need more drawn foundation frames

[beesleybees]

Hi guys,

To try cut a long story short, I captured 2 swarms a few weeks back.

i have put each swarm in a bs brood box
both swarms where queenless
i introduced a mated queen to each and both hives have accepted her

both queens are laying well but both swarms have not drawn enough comb out on the frames. I have a maximum of 3 or 4 completely drawn brood frames in each hive, 1 which is being used for brood, the others that are drawn have been used for pollen and stores

these swarms are quite small and im worried their will not be enough bees within the hive by the end of the season to maintain the temp during the winter!!! What im thinking is the queen needs more laying space.

how can i achieve this as i dont have any brood frames with drawn foundation that i can use. Is there a way to make them draw foundation on the used frames

please help, im a newb and dont want to lose these

 

[VEG]

As the swarms are small they may not be able to keep any extra frames of larvae(from the added drawn comb) warm. You may have been better off uniting them.

 

[the naked beekeeper]

Feed them.

Any frames not occupied in Ocotber you would be best to take out and dummy them in. Fill the void space with some insulating material.

What you need is bees and stores.
Feeding them as well as they ivy flow will provide the stores.

But she won't lay any more brood than the bees can cover.
A good strong feed may imitate a 'flow' of sorts and encourage her to lay some more as and when more brood hatches. (ie. nurse bees to tend for more brood in turn.)

 

[oliver90owner]

Bees will draw comb, given conditions in the hive are right, only if needed. The two reasons for drawing it are brooding space and storage. So, either you need a flow or or need to feed.

Feeding is all very well as long as they do not simply fill all the available space with stores and neglect the brood (OK they won't 'neglect' it but if they are doing something else, they are distanced from the brooding element).

What you will need shortly is lots of winter bees, so brooding is more important than storing (you could feed fondant all winter, at a push).

I would close down the hive so they only have a couple of frames to draw, keep it warm, and feed thin syrup only as necessary.

Mistake number one was not combining the swarms, if they were too small to make decent viable colonies. Too late now to do it but you may need to consider uniting them at the year end, or take them through the winter as nucs. Mistake number two was putting them in a full brood box. You will learn fast from these mistakes.

I would prepare to tuck them up in some well insulated accommodation for the winter.

Regards, RAB

 

[gingerbees]

insulation

Feed them.

Any frames not occupied in Ocotber you would be best to take out and dummy them in. Fill the void space with some insulating material.

What sort of insulation is safe in the void space?

 

[VEG]

Most things can be used as long as the bees dont have access to it.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I use 50mm kingspan cut to fit with the cut edges covered in aluminium tape. You could be fancy and make yourself a kingspan/frame sandwich.

 

[roymichaeldean]

Feeding time

Hi

Just throwing in my 2 pennyworth......I would feed 1:1 sugar/water ie 1kg sugar/1 litre water..........every day...if they use it that quickly...so then they will draw foundation and create more stores....Winter is Winter and its too late to do much after October.............now is the time to act.......it's September in 2 weeks........
............I got a small swarm 4 weeks ago and I am feeding as much as I can cos I can see they need stores

roy

 

[susbees]

Straight chunks of Kingspan. Unlike rats, birds etc bees don't seem to destroy it. But never use expanded polystyrene....even in a plastic bag they seek and destroy it making cute little nooks of wild comb and spitting the bits to the four winds...been there, done that...

 

[victor meldrew]

Hi

Just throwing in my 2 pennyworth......I would feed 1:1 sugar/water ie 1kg sugar/1 litre water..........every day...if they use it that quickly...so then they will draw foundation and create more stores....Winter is Winter and its too late to do much after October.............now is the time to act.......it's September in 2 weeks........
............I got a small swarm 4 weeks ago and I am feeding as much as I can cos I can see they need stores

roy

I agree feed feed feed although I would recommend 2-1 syrup ( less water to evaporate )
VM