The Bee Lady's Blog

Facts and ramblings about my favorite bug, Apis mellifera, commonly known as the European Honey Bee.

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Thursday, January 30, 2014

Medieval Bee Picture #3

Woodcut by Johann Grüninger showing straw skeps in two simple bee shelters. 1502

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Labels: Apiary, Bee Shelter, Bee Yard Project, Medieval Pics, Skep

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About Me

My name is Sarah and this is my blog about bees. I took an interest in beekeeping when I was 8 or 9. It wasn't until 2007 that I began researching medieval and modern beekeeping. In 2008, I set up my own apiary consisting of a Top Bar Hive and two Langstroth hives. I currently have six hives.

Once a honey bee enters your heart, you're theirs forever.

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Want to be a beekeeper? Start here:

"The Thinking Beekeeper", Christy Hemenway, 2013
"The Backyard Beekeeper", Kim Flottum, 2005
"Beekeeping for Dummies", Jonathan Blackiston, 2nd Ed, 2009

Museums (Not all sites in English):

France: Ferme apicole de Terenez
France: Le Musee du Miel
Lithuania: Museum of Ancient Beekeeping
Netherlands: Beekeeping Museum
Slovenia: Apicultural Museum Radovljica
Wales: National Beekeeping Centre

Glossary:

Awl: Tool used to thread bramble binding between the layers of straw coils of a skep
Backyard Beekeeper/Beekeeping: Small scale beekeeping to provide a relatively small amount of the honey. Also a good way to pollinate gardens.
Bramble Binding: Long strips of prepared blackberry stems used to bind the straw together to create a skep
Cleave: A wood instrument used to strip blackberry stems to create bramble binding
Cloaming: The process of adding cow or horse dung mixed with mud to the outside of the skep to create a barrier to weather
Gart: A metal hoop placed over the hackle to keep it in place on the skep
Hackle: A "tent" made of long straw placed over the skep to help protect it from weather
Honey Flow: The times of the year when nectar is plentiful
Langstroth hive: A set of vertical boxes with moveable frames for bees to draw comb on that form the beehive. Also referred to as a 'Lang'.
Nuc: A starter package of bees containing drawn frames, a queen, and worker bees.
Package: A starter set of bees containing a fertilized queen and worker bees. There are no drawn frames.
Propolis: Compound created by bee enzymes and tree sap or resins. Used to seal gaps in the hive, reduce entrances, and strength honeycomb.
Skep: An inverted basket made of wicker or coiled straw used in beekeeping for housing bees
Top Bar Hive (TBH): A horizontal box hive with a series of parallel and touching bars that form the hive body.

Medieval Beekeeping Links:

Bramble Binding for Skep Making
The Linkspages at Larsdatter: Beehives
Skep Making
Skeps at Hampton Court

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Modern Beekeeping Links:

Backyard Hive
John's Beekeeping Notebook
International Bee Research Association (IBRA)
National Honey Board
"Silence of the Bees", Nature, PBS
Small Scale Beekeeping PDF (TBH's)

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