Qless Hive, what to do??

[Loubylou]

Hi all, most of my hives overwintered well.

However, I am pretty sure one particular hive seems Qless. No BIAS at all so I put a test frame in several days ago and just checked this morning and no QC's made. There are a lot of bees in this hive. Now some drones have hatched from the test frame. Should I pop another test frame in to see if they will attempt to make a QC again or what???

Seems a shame to loose so many bees but I think they are probably OAP's so maybe I should just let them just fade away/dwindle naturally.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

If in any doubt - just shake them out and they'll beg their way into other hives.

 

[BeeJayBee]

However, I am pretty sure one particular hive seems Qless. No BIAS at all so I put a test frame in several days ago and just checked this morning and no QC's made. There are a lot of bees in this hive. Now some drones have hatched from the test frame. Should I pop another test frame in to see if they will attempt to make a QC again or what???

If it's only a few days since you put it in, the drones from the test frame will have developed from eggs laid by the queen in the donor colony. It takes 24 days for drones to develop.

It can sometimes take more than test frame one for a colony to realise they need to make new queen. It's all to do with pheromones, so it could be worth trying another one.

You haven't mentioned the level of stores or how much empty space there is, so you might also need to make sure there is room for any existing queen to lay.

 

[mjt68]

If the test frame does produce QCs, what are you going to do? Emergency QC raised by aging bees with few drones and poor mating weather isn't likely to give you a laying queen and it's a little early to buy one in.

If it doesn't produce QCs but there's still no brood, what will you do?

Warm day, lots of smoke, shake them out in front of other colonies, remove hive and walk away if you're reasonably sure they're Q-.

If they are queenless and remain so, they may go laying worker.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

If the test frame does produce QCs, what are you going to do? Emergency QC raised by aging bees with few drones and poor mating weather isn't likely to give you a laying queen and it's a little early to buy one in.

If it doesn't produce QCs but there's still no brood, what will you do?

It's a lose lose situation really - by the time the queen is mated (if she gets mated) the colony will be on its last legs and incapable of raising brood with still three weeks to wait for the first to emerge.

Shake out

 

[eddyh]

you could buy a queen,theres loads about now if you dont mind an import.

 

[Swarm]

Don't waste money, shake them out. Did one myself today.

 

[eddyh]

Or dont waste colony.

 

[Loubylou]

Thanks all, I think I will wait for the next warmish day and shake them out in front of neighbouring hive.

 

[MuswellMetro]

be carefull that you haven't got stale a stale queen because in there on three similar hives i have seen , once they dwindle down to a cup full of bees I have found a small scrub or intercast Queen

so shake them out a reasonable distance from the neighbouring hive

 

[Finman]

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Buy a foreing mated colony.
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