Post split confusion. Help needed

[Beagle23]

My hive swarmed on the 18th May, fortunately I was able to find two sealed QCs in the brood box and took one and three frames off to a nuc, leaving the other in place.

At the beginning of last week I inspected both colonies. In my national the queen had hatched but there's no sign of her now and certainly no sign of eggs (I may have missed her).

In the nuc the queen was present and I thought I saw her laying, (dipping her thorax into vacant cells), but I couldn't spy any eggs or larvae. In both colonies there are signs that the workers have made half arsed attempts towards raising their own queen with a couple of barely started QCs which seem to have been abandoned.

Not sure how much longer I should wait before I buy in a queen or two.

Any thoughts?

 

[pargyle]

My hive swarmed on the 18th May, fortunately I was able to find two sealed QCs in the brood box and took one and three frames off to a nuc, leaving the other in place.

At the beginning of last week I inspected both colonies. In my national the queen had hatched but there's no sign of her now and certainly no sign of eggs (I may have missed her).

In the nuc the queen was present and I thought I saw her laying, (dipping her thorax into vacant cells), but I couldn't spy any eggs or larvae. In both colonies there are signs that the workers have made half arsed attempts towards raising their own queen with a couple of barely started QCs which seem to have been abandoned.

Not sure how much longer I should wait before I buy in a queen or two.

Any thoughts?

Last year was an awful year for queens mating - I had one that took over 6 weeks to start laying, it was getting near gatepost time and then she suddenly started - came through winter and she's fine this year but ...

It's a judgement call ..if your priority is honey then a new queen that's ready to go bought in is your answer.

I try and let things take their course but it's not all about the honey.

 

[Beagle23]

Last year was an awful year for queens mating - I had one that took over 6 weeks to start laying, it was getting near gatepost time and then she suddenly started - came through winter and she's fine this year but ...

It's a judgement call ..if your priority is honey then a new queen that's ready to go bought in is your answer.

I try and let things take their course but it's not all about the honey.

Thanks, that's sort of encouraging. I think I'll give it a couple more weeks, but that would mean my youngest workers are 4 weeks old by that stage so it could be cutting things close

 

[Beefriendly]

Thanks, that's sort of encouraging. I think I'll give it a couple more weeks, but that would mean my youngest workers are 4 weeks old by that stage so it could be cutting things close

The 6 weeks to live seems to be extended in queenless situations.
A possible trick is to add a frame of eggs....every time I've decide the she isn't going to lay...hive must be queenless...she didn't get mated... so add frame of eggs for terst and off she goes...Got one at the moment...polished cells and she should have been mated about a week ago.

 

[Beagle23]

The 6 weeks to live seems to be extended in queenless situations.
A possible trick is to add a frame of eggs....every time I've decide the she isn't going to lay...hive must be queenless...she didn't get mated... so add frame of eggs for terst and off she goes...Got one at the moment...polished cells and she should have been mated about a week ago.

That would be an excellent suggestion if both my hives weren't currently eggless

 

[Beefriendly]

That would be an excellent suggestion if both my hives weren't currently eggless

Point taken .......
I can supply some for you but a bit of a drive. They will be from isolated mating station Buckfast queens........

 

[Beagle23]

Point taken .......
I can supply some for you but a bit of a drive.

I appreciate the gesture, thanks.

Hopefully I can galvanise some action in the hives this week, I hear that Hugh grant movies tend to make the ladies broody, so maybe I'll put in on loop on my Ipad and leave that playing in the garden

 

[Beefriendly]

sorry wrong post.