More Demaree queries....

[JonnyPicklechin]

It's the fashion you know...

1. Whats the best cycle time for a rolling switch of brood frames to empty frames between the boxes? Ive been doing a week...can it be longer? Or is it hive dependent - If so what are the indicators?

2. Im seeing honey / early nectar in the top frames. So far I've been putting down below on the outside positions in the hope they will it move up to the supers. Is that a reasonable move?

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[Swarm]

It's the fashion you know...

1. Whats the best cycle time for a rolling switch of brood frames to empty frames between the boxes? Ive been doing a week...can it be longer? Or is it hive dependent - If so what are the indicators?

2. Im seeing honey / early nectar in the top frames. So far I've been putting down below on the outside positions in the hope they will it move up to the supers. Is that a reasonable move?

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Depends how your queen is laying, sometimes a third brood box is required Yorkshire Bees posted pictures of exactly that, nice towers they were. Pop a super on top if they are backfilling fast.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

1. Whats the best cycle time for a rolling switch of brood frames to empty frames between the boxes? Ive been doing a week...can it be longer? Or is it hive dependent - If so what are the indicators?

Can be whatever suits you
Although there is no great need to do weekly inspections on a Demarreed colony (that's the point of doing it really, why inspect a colony on only one frame of brood every seven days?) it makes sense to do it at the same time as the rest of the apiary - I don't even bother going into the bottom box the week after the maneuvre and from then on it's only a quick status check. I only move frames up if they are full of sealed brood (less chance of QC's)

2. Im seeing honey / early nectar in the top frames. So far I've been putting down below on the outside positions in the hope they will it move up to the supers. Is that a reasonable move?

I always put the frames I move down from the top in the gap made by the frame I moved up - you want them as near the brood/queen as possible so that the queen starts laying in them as soon as possible and the bees then move the stores up.
Eventually you will stop rolling the Demarree and the top box will fill with honey, again, that's part of the Demarree process

 

[JonnyPicklechin]

Fantastic. Thanks both.

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