Help on reducing no. of frames

[Catherine]

Hi

I have a beehaus which uses very deep brood frames. My nucleus came on small frames which i want to start moving out so that next year I have only large frames (freehand comb this season was a pain), but I'm not sure how to do it. I know that sounds silly but do i just move it out to the edges (taking crucial winter supplies away from the centre) or do i leave it till the spring? This seems to be wrong too given that all the advice is to reduce the number of frames down to 9 or 10 over winter!

Another query - I have a brood frame that is completely capped honey. Can i harvest this? I know the risk is that there is brood in there but it seems so pure, and I don't plan selling it,

thanks

 

[Finman]

.
When your nuc is ready to enlarge, put bigger frames under the nucleus, the queen on them and excluder between chambers. When bees emerge during 3 weeks, you have all bees on big frames.

If you put nuc frames under the big frames, bees will store valuable pollen into cells during late summer.

 

[oliver90owner]

I have a brood frame that is completely capped honey

Capped honey frame: Is it or isn't it? Not too difficult to tell. If it is an outermost frame, is there any brood on the next one? If not, there is very unlikely to be brood in a further outer frame.

How do you intend to extract? If you could, select which cells to extract and which cells you wish to avoid. Not really a problem in that situation.

A bit late now (and omlette don't tell you this, bless them), but a box or blocks of wood or anything else which would not get chewed by the bees (expanded polystyrene block wrapped in plastic/duct tape would do) placed under those standard frames when installing would have prevented the wild comb, hastened the transfer to the jumbo frames and the standard frames would likely be gone by now, so no problem. They do seem to be a bit short on useful information for their punters.

taking crucial winter supplies away from the centre

It will still be there for them? Something has to be the outside frame! Time yet to fill the frames with winter feed. Time yet to rearrange the stores combs if it suits you better. If you leave those frames in the brood nest she will likely lay them up in the spring.

The idea is that you move brooding frames such as these to the (back) edge of the nest (or they become the back edge of the nest) as it moves towards the entrance (onto your new 14 x 12 frames) earlier in the season and these smaller frames become store comb. You are now, unfortunately, playing catch-up with wild comb and standard frames, instead of being ahead of the game. You should have been extracting a couple of those standard frames, not a more useful 14 x 12.

Regards, RAB

 

[oliver90owner]

Finman,

It is one of our plastic 'Dartingtons'.

Regards, RAB

 

[MuswellMetro]

.
When your nuc is ready to enlarge, put bigger frames under the nucleus, the queen on them and excluder between chambers. When bees emerge during 3 weeks, you have all bees on big frames.

If you put nuc frames under the big frames, bees will store valuable pollen into cells during late summer.

finm/an, i would agree with you if beehaus was a normal hive butis a long double side by side brood plastic bee hive with20+frames,
i would also think the nuc will have fixed bottom board [/ie cheap chip board box]so you cannot do the change that way
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[Finman]

finm/an, i would agree with you if beehaus was a normal hive butis a long double side by side brood plastic bee hive with20+frames,
i would also think the nuc will have fixed bottom board [/ie cheap chip board box]so you cannot do the change that way
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That is not a problem. a beekeeper needs clever brains to resolve the problems all the time.

But it is not neceassary create such a problem what you cannot resolve.

It is not necessary to move the colony to the omelet before winter.