New Queen, how long to wait for eggs?

[PuckUk]

I had, what was suggested to be a failing queen within a recently supplied Nuc of 5 frames. The colony (Hive 1) had never increased, despite trying to place dummy boards, dividing the frames into two stacks of 6 frames, one on top of the other to assist the bees in drawing comb. After about a month, I was still on the original 5 frames, but had an amount of eggs, some two to a cell from this years queen marked white. This colony (and Nuc) was also fed syrup via a rapid feeder, and has continued on and off as the poor weather has dictated.

I took the queen from the hive (1) with two frames of eggs, sealed brood and some stores and placed into a Nuc, with another frame of sealed brood from a different hive (2) in an attempt to bolster the Nuc.

The original hive (1) quickly produced 5 QC's, of which I selected the best one, removing the remaining, checking the hive(1) later on finding the cell was closed, but with an additional 4 QC's all of which were dispatched onto my now nominated swarming post adjacent to my hives.

The new queen emerged on que and was left approx 12 days, with only a very limited inspection to ensure she wasn't disturbed. Her Majesty is very light in colour, almost ginger, her abdomen is very short which was explained away as due to her perhaps not yet being mated?

I'm not too if it due to the poor weather, but we are around 3 weeks since she emerged, and there is no sign of any eggs yet and the number of bees have reduced now with the hive (1) in decline.

Any advice? Am I too late to requeen? Or should I bite the bullet and purchase a ready mated queen from a local source?

The original queen removed from hive (1) and placed into the Nuc continues to progress, but very sowly in comparison to hive (2). Should I consider requeening within the Nuc too, if I am to succeed through the winter into 2012?

 

[drstitson]

12 days from emergence is no time - allow 5 days to find her feet gives you just a week to get mated, settle down and lay. Queens are taking 4,5 or even 6 weeks from emergence this year.

but that doesn't help your population problem. can you spare another frame of about to emerge brood from hive 2???

If and when she does start laying and you are happy you can unite with the nuc with the iffy queen. OR buy in a new queen for the iffy nuc and wait and see what happens by early sept - you may end up with 3 colonies to over winter OR unite the nuc with bought queen with the nuc with the "supercedure"/emergency queen if she proves unsatisfactory.

 

[Winker]

mt last queen hatched 4 weeks ago, i looked in today and there was loads of capped brood. So she must have started laying at least 9 days ago, which would put her dow to around 3 weeks after hatching.

But the one beofore that took 5 weeks...

 

[PuckUk]

Hi drstitson,
Thanks for the reply, I gather you are suggesting a frame from hive 2 and placing into hive 1? I've been thinking of this and yes this would be an option.

Hive 2 is really prolific, especially in comparison with hive 1. Hive 2 colony was received about 4 weeks after hive 1 and yet already has a super on, is almost full and ready for a 2nd super!!

I'm sure they can spare a frame or two even!

 

[drstitson]

shame you didn't give hive 1 a frame of hive 2 eggs after making them queenless (having destroyed any "native" QCs 6 days after queen removed).

 

[PuckUk]

I guess I'm being a little impatient from the replies so far!

Would I be as well to transfer a frame of capped brood from hive 2 now, if only to bolster the number of bees tending the new virgin queen?

 

[viridens]

I guess I'm being a little impatient from the replies so far!

Would I be as well to transfer a frame of capped brood from hive 2 now, if only to bolster the number of bees tending the new virgin queen?

I believe you are being too impatient, for understandable reasons.
It is still early days. Leave them to it. Don't intervene unless there is a clear problem.

 

[oliver90owner]

The original hive (1) quickly produced 5 QC's, .....her abdomen is very short which was explained away as due to her perhaps not yet being mated?

Reading your post I take it you raised a queen from a three frame colony? If this was the case it's little wonder she is not overly large.

I would not be surprised if the colony is unable to raise a decent amount of brood, due to it's size, even when the queen might start laying.

If and when she starts laying you would best be uniting something with it to bolster it's strength. You would need to wait until the brood is confirmed as worker, but unfortunately not long enough to assess the queen's offspring.

I wish you well for the winter but unless you strengthen your colonies and not weaken them, you likely need to learn how to organise a nucleus hive for the winter, or you may finish with two under-strength colonies going into winter.

RAB

 

[BBG]

you likely need to learn how to organise a nucleus hive for the winter,
RAB

Would you please elaborate on this.

In other words tell us how you do that.