Queenless hive

[Mumph]

I've just inspected my two hives and discovered in one my queen is missing, i can only presume as I didn't/can't find her and there is no brood on the frames its 11 frames of honey...
I have a second hive which has 8 frames of brood and no supers, should I try and join them together or put out a call through my local bee keeping club for a queen? Would I get one at this time of year?

Many thanks in advance

 

[Erichalfbee]

Do you really have no queen? Is she marked? There’s no room to lay. Take two frames out and give them some empty drawn comb plus a frame with eggs and young larvae from your other hive. Check in three days to see if they make queen cells. If you’re feeding them stop

 

[Mumph]

Do you really have no queen? Is she marked? There’s no room to lay. Take two frames out and give them some empty drawn comb plus a frame with eggs and young larvae from your other hive. Check in three days to see if they make queen cells. If you’re feeding them stop

Thanks Dani for your prompt reply, I've done as you suggested. Fingers crossed. Why do you suggest 3 days ? I'm just asking in case i can't get to them in three days, due to work or the weather.

thanks again. Mike

 

[Poly Hive]

I would think that she is mentioning that time length so if they do draw out Q cells they will be obvious. When more experienced a test frame (which this is) will show the status in under 24 hours. In what way? The selected larvae will be floating on a deep bed of royal jelly and so will look a brighter white than the other larvae.

One very important thing to realise is that unless the beekeeper has physically killed the queen it is actually pretty rare for the bees not to have a queen of some sort. Just because there is no brood is not a sign the hive is Q- it could be a brood stop or as in your case nowhere to lay.

PH

 

[Apiarisnt]

...it is actually pretty rare for the bees not to have a queen of some sort. Just because there is no brood is not a sign the hive is Q- it could be a brood stop or as in your case nowhere to lay.

PH

I have just had that, a queenless colony, today. The queen was old and the colony weak so I had scheduled to unite it with a stronger colony. When I went to do the unite today I found no queen, no eggs and one forlorn queen cell. There was room to lay and I have no reason to think that I had killed her. It would have been better if they had supeseded earlier in the season, but evidently once again I have a colony that has not read the same books that I read.

 

[Poly Hive]

Please note I wrote a "queen of some sort" which you had, as you said there was a queen cell there. An act of desperation certainly. The bees do get it wrong at times. In the middle of one of the best summers, I can remember I had three mis- matings. Thats life. If you keep livestock as the saying goes you have to expect dead stock.

PH

 

[mike99]

I would think that she is mentioning that time length so if they do draw out Q cells they will be obvious. When more experienced a test frame (which this is) will show the status in under 24 hours. In what way? The selected larvae will be floating on a deep bed of royal jelly and so will look a brighter white than the other larvae.

One very important thing to realise is that unless the beekeeper has physically killed the queen it is actually pretty rare for the bees not to have a queen of some sort. Just because there is no brood is not a sign the hive is Q- it could be a brood stop or as in your case nowhere to lay.

PH

Thanks for that information. I will store it somewhere safe. Hopefully I won't forget where that safe place is.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Thanks for that information. I will store it somewhere safe. Hopefully I won't forget where that safe place is.

Bookmark this thread or print and stuck it in the wall where you keep your bee stuff