Inside a Native Beehive

Splitting native bee hive

By Gavin Smith

The splitting of the native bee hive in Rochelle’s Community Garden at Magpies Sports Club attracted quite a few more participants than was expected on Event Brite.

The hive had been sheltering in a model timber shed that I made at the Ryde Hunters Hill Men’s Shed from recycled timber. Often other insects and ants love these shelters too. Large cockroaches scampered away once I managed to lift the cover to expose the ply hive. Sugar bag bees have little in the way of defence against invaders. They employ tree sap and resin. This hive was completely covered in the stickiest sap I had ever encountered. The weight indicated that it was full of brood and honey. 

Weather conditions were perfect for a split, – warm and windless. The twenty visitors were warned to prepare for dozens of tiny angry biting bees and were encouraged to put on masks. Sugar bag bees love to enter holes and dark hair. Everyone moved to a sensible distance as the three boxes were pried apart.

The honey super went first, turned to drain and to allow bees to escape. I use a hive tool to split enough to slip a thin sharp knife to cut across the involcrum or casing which surrounds the brood chamber. Once I had cut completely around, the hive opened to show a perfect spiral brood in the bottom half and the opposite in the top box.

Inside a native beehive – YouTube

It was a perfect split. Once the new top and bottom were in place, the honey super was drained by pressing the honey pots over a normal honey sieve into a plastic box. 

Harvested honey totalled 250mls. The taste was extra delicious.

Tim’s Story

Tim Jones was one of the first people to greet me at the Magpie’s Garden where the sugar bag bee hive was to be split. He’d bought the last available ticket from Event Bright and hoped that his wife could join in.

Tim had photographed a climate change rally for students and the general public in 2017 in the Domain. There was a person in a bee suit holding a chart of Australian native bees. By enlarging the photo he saw a white name tag, copied and searched on the web. That was his way of finding our special field day.

Tim and his wife bought the split and took it to their lush garden in Gladesville. Amazing! You never know what may come your way.

The 2021-22 member card is white once again – Five years on.