Hi from Normandy

[la vauterie]

I am a new bee keeper, along with two other mates. We have a problem with many drone cells in a hive we combined last November successfully. Opened last week on a sunny day, no capped brood, only many drone cells. So many bees in the hive that we just could not find the queen, but I suspect that there isn't one there, due to no capped brood. Lots of honey in the hive, and have seen workers in and out with pollen on the few sunny days we have had. Cannot find a new queen anywhere to re queen, everybody says too early. We have 2 new queens on order, and our other hive in a different location is fine, but I think not strong enough to take a frame with capped brood for the other hive. What to do ? It is very cold here, snow this morning, big frost tonight. Should we take out the frames which have most of the drone cells, will this prolong the life of the hive, hopefully until we receive the new queen. Any advise ?

 

[Russel]

I am a new bee keeper, along with two other mates. We have a problem with many drone cells in a hive we combined last November successfully. Opened last week on a sunny day, no capped brood, only many drone cells. So many bees in the hive that we just could not find the queen, but I suspect that there isn't one there, due to no capped brood. Lots of honey in the hive, and have seen workers in and out with pollen on the few sunny days we have had. Cannot find a new queen anywhere to re queen, everybody says too early. We have 2 new queens on order, and our other hive in a different location is fine, but I think not strong enough to take a frame with capped brood for the other hive. What to do ? It is very cold here, snow this morning, big frost tonight. Should we take out the frames which have most of the drone cells, will this prolong the life of the hive, hopefully until we receive the new queen. Any advise ?

Welcome,
You may have a failed queen, no queen or a drone laying worker.
If you get your new queens before all the winter workers die and just in case it's a DLW, then a shook swarm or similar is in needed, weather permitting.

All the best Russ

 

[la vauterie]

Thank you Russ, this is what we thought, hope they can hang on!
Regards Janey

 

[Polyanwood]

Welcome la vauterie. Probably it is too cold in Normandie to do much.

 

[Luminos]

My advice is move further south

 

[la vauterie]

It certainly is nippy up here, but we will press on regardless. Thanks for reply

 

[yeogi75]

hi and welcome
bit too cold to start anything yet wait till gets warmer and have good look but if there are no eggs mabe no queen

 

[Russel]

hi and welcome
bit too cold to start anything yet wait till gets warmer and have good look but if there are no eggs mabe no queen

No eggs only indicates that nothing's been laid three days prior to that inspection, Q could be "off lay" (?). On the other hand if single egg per cell present, your queen could now be a drone layer or if multiple eggs in cells then good indication of a DLW.

Russ

 

[itma]

I am a new bee keeper, along with two other mates. We have a problem with many drone cells in a hive we combined last November successfully. Opened last week on a sunny day, no capped brood, only many drone cells. ...

... our other hive in a different location is fine, but I think not strong enough to take a frame with capped brood for the other hive. What to do ? It is very cold here, snow this morning, big frost tonight. ...

If the drone cells are scattered throughout the hive, then you probably have laying workers - as a result of no queen and no worker brood for a long time. This sounds the likely situation from what you say.
(A tightish pattern of drone cells would indicate there was a queen who had turned drone layer - a different and easier situation.)


Initially, I was thinking that you might have meant 'borrowing' some UNcapped brood, in the hope that they might produce a queen cell. But that would be getting ahead of things.

Workers start laying not because of queenlessness directly, but because of absence of pheromones that come from brood.
So exposing the colony to brood pheromone is how to shut down the laying workers. (You need to do that before trying to introduce a new queen.)
Two ways to get brood pheromone --
-- steal some brood from another colony (as you were suggesting) --or--
-- move them on top of a queenright colony - as though you were going to combine them but with bee-proof mesh between, so that pheromones can circulate, but bees cannot.

You can move them easily while it is cold and the bees aren't flying.
But you'll need to cobble together a small entrance for the top (DLW) colony so you don't vent the whole thing excessively well. (Maybe just drill a 6/7/8mm hole? You can plug it later.)

 

[For want of a better word]

May be a good idea to slap some fondant on to keep them going until you know what is going on in there!

 

[la vauterie]

Thanks for your advise Itma, will be posting results of actions over the next couple weeks weeks,