New one on me.

[BobsBees]

Very Strange colony
Back in mid June, these pics were taken.
Now remember the weather in the south east region. not much sun, not very warm, plenty of rain and wind.
This Nuc grew VERY slowly, but queen was keen to get on after being mated (don't know how she did it). some established brood on two frames, you can see where the cage was on the frame.
The strange thing is the drawn foundation, not completly drawn out yet there is capped brood and eggs laid in abundance, but NOT where I would expect it to have been. If you can, zoom in and look at what I mean.
have you seen this before, was it the lack of workers, or down to the weather.
Bob.

 

[Tom Bick]

What happened to the rest of the bees or the bees that drew the comb?

 

[BobsBees]

Tom. there wasn't any it started off as a three frame, with virgin q in a cage.
I was having trouble grafting, let alone getting the queen mated. Just wanted others to see what they (the girls can do with nursing/feeding and drawing out foundation) in adverse conditions like what we have had.
Probably due to the hosepipe ban!

Anyway it now turns out that out of 25 Nuc orders.
I have only been able to do 10.

But I now have 12 Nucs up and running that no one wants to be bothered with so late in the season. Still they will sell next year if I get them through the winter.
Bob.

 

[oliver90owner]

Looks to me to be typically short of stores and in a cavernous enclosure (ie cold).

Were they in a nuc or a full hive? Brood as high as possible and possibly away from any holes in the crownboard! Were you feeding them on fondant, initially?

 

[BobsBees]

Yes oliver,
In a Nuc 5 frame but contents were only 3 frames packed out with poly insulation.
They were being fed with Bako Fondant, how did you know this? You must have looked at my website contents.
Bob.

 

[oliver90owner]

how did you know this?

Never looked at any website.

It is typical of a cold colony (so high up) and fondant is often used rather than stored, by the bees, so the clues were there.

This beekeeping is not rocket science. From your above post I should be able to deduce there was no gaping hole in the crownboard and there were not so many bees.

I usually make 3 frame splits into poly these days and they have all been OK. Not bothered this year.

 

[Queens59]

I have a similar hive - they have avoided everything I tried to expand them... I am about to combine with another hive in teh hope of getting them through the winter... Arghh Late swarms...what do you do?!

 

[jackbee]

great deduction and advice oliver, what you seem to be best at

shame about the dig, you should be above that sort of thing, not really necessary is it ??

 

[BobsBees]

Hi queens 59. Well I eventually merged with another newer Nuc, minus a queen.
It was just a glitch due to the weather being so rubbish.
I had plenty of grafts taken, but could not get the queens mated.
I want my local group Medway Beekeepers to get involved with artificial insemination over the winter to show how its done cheaply if thats possible.
As for the swarms both collections successful, not my bees but were in my Apiary just stopped off for a rest I guess.
Bob.

 

[FreeFall]

Great example of multiple eggs in cells on the last pic. Here it is cropped/enlarged for those that have never seen it. There's at least six eggs in one of those cells:


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[Poly Hive]

Bottom line is not enough bees. End of.

PH

 

[beeno]

Great example of multiple eggs in cells on the last pic. Here it is cropped/enlarged for those that have never seen it. There's at least six eggs in one of those cells:


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Hi FreeFall,
Brilliant pic! This is exactly what I deduced was the result of a duff cast queen in a recent swarm I hived. In addition the eggs were just sitting there they did not hatch? What was that all about and was I right or wrong?

 

[BobsBees]

Hi Beano,
It was my Pic, and the queen was a newly mated queen, its what they do sometimes till they get the hang of laying properly. As far as I know the workers clean out the eggs as they can't possibly hatch.
Bob.

 

[enrico]

Hi Beano,
It was my Pic, and the queen was a newly mated queen, its what they do sometimes till they get the hang of laying properly. As far as I know the workers clean out the eggs as they can't possibly hatch.
Bob.

Brilliant teaching pic, well done.......
E