wassup
New Bee
I got my first nuc last Jul (national hive) and got them into the winter on a brood and a half. The comb in the 'half' was all drawn by the bees and filled only with stores; the queen never went up that far to lay!
My bees seem to have come through winter well; they are flying, collecting pollen and (when I had a quick peek) seemed to be covering 6/7 frames of brood.
My questions are: how do I now encourage them to expand the brood into the 'half', given that it is currently full of stores? Do I need to exchange it for a fresh super with new frames? Or should I try to move to 12x14 (i'd rather not this year)? Or can I settle for just one national brood chamber and get rid of the 'half'?
My bees seem to have come through winter well; they are flying, collecting pollen and (when I had a quick peek) seemed to be covering 6/7 frames of brood.
My questions are: how do I now encourage them to expand the brood into the 'half', given that it is currently full of stores? Do I need to exchange it for a fresh super with new frames? Or should I try to move to 12x14 (i'd rather not this year)? Or can I settle for just one national brood chamber and get rid of the 'half'?