New bees not drawing out foundation

[user 3509]

We are new to beekeeping. We transferred a five frame nuc to a hive last week and fed with sugar syrup (1 to 1). When we inspected today all the syrup was gone but the bees had not started to draw out any of the new foundation. Do we carry on feeding? There were lots of honey stores on the old frames but no sign of drawing out the new frames?

 

[enrico]

They will draw it out when they need it so don't start worrying yet. You need to leave room for laying at this time of the year and not fill the room with stores. Keep an eye on them and when all five frames are filling up feed well if no nectar flow
E

 

[user 3509]

Thanks

Thank you Enrico. Advice taken - my husband has just refilled the feed bucket.

 

[Nightynight]

any sign of brood/eggs on the old frames?

as long as the queen is laying you don't have a problem really, they will sort themselves out. Don't worry after a week maybe things often don't on the face of it look different.


If there is brood its best not to distrurb them to much in the next couple of weeks, just let them get on with it

 

[user 3509]

Yes there was uncapped brood but we were unable to see any eggs.

 

[ROACHMAN]

I would leave the frames alone as its far too cold to be removing them. Temperature needs to be 17c + or you will risk killing the brood.

 

[VEG]

How many frames of brood were there before you moved them?

 

[Poly Hive]

Seeing eggs on new comb is a bit of an art greatly helped by standing so the light is behind you.

How have you got your combs and foundation organised? I would have hive wall, 2 xfoundation, nuc, then foundation across the rest. So in a nat from 11 frames 6 foundation, with 2, then nuc then four.

If it were poly it would be one, nuc and 6. the poly wall being warmer you see.

PH

 

[Nightynight]

Yes there was uncapped brood but we were unable to see any eggs.

The HRM might be running out of space, not to worry they will draw as required. You have to remember they the bee's need to keep the brood warm and they have just been given a bigger space to heat.. it a balance of bee numbers, space, heat/weather. Keep the feed topped up, don't disturb them for a couple of weeks other than that.

On warm days check there are bee's coming and going (hopefully with some pollen).

Once they get going you will be surprised!!!

 

[itma]

We are new to beekeeping. We transferred a five frame nuc to a hive last week and fed with sugar syrup (1 to 1). When we inspected today all the syrup was gone but the bees had not started to draw out any of the new foundation. ...

Plymouth? Is it warm? (Its ruddy chilly on my bit of Channel coast...)
Making wax, and thus comb, needs the bees to be warm.
Right now, the bees are trying to keep as much brood as possible, warm enough to survive. The amount of brood is probably being limited by the number of bees available in the nuc to keep the brood from chilling.
Wax is a bit of a luxury commodity, which is why the bees don't make any more than strictly necessary - it takes something like 6 or 7 pounds of honey (even more syrup) to produce just one pound of wax. Their priority is brood rather than making more wax.
It'll be easier soon, with warmer weather and more beepower available.
Patience!

How many frames of foundation did you provide?
Ted Hooper suggests giving just three frames initially, and using two dummy boards to bookend the colony. Dummy/Nuc/3foundation/Dummy.
I interpret that as being to keep the little colony as warm as possible, and to concentrate comb-building in one site, rather than two sites, both sides of the nuc.
Seems sensible this early in the season.

Incidentally, Hooper shares my enthusiasm for clear crownboards! He thinks they are great for beginners to keep an eye on their nuc without disturbing them.

 

[wightbees]

The weather does seem to be up and down as far as temps go this week.I was in a T shirt and wish i had worn shorts at one point,this was on Monday.

 

[Poly Hive]

We have had the dizzy heights of 12 today, and now cool and raining, and earlier this week 4-5C.

Not really conducive to doing anything, and here for sure a nuc would stay firmly in the nuc box.

I wonder actually how many frames of brood were in this nuc?

PH

 

[RoofTops]

I've got 3 over-wintered nucs at the moment but I am not even thinking of transferring them to full sized hives - and I use poly nucs and hives which are much warmer than conventional wooden boxes.

If you have had to return the nuc box back to the supplier ask if you can have it back and then put the frames back where they belong and leave well alone until somewhere around April.

Be very careful about feeding syrup if they already have plenty of stores. It will not encourage them to draw out the foundation (as already covered by others) and the great danger is they will fill all available comb with stores and stop the queen laying.

 

[susbees]

Nuc should still be in a nuc box - it's early to be selling nucs and far too early to be moving them about. One frame of foundation and dummy boards and I'd still have Kingspan behind those boards too for warmth.

Too cold to draw comb. Heady heights of 10 degrees today...

 

[peteinwilts]

Nuc should still be in a nuc box - it's early to be selling nucs and far too early to be moving them about. One frame of foundation and dummy boards and I'd still have Kingspan behind those boards too for warmth.

Too cold to draw comb. Heady heights of 10 degrees today...

after all the talk on the forum, full inspections, adding supers, new NUC's etc, i was begining to wonder if i was the last to do an inspection!

we in the mid-west have had a couple of days above 15, but that is all...

they have food... they have space.... i am patient.

 

[Poly Hive]

Its a cool start to spring and there is no rush at all.... and remember many are in the cosy south, as I keep saying there are so many different climates in the UK.

PH

 

[The Cumbrian]

had a couple of days above 15,

We haven't had a day above 12C since early October.

 

[peteinwilts]

We haven't had a day above 12C since early October.

aahh!!! summer! i remember it well!

 

[richardbees]

Cumbrian, swings and roundabouts!

I bet you're not facing a hosepipe ban next month.

 

[Hivemaker.]

I bet you're not facing a hosepipe ban next month.

No one should be,we are an island surrounded by water,other much drier countrys make use of this resource.