☯ Beekeeping Tip #6
To Paint or not to paint, that is the question.
Hives do not have to bee painted white! Look around
and you’ll see keepers using all colors of the rainbow. Beautiful
as these hive are, is it necessary. Many will say yes, to preserve
the wood and give longer life to the box. But what about the
alternative…..
How about linseed oil?
Linseed is used in fine furniture finishing. It
will protect your investment. It is cheap or comparative to paint in
dollars. It contains NO petroleum distillates, NO volatile organic
compounds (VOCs) and NO heavy metal driers. For us this is
best. I do not want to leave the bees in an environment where VOCs
are unavoidable.
Wait! The paint is on the outside you say.
Yes, however, bees smell at a rate of parts per
trillion! If VOCs take 2-3 months to dissipate in your house, how
long can these smellers smell it?
We also don’t like the idea of paint peeling into
the environment nor when we might want to clean up the hive. You can
also reapply linseed in the field.
Another thought on using linseed. It allows the
hives to fade into the background of the environment. If you want to
keep hives safe from prying eyes this is the way to go.
☯
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