Having fun with my bees

[canterbury_keeper]

So I posted a while back that I'd lost the queen from one of my hives. Given that half the bees were gone, I assume they swarmed.

My bee supplier said he's give me a new nuc if all else fails (he's a decent chap), however he suggested I try transplanting a section of comb with eggs in it to the hive and see if they draw out queen cells.

They did, so I tore down all but one and waited. My check today shows the cell is empty - so I'm hoping that she's in the hive somewhere (I didnt find her). I'm guessing I'll have to wait another week or so for her to mate.

In the mean time, because there's been no brood for a couple of weeks and won't be for at least another month I have them a frame of brood from the good hive.

I also did a varroa drop count over 6 days on both hives, because I found 2 mites in a drone cell that I damaged when removing the extra queen cells.

I found 8 mites in an 800cm2 area on the board of the good hive and 4 mites on the board from the other hive. I don't think they need treating.

Anyway I'm sure there will be some opinions on what I've been up to - and I'd love to hear them (as long as they don't involve rudeness

M

 

[canterbury_keeper]

And here's the queen cell
Queen cell

 

[kazmcc]

Fingers crossed she mates well for you. Your first mated queen is the most beautiful sight you will ever see! Glad to hear you are having fun

 

[canterbury_keeper]

well... the 'fun' was ironic I've been quite stressed about the ailing hive, more than I would have predicted. But I feel I'm learning loads. And although every inspection tends to end with a bee from hive 2 chasing me to my car, I love watching the little buggers.

 

[kazmcc]

LOL I hear ya, it's funny how protective we become of the little darlings. Bee watching is what I miss most about bee keeping. I tend to stress about everything, but I've never been as relaxed as when watching the bees come and go

 

[itma]

So I posted a while back that I'd lost the queen from one of my hives. Given that half the bees were gone, I assume they swarmed.

My bee supplier said he's give me a new nuc if all else fails (he's a decent chap), however he suggested I try transplanting a section of comb with eggs in it to the hive and see if they draw out queen cells.

They did, so I tore down all but one and waited. My check today shows the cell is empty - so I'm hoping that she's in the hive somewhere (I didnt find her). I'm guessing I'll have to wait another week or so for her to mate.
…

They wouldn't have swarmed without creating several Queen Cells.
Did you tear down those QCs? That is the way you get from 'swarmed' to 'queenless and without hope'.

If reducing QCs in a weak hive, you can do better than automatically reducing to one, in one hit. Something to read up on before next time!

However, for right now, the thing is NOT to go opening the hive during the period when (hopefully) the new Q is going to be going on mating flights.
Watch the entrance for a major uptick in pollen foraging, as your signal that they are producing brood, otherwise, leave them alone for a month.


The Welsh Queen Cell booklet is extremely worthwhile reading. See http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=28463

 

[canterbury_keeper]

Yeah, there were a couple of empty QC in the hive after I noticed the queen had gone. But no queen. And if there was and I missed her 3 weeks ago, I can certainly confirm that theres no eggs.

With regard to reducing QC - something I seem to have found is that 10 books will give 15 opinions. Which is why I deferred to my supplier who has 400+ hives and runs a number of courses in Kent.

I will leave them alone now, I just wanted to check that the queen had emerged.

 

[enrico]

Steep learning curve this game isn't it? You now know why two hives are better than one and why regular inspections for queen cells are important. Make sure that next year you have enough kit ready to do an artificial swarm at the first sign of queen cells. It is so easy to get caught out and just destroy everything in blind panic!
Well done for getting to the point you are at and now just try and be patient. Loads of time for them to build up and get you through winter?
E

 

[itma]

Yeah, there were a couple of empty QC in the hive after I noticed the queen had gone. But no queen. And if there was and I missed her 3 weeks ago, I can certainly confirm that theres no eggs.

A virgin queen is exceedingly difficult to spot.
If they had swarmed, then from a week after the swarm, you should be operating on the basis of there being a virgin in there - and allowing her to mate undisturbed.
There is a potential "single point failure" for the colony if VQ fails to return from her mating flights. It is a critical time, and the beekeeper needs to act accordingly.

With regard to reducing QC - something I seem to have found is that 10 books will give 15 opinions. Which is why I deferred to my supplier who has 400+ hives and runs a number of courses in Kent.

You will get different advice based upon exactly what your situation and ideal outcome might be. The way that someone with one or two hives does things necessarily HAS to be different to the ways that things can be done when you are in a position (with lots and lots of colonies) to play the odds.
Essentially bees are about probabilities.
The trick is to maximise the probability that the bees will do what you want. Nothing works always and most methods work sometimes.
But with only a couple of hives, and your time not being money, you can afford to take more trouble to get a better chance of your ideal outcome.


One of the things I was specifically alluding to, regarding getting a new Q from a "test frame", is the technique of ensuring that your chosen QC has had its full 5 days of Royal Jelly feeding, rather than merely being an underdeveloped 'scrub' Q started on a larva that was already a few days old when transplanted to the queenless hive. This involves two QC culling inspections, at carefully timed intervals. However, as I indicated this is an area for future learning, not for the immediate beginner.

 

[kazmcc]

Great link itma. Thanks

 

[canterbury_keeper]

One of the things I was specifically alluding to, regarding getting a new Q from a "test frame", is the technique of ensuring that your chosen QC has had its full 5 days of Royal Jelly feeding, rather than merely being an underdeveloped 'scrub' Q started on a larva that was already a few days old when transplanted to the queenless hive. This involves two QC culling inspections, at carefully timed intervals. However, as I indicated this is an area for future learning, not for the immediate beginner.

The QC was defo built on an egg and not a larvae. I transplanted eggs and larvae - the larvae were all capped a couple of days before the egg cells (which were still open when I reduced them to one)