wide frames

[peteinwilts]

Hi Guys

Two of the frames from the 5 frame NUC that I picked up on Sunday are extremely wide with comb. It is much wider than the spacers allow.
Should I turn my 11 frame brood box into a 10 frame brood box or should I just leave them a little cramped?

I also disposed of 4 queen cells yesterday. I prusume they are still reacting to the original NUC box's conditions? Should they stop doing this once they realise they have much more room?

No sign of the queen yet

Cheers
Pete

 

[BKF Admin]

You may of answered your own question with the last line of your post..

 

[Poly Hive]

Either bruise the comb back or let the bees trim it them selves, but they will adjust it to suit.

PH

 

[peteinwilts]

do we think there may be no queen?? The rest of the bees seem to be going about their business quite happily.

If any more queen cells appear, should I leave them be and risk a swarm? (if the queen just has a VERY good hiding place!)
I presume the queens come from queen eggs. I presume I must be able to squish the last queen egg?!? (if so I may have already done so?)

 

[Poly Hive]

You presume incorrectly.

Some reading up might be a plan here.

Queens can be produced from any young larvae fed as a queen.

Can you see eggs in the colony?

PH

 

[Wildwood]

Either bruise the comb back or let the bees trim it them selves, but they will adjust it to suit.

PH

What do you mean by "bruise" PH? I have similar problem?

 

[Poly Hive]

Take the flat of your hive tool and press it against the comb. Push the comb in, effectively damage it, and put it between two good combs and the bees will adjust it, they are after all rather keen on having a beespace....

PH

 

[Wildwood]

Thanks.

 

[peteinwilts]

You presume incorrectly.

Some reading up might be a plan here.

Queens can be produced from any young larvae fed as a queen.

Can you see eggs in the colony?

PH

I have been trying not to bother them too much.

The pictures I have seen of queens vary from massive to not much bigger than a drone.

'if' rain is forecast on Friday I will check on them tomorrow night, 'if' not I will check on them on Friday (last checked last night)
I will take a magnifying glass for a really good look for eggs. Am I right in thinking if the eggs are laid by a queen they are orderly, but if laid by a worker, random?

I have been meaning to get myself a good book. It is nice living in the country, but to visit a good(ish) bookshop is a 50-60 mile round trip and try to avoid it if I can. No excuse I know.

Any recommendations on a good book or website? I have often prefered forums to pick up tips rather than books. I have many books on different subjects often contradicting each other as it is written by an author on the authors opinions (which is not always the right opinion!)
.... also it is less conspicuous reading stuff off the Internet at work as opposed to reading a book!

 

[Geoff]

I don't know whether even a good bookshop would stock many bee books, though with bees being 'cool' you never know.
On the net look up Northern Bee books.
I got" Bees at the Bottom of the Garden"
There is also Ted Hooper's " Guide to Bees and Honey"

 

[Poly Hive]

I leant heavily on Hooper in my early days.

It is highly unlikely you will have laying workers.

It is highly likely you will have a laying queen and yes she lays in a regular pattern. Fresh eggs are at right angles to the cell base gradually leaning over until on day three they are lying on the cell floor.

They are easier seen against darker comb so be prepared to tilt the frame so that the light gets to the cell bottoms, and lo, there they are. Or if you really cannot see them you should for sure see larvae and that tells you that the queen was there some 4 days ago.

Do yourself a massive favour and research the table of development and memorise the essentials. I could tell you now but hey working for the info is more likely to make it stick.

PH

 

[Baggyone]

I have Ted Hoopers and have loaned quite a few from the library. Ted Hoopers is quite a good one as its a bit more technical but still gives you the basics.

 

[peteinwilts]

I leant heavily on Hooper in my early days.

It is highly unlikely you will have laying workers.

It is highly likely you will have a laying queen and yes she lays in a regular pattern. Fresh eggs are at right angles to the cell base gradually leaning over until on day three they are lying on the cell floor.

They are easier seen against darker comb so be prepared to tilt the frame so that the light gets to the cell bottoms, and lo, there they are. Or if you really cannot see them you should for sure see larvae and that tells you that the queen was there some 4 days ago.

Do yourself a massive favour and research the table of development and memorise the essentials. I could tell you now but hey working for the info is more likely to make it stick.

PH

so.. if the workers are not laying eggs, as the bees have been in the new hive for four days (tomorrow) if I see an egg tomorrow, the queen has a good hiding place. (probably in one of the big wide combs!)

If I do not see an egg, I should leave any queen cells alone and hope they are populated.

If there is no eggs and no queen cells I should leave it another 5 days to confirm? (non-sealed larval period) If still no eggs or queen cell consider getting a new queen?

'If' I am wrong about the eggs, the hive has queen cells and the queen is just being a poor layer (for whatever reason), I presume I should bait another hive in case it swarms?

Hopefully I am just being an over paranoid newbie! ...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_w_h_?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=beekeeping

There is a huge array of books... A guess 'beekeeping for dummies' may well suit!

 

[Hombre]

Bee Keeping for Dummies has an American slant to it. If you want to get only ONE book, then I believe that Ted Hooper's " Guide to Bees and Honey" is the way to go.

Look it up on the Internet with the Google search string: "ted hooper guide to bees and honey". Take your pick, of vendors, you are almost spoiled for choice.

As stated previously, Northern Bee Books are the current publisher.

I rarely visit a bookshop and all my books for many a year have been bought online. I am perhaps a little reliant on the opinions and reviews by other people, but don't often pick up a book that I feel to be a waste of time. I have become used to ordering a book before mid afternoon and having it arrive the next day. Beats wasting time on a 60 mile trip to a bookshop and probably paying a premium price into the bargain on top of the traveling cost.

 

[Poly Hive]

Please do NOT buy the Dummies book.

I bought it as another newbie was raving at it and saying some strange things.

It has some serious errors in it for a start and is aimed purely at the American market where as you can imagine conditions are VERY different.

Hooper is the one to go for I suggest.

See how many are on Ebay for a start, last time I looked it was 8. More than any other be book which reminds me, I must sell of my doorstop.

PH

 

[peteinwilts]

Please do NOT buy the Dummies book.


PH

I won't! I has being flippant!

I have been rolling my eyes at the technical dummies books for many years!

 

[Melbourne12]

We have the Ted Hooper book, and it is indeed excellent, if a little old-fashioned. We've recently been recommended Practical Beekeeping by Clive de Bruyn. It's beautifully written and illustrated, and although it's more expensive than Hooper, it would be the beginner's book that I'd recommend most highly.