first inspection

[JazzJPH]

Yes it's amazing how quick it gets gunged up ...... this was about 6 months work by some of my ladies!

Sure you didn't drop your tomato soup on there?

 

[Newbeeneil]

Sure you didn't drop your tomato soup on there?

Oh I wish..... it's much easier to pull frames from tomato soup than 5 mm thick propolis!!

 

[linoleum bonypart]

Is there much difference in how bees draw out a full sheet of foundation compared to just a starter strip?

Yes alot of time the bees draw drone comb with foundationless too

 

[JazzJPH]

Oh I wish..... it's much easier to pull frames from tomato soup than 5 mm thick propolis!!

Haha something I am yet to find out I guess. Looks sticky!

Yes alot of time the bees draw drone comb with foundationless too

Ah right. Most of mine have foundation but I cut up a sheet and made starter strips in order to save some pennies

 

[Millet]

Doing inspections on hot days is a pain in the backside with brood frames without wired foundation especially if they are not drawn to the bottom..you tilt the frame to find a drone laying Queen...you spot her and the foundation starts bending towards the ground..you turn it over to stop it snapping and the Queen is lost..you try the other side and the same happens again..
Wired foundation in the brood box for me all day long..the supers on the other hand are unwired foundation..

 

[Adam Bee]

Yes it's amazing how quick it gets gunged up ...... this was about 6 months work by some of my ladies!

Sure you didn't drop your tomato soup on there?

Do they hate that metal runner or what!? It looks like they only covered that part that deep!

 

[Helen]

And plastic brood foundation for me. Doesn't sag with the heat, and leads to less 'artistic' cell creation, I find.

 

[Newbeeneil]

Do they hate that metal runner or what!? It looks like they only covered that part that deep!

The frames are actually on 11 space castellations so the propolis is not actually quite as deep as appears.

 

[Millet]

I'd remove an outer frame and place a frame feeder in there, will get things moving fast

Just seen this and it is not needed.. the weather is good and we have a flow on which will help them build whatever they need..

 

[Show me the honey]

Just seen this and it is not needed.. the weather is good and we have a flow on which will help them build whatever they need..

Ye no need to feed this time of year let them build themselves up. Look forward to the sweet stuff next season!

 

[Adam Bee]

I'd remove an outer frame and place a frame feeder in there, will get things moving fast

Just seen this and it is not needed.. the weather is good and we have a flow on which will help them build whatever they need..

Ye no need to feed this time of year let them build themselves up. Look forward to the sweet stuff next season!

Thanks! That's good to know. At this point, I'll probably leave the sugar behind the glass plate that says "break in case of emergency". I won't hesitate to feed them if they have no stores, but I'll probably be reluctant to feed sugar unless necessary.

All that being said: Daboss, it's good to know that sugar can help them get a jumpstart!

 

[JazzJPH]

Just seen this and it is not needed.. the weather is good and we have a flow on which will help them build whatever they need..

Ye no need to feed this time of year let them build themselves up. Look forward to the sweet stuff next season!

That's reassuring thanks guys. Had a minor panic since I didn't put a feeder in when I transferred my nuc.

Nearly stormed out the back door with our supply of sugar

 

[SWEET]

Just seen this and it is not needed.. the weather is good and we have a flow on which will help them build whatever they need..

Interesting, have you tested this out?.

BS HoneyBees - /5framenucleus;
Nucs will initially benefit from feeding to establish into a stronger colony when moved into a full size box as demonstrated in our installation video.

^^ Seems to work/ed very well (lovely bees to work with).

I've a couple of small hives similar to yours Adam, I've just started to feed one, the other I've left (feral and nasty) and it'll be interesting to see the difference in a month. Both have low stores v the other hives that have rammed a couple of supers with honey and are loaded with bees, I guess because there are not enough bees to collect the stores/look after brood etc, they (may) need some help (I'll know in a month).

 

[Spanker]

Hi guys
so i did an inspection today its been 7 days now and didn't find the queen or see any eggs or brood
Im thinking theirs no queen they've drawn out 6 frames of comb but just filled it with syrup/honey there's probably 6 -7 seems of bees

what would be my best option?

 

[JazzJPH]

Hi guys
so i did an inspection today its been 7 days now and didn't find the queen or see any eggs or brood
Im thinking theirs no queen they've drawn out 6 frames of comb but just filled it with syrup/honey there's probably 6 -7 seems of bees

what would be my best option?

How did the inspection go apart from that? Were you comfortable etc? I'm looking forward to my first.

Sad news on the inspection though. Someone experienced will be round shortly I'm sure

 

[Spanker]

How did the inspection go apart from that? Were you comfortable etc? I'm looking forward to my first.

Sad news on the inspection though. Someone experienced will be round shortly I'm sure

it went ok no issues really apart from still not being able to juggle everything lol
smoker, hive tool, frame holder, frames ect

i was calm enough the bees were quiet calm.

 

[Adam Bee]

Interesting, have you tested this out?.

BS HoneyBees - /5framenucleus;
Nucs will initially benefit from feeding to establish into a stronger colony when moved into a full size box as demonstrated in our installation video.

^^ Seems to work/ed very well (lovely bees to work with).

I've a couple of small hives similar to yours Adam, I've just started to feed one, the other I've left (feral and nasty) and it'll be interesting to see the difference in a month. Both have low stores v the other hives that have rammed a couple of supers with honey and are loaded with bees, I guess because there are not enough bees to collect the stores/look after brood etc, they (may) need some help (I'll know in a month).

Well... I’ll do another inspection tomorrow or Thursday. I’ll see how they get on and see how the new brood is doing. Most of the capped brood I had was from the nuc. Right now they seem to be making brood brood brood and very little stores; that makes some sense, tho. Build up and the forage. (But I really don’t know...)

 

[Adam Bee]

Hi guys
so i did an inspection today its been 7 days now and didn't find the queen or see any eggs or brood
Im thinking theirs no queen they've drawn out 6 frames of comb but just filled it with syrup/honey there's probably 6 -7 seems of bees

what would be my best option?

Oh no! Are you sure there were no eggs? They are tiny and hard to see!

 

[Murox]

so i had a quick look inside lots of comb drawn probably 6 full frames. some honey/syrup stored at the top of some frames uncapped.[B] i didn't see the queen and i also didn't see any brood or eggs [/B]im hoping this is my inexperience. and not that ive no queen.
this was a collected swarm so i didn't have any brood to start with............

Hi guys, so i did an inspection today its been 7 days now and didn't find the queen or see any eggs or brood
Im thinking theirs no queen they've drawn out 6 frames of comb but just filled it with syrup/honey there's probably 6 -7 seems of bees
what would be my best option?

One possibility is they swarmed with a virgin so if that is the case wait a little longer, maybe another week and half. You've had them 7 days but it can take 16-23 days til the new queen lays the first egg. Queens do not become sexually mature until they are 6 days old, if the weather was good she went to the drones and mated but she won't lay until about 2-3 days after that. Patience in beekeeping is a great virtue.

 

[pargyle]

One possibility is they swarmed with a virgin so if that is the case wait a little longer, maybe another week and half. You've had them 7 days but it can take 16-23 days til the new queen lays the first egg. Queens do not become sexually mature until they are 6 days old, if the weather was good she went to the drones and mated but she won't lay until about 2-3 days after that. Patience in beekeeping is a great virtue.

I agree ... far too soon to worry about finding eggs and brood. I had one nuc that had a laying queen - went off lay for nearly 5 weeks when I transferred into a full hive ... they usually know what they are up to. I didn't use to mark my queens but there's a lot to be said for being able to be certain that there's still the queen there that you thought should be there.