Queen cell + a few bees = Nuc £100 Please!

[jimbeekeeper]

I thought I had read things to suggest this, but my suspicion was confirmed yesterday that people are offering for sale as a nuc,


"a selection of bees + a queen cell on frames/foundation"

Are things that bad/desperate?

 

[tonybloke]

it seems that some folk are taking the p*ss, re-inforcing the media hype about the so-called 'shortage' of bees!!

 

[BKF Admin]

Was that an ad on the forum ?

 

[jimbeekeeper]

Was that an ad on the forum ?

No, my use of quotations was just a verbal statment, not an advert.

I have seen no ad, but from some new posters it susgested they had these as nucs, and then as I said this was confrimed to me yesterday that people had been offering such items (I do not belive on the forum) and that people have been buying them.

 

[BKF Admin]

Thanks Jim,I was just about to get the delete button into action thinking someone had advertised them on here.

New beekeepers need all the help they can get,offering bees and a queen cell is bad business.

If any member has purchased/been offered a box of bees with a queen cell then give me a shout so we have a heads up on who the supplier is.

Thanks
Mark.

 

[Eyeman]

Came across a posting last year from a new Beek who wanted advice because the new queen with 5-6 workerd they had purchased and placed in a full size national hive was now dead.
At least these forums allow 'most' new Beeks to not make the same mistake.

 

[Midland Beek]

Yes. Do not bother acquiring a nuc unless it is queenright. No one is 'doing an aspiring beekeeper a favour' if they give you a nuc containing a queen cell.

 

[MuswellMetro]

we could not get five frames Nucs for the beginers at a reasonable price. we ended up getting for £100 each some four frames nucs+ one drawing foundation.( two old brood, one egg and larva and a super frame of capped stores)......with no new capped brood because they were selling like hot cakes

only one out of twenty has not increasedwell,( drone layer) but though those beginers who bought a big supplier's foundation at stoneligh, all have difficult getting the bees to draw it, where as those who bought elswewhere did not have that problem even from the same supplier?????

 

[m100]

but though those beginers who bought a big supplier's foundation at stoneligh, all have difficult getting the bees to draw it, where as those who bought elswewhere did not have that problem even from the same supplier?????

Which suppliers foundation would that be then?

 

[MuswellMetro]

Which suppliers foundation would that be then?

That's a prickley question and i suppose the answer would also be prickley

 

[m100]

That's a prickley question and i suppose the answer would also be prickley

I've had problems in the past with 'prickley' foundation as well . About three years ago the bees preferred to build comb off the edge of the top bar and just chewed holes in the foundation. - only had this problem with one batch (county association bulk buy) of 14x12 though, the brood and super foundation was fine.

Since then their foundation has been ok, still not as good as KBS and by recent reports locally both are streets ahead of the stale brittle foundation M******** are foisting on their customers.

 

[Ewok]

On a slightly different topic, Eglu have been supplying standard national nucs for their Beehaus owners.

I'd be a bit p1155ed if I'd found out that after paying a whole bank full of cash, that I'd been supplied with wrong sized frames that just generated brace comb & drones.

 

[Mike a]

I'm not surprised, 14x12 is a good size but suppliers follow the popular hive size demand.

I used a few national frames into a 14x12 as part of A/S it was fine all the time they build drone comb under them as it was easy to trim off as part of my IPM programme but by the end of the season I had left a couple in at the back of the hive which they had filled with winter stores but never used. The frames weighed a ton, my only option was to trim off the lower comb and hand squeeze it before feeding it back to them watered down when they needed it the following year when I shook swarmed them as were suffering with high levels of varroa.

 

[george]

I have built up and sold 20 nucs this year and installed them with the buyer all for £90 quid . I must be doing something wrong if people are willing to pay good money for bees on frames with a cell attached .

Name and shame these shysters !