Measuring natural comb

Cindi · October 06, 2007, 06:20:28 PM

I had natural comb built on the plastic starter strip comb, I was asked to measure it. I did, using the calculation of:

measuring 10 cells midrib to midrib and dividing by 10

worker comb = 6.5 cm total width
drone comb = 8.0 cm total width

Any comments on these sizes? So, what do these figures signify? Have a wonderful day, best of this great life we're all livin'. Cindi

Understudy · October 06, 2007, 06:24:03 PM

How old is the comb?

Sincerely,
Brendhan

Cindi · October 06, 2007, 06:31:58 PM

Brendhan, now that is a good question. I am on a mission, I will look through my pictures and look at dates and maybe I can get one for you. Why? Have a wonderful day, best of this life. Cindi

MrILoveTheAnts · October 06, 2007, 06:42:15 PM

I think you mean mm, not cm.

Cindi · October 06, 2007, 06:54:51 PM

Brendhan. Two pictures of the same comb, I think. First one was on July 11 (this year) and the second picture of same comb on Sept 21. The starter strip was put in the colony probably around the first of July. Cindi

Ooops, big mistake in measurement. Yes, it is in cm, not mm, not it is not 6.5 and 8

The cells are 5.5 and 7, looked at the ruler wrong, probably makes a big difference when discovering cell size, hee, hee. C.

rdy-b · October 06, 2007, 07:06:09 PM

OK now what was the size of cells on the frame with plastic foundation intact. we can see if there is any regresion. and you can get to practice measuring ;) RDY-B 8-)

Understudy · October 06, 2007, 07:44:20 PM

the bees will make it small cell as it gets older first run comb generally doesn't start small.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

Michael Bush · October 07, 2007, 12:38:21 AM

>measuring 10 cells midrib to midrib and dividing by 10
>worker comb = 6.5 cm total width
>drone comb = 8.0 cm total width
>Any comments on these sizes? So, what do these figures signify?

The 6.5mm is drone comb. The 8.0mm is honey storage comb. None of that is worker comb. I've never seen natural worker comb over 5.2mm nor unnatural worker comb over 5.4mm. Standard drone foundation is 6.6mm. 7/11 foundation is 5.6mm and the queen won't lay worker eggs in it. IF she lays in it, which she usually won't, she'll lay drone in 5.6mm cells.

rdy-b · October 07, 2007, 01:26:18 AM

MB those first numbers where not her final and accurate numbers read further into the posts to reply #4 now this should have a more common read 8-) good job cindi RDY-B

Cindi · October 07, 2007, 07:58:01 AM

RDY-B, OK so now you have sent me on another mission. I will have to go to the bee house and get some drawn comb on the plastic foundation, but hey, wait a minute!!!! It is only 4:00 A.M. it is too dark, and besides I have to tell a story about why I am awake at this little bit earlier than usual time!!!! But that is in another post, hee, hee ;) :) Any foundation that is in the bee house will be comb that was drawn this summer, that I removed when reducing the boxes to 2 deeps for wintertime.

I have been measuring the cells in centimetres, my ruler does not measure in millimetres, don't know if I can even find on that measures in mm.

I am still getting used to the metric system, (we began to use it in Canada many, many years ago, can't recall, but it must be over 15 years anyways, my kids learned it in high school). It is very accurate, but I still understand inches, feet, and so on better, when I am ascertaining length and for liquid measurements. Have a wonderful day, best of this great life. Cindi

Michael Bush · October 07, 2007, 10:59:16 PM

Maybe they intended it all for honey storage. But if not, then the 5.5mm is worker and the 7.0mm is drone. Pretty big when you consider that even large cell drone foundation is 6.6mm and large cell worker foundation is 5.4mm.

randydrivesabus · October 08, 2007, 07:10:01 AM

i took a honey super off of one of my hives....it had starter strips and they built some comb consisting of 6.5mm cells. o...btw...there was no honey because of no flow.

Scadsobees · October 08, 2007, 11:54:48 AM

If you let them draw a natural comb in a box full of worker size comb, it will usually be drone or storage size, 6-7mm. I find those two to be interchangeable. I get those in the brood boxes or in the honey supers. I don't mind so much in the honey supers(untill the queen gets up there) but in the brood boxes those generally get moved to the outside of the box for brood honey storage.

If you give it to them in the early spring during brood expansion but before the main flow, there is a better chance that it will be drawn out for worker brood.

Rick

Brian D. Bray · October 10, 2007, 12:04:51 AM

typically comb larger than 5.5 is storage comb. If you want to regress your bees to a smaller cell size it must be done in the brood chamber. If using starter strips or foundationless frames the bees will usually build comb slightly larger comb the 1st year. Moving that comb up into a honey super and putting in new frames in the brood chamber for them to draw the new comb will be smaller, the same the following year. It can take up to 4 years to completely regress a hive to SC in the brood chamber. Even then when the bees build storage comb they will still build comb larger than drone comb.

Small cell, even in the wild, is usually limited to the area of the hive dedicated to brood production and only used as storage as the build up period ends and winterizing begins when they will backfill most all of the comb in the hive.