No Queen.

[Boboblue]

I have a very well populated hive without a Queen. Is it too late to introduce eggs and larva from another hive?

 

[REDWOOD]

I have a very well populated hive without a Queen. Is it too late to introduce eggs and larva from another hive?

You will be cutting it fine, buy in a mated queen will give you a better chance this time of year or unit with another colony

 

[Tom Bick]

I have a very well populated hive without a Queen. Is it too late to introduce eggs and larva from another hive?

Are you confident it has no queen?

 

[aberreef]

If they are 100% Q- then buying in a mated queen will save you several weeks, time needed to produce winter bees

Edit: Tom Bick types faster than me

 

[Boboblue]

Yes 100%.

 

[Tom Bick]

Did you confirm it with a test frame?

Can you say why you are so confident it is Q-, DLQ, You killed her, failed to return from mating flight, removed QC's after a swarm ect.

Is there any brood in the hive now?


ps aberreef if you only knew how long it takes me

 

[Boboblue]

I split an original hive as I was trying for two going into winter. The hive was deep brood and had more than enough bees for two. I gave it two combs from the original hive which had eggs, pupae and sealed brood. Unfortunately they didn't make a queen. I fear I may have to reunite and hope that the hive survives the winter. Or as I said originally, is it to late to try again with eggs and larvae? Are there queens for sale so late in the year?

 

[broandy]

We have some Queens for sale Bobo

 

[Boboblue]

Can you get in touch using my email.

 

[susbees]

Are there queens for sale so late in the year?

Queens can be successfully mated into October if the drone population and weather hold up.

 

[meidel]

Queens can be successfully mated into October if the drone population and weather hold up.

A few of our colonies are throwing out their drones and refusing entry to others now

 

[oliver90owner]

I have been quietly cringing reading this thread.

I may be wrong with what I read. PM on it's way.

 

[Tom Bick]

I split an original hive as I was trying for two going into winter. The hive was deep brood and had more than enough bees for two. I gave it two combs from the original hive which had eggs, pupae and sealed brood. Unfortunately they didn't make a queen. I fear I may have to reunite and hope that the hive survives the winter. Or as I said originally, is it to late to try again with eggs and larvae? Are there queens for sale so late in the year?

So if I read this right you split the hive and made up a nuc with two frames and expected this to produce a queen?

They would have done their best with emergency queen cells and the cells may have been very small and perhaps not viable and any queens produced perhaps very small.

I dont know when you did the split but what you need to do to be totally confident it is Q- is place a test frame from one of your Q+ and then depending on the result then decide to introduce a queen but it will need a bit of TLC and perhaps a frame of emerging brood to get it up to a strong nuc and through the winter or combine back to the original hive.

This is all assuming you started this split with two frames that is.

 

[susbees]

A few of our colonies are throwing out their drones and refusing entry to others now

Yes, will depend on where you are and your local forage. Drone populations can be held up artificially in big apiaries using a dedicated hive and drone combs. OT for here.

 

[Tom Bick]

A few of our colonies are throwing out their drones and refusing entry to others now

Yes its getting close to that time of the year and the party time for the drones will be coming to an end but the bees can and do throw out drones and refuse entry and also refuse to feed them at any time of the year.

I have seen a reduction in drones in my hives lately but also all the hives are still happy to produce more so they see the need for fit healthy drones in the hive going quite late into the season. Perhaps they are thinning out the older drones.

Mmmmm just realized I dont know how long a drone lives for on average without getting lucky with a queen that is. If anyone knows please let me know