Backfilling nector in BB

[Moody]

Hi I have a hive that's hopelessly queenless and prepared to introduce to it a mated queen.

Today I went to introduce the queen and noticed the bees have filled the frames in the brood box with nector.

The hive has 2 supers:
Top super - filled 90%
2nd super (above BB) this has a couple frames in middle with drawn comb and partially filled with nector. But rest of frames are still undrawn, been like this for 3 weeks now.

Majority of frames on bottom BB have been filled with nector since my last inspection a week ago. There's no brood as queen must have stopped laying 3weeks ago befor she disappeared (no swarm).

Do I need to take any action?

Thanks fellow experts

 

[enrico]

Hi I have a hive that's hopelessly queenless and prepared to introduce to it a mated queen.

Today I went to introduce the queen and noticed the bees have filled the frames in the brood box with nector.

The hive has 2 supers:
Top super - filled 90%
2nd super (above BB) this has a couple frames in middle with drawn comb and partially filled with nector. But rest of frames are still undrawn, been like this for 3 weeks now.

Majority of frames on bottom BB have been filled with nector since my last inspection a week ago. There's no brood as queen must have stopped laying 3weeks ago befor she disappeared (no swarm).

Do I need to take any action?

Thanks fellow experts

Swap a couple of full centre frames for drawn if you have it or undrawn if not. Keep those for feeding later. As the queen comes into lay they will move the nectar in the remaining frames up as long as there is room above. Don't forget they need more room to dry the nectar out than they need to store it!

 

[Finman]

You just put the queen into the hive

 

[Moody]

Swap a couple of full centre frames for drawn if you have it or undrawn if not. Keep those for feeding later.

Shall I just store them in a nuc that's in my shed?
Does the new super go above or below the one that's getting full.
Thanks

 

[enrico]

Shall I just store them in a nuc that's in my shed?
Does the new super go above or below the one that's getting full.
Thanks

You can freeze them if you want to stop them fermenting, otherwise store them away from rodents or bees! I would put them back in a hive when you get a chance if it is nectar rather than honey. I always put new super under full or part full supers.

 

[Finman]

Make a honey box from honey half filled frames an put the over the excluder. Then give a new brood box with foundations. How ever you will need new brood combs.

It is normal beekeeping that you lift honey frames over the excluder. Bees will fill them more and cap the combs. Then extract.
To store honey into carage or to freezer in the middle of summer, that I have not heard never. It only spoils the honey.

 

[Amari]

I always put new super under full or part full supers.

I do the opposite! Very few tablets of stone in beekeeping! Cream tea: do you first put the jam or the cream on the scone? Scone = 'bone' or 'gone'?

 

[Erichalfbee]

Jam then cream on the gone

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

butter on the scone (s'gone - the other pronounciation is town in scotland)
As for which way the supers go on. depends on my mood but I tend to leave the first super over the QX until the end of the seaon otherwise you're just shifting pollen around

 

[Murox]

yup. scone should rhyme with gone. and the village skoon with moon.

 

[Moody]

Just to add to this thread, I had another issue.
Had a hive with a super (90%filled with nector). The hive swarmed and only couple frames of bees remained.
The super has been empty of bees.

Is this okay to be kept on the hive or do I need to take any action?

 

[Dutchman]

Just to add to this thread, I had another issue.
Had a hive with a super (90%filled with nector). The hive swarmed and only couple frames of bees remained.
The super has been empty of bees.

Is this okay to be kept on the hive or do I need to take any action?

I would check it for moisture content by shaking and if its dry enough take the super off, as long as you leave some stores in the broodbox. And you have to reduce the entrance and mayby dummy it down to fewer combs. Because two frames of bees will not manage to keep a full brood box (without super) warm or defend it against wasps and robbers

 

[ericbeaumont]

The hive swarmed and only couple frames of bees remained.

Stick it in a nuc, and if the flow stops and robbing starts, watch out. An occasional frame of emerging brood from another colony (if there are enough bees to cover) will boost colony strength.