look attractive but then, of course, you won't be able
to stack the hives on top of each other for moving.
My advice is to use flat, telescopic lids for most flexibility. They don't hinder you too
much if you are moving bees and they stay on in winds. If you are definitely not going
to stack your hives, then gabled lids look very attractive and, for looks alone, they are a
must on WBC hives (see below).
Some commercial beekeepers with large numbers of hives have a fat lid that contains a
cavity that can be filled with sugar syrup for feeding purposes. The lid's top has a screw
bung and, when removed, a petrol-type nozzle can be put in this and syrup pumped in
from a truck-mounted tank. This has the advantage of speed and, because you don't
need to remove the lid, you don't upset the bees. The bees can enter the feeder from
inside the hive. Robbing is also prevented because any 'foreign' bees will have to pass
right through the hive to get to the sugar, and they tend not to do this.
Whatever they are made of, lids must have a tin/zinc cover, otherwise rain will get in.
In very hot countries it is helpful to the bees' thermoregulation to paint the lids white.
