Options and suggestions for a Q- nuc

[jeff33]

Afternoon all. One of my virgin didn't make it back home and I am left with a jam packed 5 frames nuc hopelessly Q- with all brood emerged. I noticed it has some laying workers so I have placed a new nuc with foundation only on the original site and shook the lot out 50 yards away in the high grass.

I was originally going to unite with a strong hive but all the hives have been demaree at this apiary so it may be a bit of a fuss. Below are my other options, and would welcome your thoughts:
- add 1 frame with capped Qcell from a demaree hive. Queen due to emerge in 5 days.
- split frames and spread across other hives using air freshener.
- shake the lot out and remove original hive + stand (concerned about the amount of bees begging their way elsewhere).
- take to another apiary and unite with another hive.

 

[Curly green finger's]

Afternoon all. One of my virgin didn't make it back home and I am left with a jam packed 5 frames nuc hopelessly Q- with all brood emerged. I noticed it has some laying workers so I have placed a new nuc with foundation only on the original site and shook the lot out 50 yards away in the high grass.

I was originally going to unite with a strong hive but all the hives have been demaree at this apiary so it may be a bit of a fuss. Below are my other options, and would welcome your thoughts:
- add 1 frame with capped Qcell from a demaree hive. Queen due to emerge in 5 days.
- split frames and spread across other hives using air freshener.
- shake the lot out and remove original hives (concerned about the amount of bees.
- take to another apiary and unite with another hive.

Use as a swarm box?

 

[masterBK]

Laying workers can fly perfectly well and will have flown back to the new nuc. I would shake them out. You can waste alot of time with such cases.

 

[jeff33]

Use as a swarm box?

Not enough nurse bees, I don't think they would be good for that.

 

[Michael ECB's]

I have tried so many times and failed to save/convert a laying worker colony back into a productive one....
It was actually here on this forum that JBM convinced me to JUST SHAKE THEM OUT.... And thank you for that JBM ....
As Master BK says - You CAN waste a lot of time .... And you will!
If it at all helps, change your mindset as I did. Im not loosing a colony as it was never going to produce and would have failed.
But rather look at it as giving your other colonies a boost....
Sadly, I have quite a few worker laying issues a year, this is from "Failed" trap outs, trees, walls etc etc... Sometimes the queen will not come out and you were to late in offering a frame of brood.... result is always the same.... Drone Brood.....

What I have started doing is moving the Q- box & worker laying group of bees and placing them directly behind a weaker colony in one of our other sites. I leave them for a day or two and them shake them out a short distance in front of weaker colony.... usually this results in a bit of confusion, bearding on the box in front for the first day/night,,,,, and then you suddenly have a great producing and strong colony again....
I recently did this with 3 boxes at the same time...... Worked great....

Sorry for the long winded reply..... Remember, youre not loosing anything but rather as a gain.... win win...

 

[jeff33]

@Michael ECB's thanks for taking the time to write all that down, very useful. I am of the same opinion (ie not going to turn it into a productive colony) but was just concerned about the amount of bees and risk of them killing a mated queen if they all pile into the same hive. I will shake the lot out.