Uniting colonies

[Neil]

Hi all,

I have united a nuc with one of my queenless colonies by using the paper method above two supers. The bees have only just started drawing the foundation out in the supers. I have put the 5 frame nuc with a laying queen in a spare brood box and placed this on top of the supers with the newspaper in-between. Is it ok to do for ease or should I have put the new brood box with the queen in it at the bottom and put the queenless colony above? Does it matter which way around? The queen can’t lay eggs in the supers as the foundation isn’t drawn out yet. Advice would be appreciated.

Cheers All

 

[Midland Beek]

I would re-think your supering. The idea is usually to put one super of foundation on the brood box, and when that is being drawn and filled up, then put another one on. Perhaps this hive only needs one super on?

You could have perhaps united in a better way. Putting the queenless colony on top of the nuc was perhaps better in this instance.