The Zonda ‘Home Garden Hive’ is a hive that has been designed specifically for the home gardener or home orchardist.
Many people are finding a shortage of natural pollinators in their gardens, and find using bumblebees to be very efficient at aiding pollination of vegetables, fruit trees, flowers and grasses.
Some people just enjoy having such an interesting and exciting insect to watch in their own backyard.
Hive placement
The hive is 300mmx300mm square, so perfect to fit somewhere in the backyard. We suggest placing the hive in a sheltered spot out of direct sunlight, to avoid them overheating. Try to elevate the hive so that they are not sitting directly on the ground, as ants can be an issue.
The hive has been designed with a waxed exterior to protect it from the outdoor elements. However we do advise that the hive be given shelter from heavy rain or winds. This could be as simple as a piece of ply over the top or to simply move the hive. The hive can also easily be closed and moved if need be.
What does the hive contain?
The hive comes complete with a colony of around 50 worker bees, including the Queen.
Our bumblebees are ‘Bombus terrestris’, meaning earth bee.
The hive is completely self-contained, requiring no maintenance. It does not require feeding or cleaning. It arrives with a bladder of sugar syrup in the base of the hive, from which the bumblebees can feed. This will be sufficient for the life of the hive.
Hive Performance
You can expect the hive to last for around 6 weeks, although they can last much longer depending on food source and health of the brood. After this time the Queen will die and the hive will naturally start to die off. This is their natural life cycle.
Before the Queen dies she will lay several new Queens, these new Queens will leave the hive and look for somewhere close by to establish their own hive. So this is also a great way of helping to boost the numbers of bumblebees occurring naturally.
All of our hives are guaranteed for a minimum of 4 working weeks. If you have any problems with the bees during that time, please notify Zonda immediately, and we will try to rectify the problem.
The hive will arrive with further instructions on hive placement, opening and closing the hive and some FAQ’s.
Home Garden Hives can be sent all over NZ by overnight courier.