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Subject: Orange County, NC Beekeepers

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: Randall Austin <ra41717 AT gmail.com>
  • To: MarilynMark Clark <wazazi.wa.binti AT gmail.com>
  • Cc: Orange County Beekeepers <ocba AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [ocba] Reading my hive, conflicting signals.
  • Date: Sat, 15 Jun 2013 19:05:24 -0400

Mark,

Your situation sounds like a classic case of what you'll see after a hive has swarmed. There will be several weeks where there is no obvious evidence of a queen, unless you are lucky enough to see the virgin (which isn't always easy). I definitely recommend a wait-and-see attitude for now. If you are anxious about it, take a frame with eggs and very young larvae from your other hive and put it in the suspect one. If it is truly queenless, the bees will build queen cells on the donor frame, not only letting you know what the status is but also solving their own problem.

If you have Russians, they are known for shutting down laying when the honey flow stops. This is a useful very trait since it conserves stores. So not seeing eggs and larva may not be a problem at all in that case.

FYI, the fanning at the entrance doesn't mean anything noteworthy for your situation. They'll fan to spread Nasonov pheromone, sending out a "here's home" beacon to foragers. They'll fan in mass to create air flow to cool the hive.

Randall Austin


On 6/15/2013 5:14 PM, MarilynMark Clark wrote:
CAMaQ7+CdNc6Y7TjTeQG6NquQhn6TngH6DXt1rgwKwWzsOUC1og AT mail.gmail.com" type="cite">
This is the part of beekeeping that I feel the most inept, knowing what is happening in the hive.

History:
   - package installed 5/13 into one large hive box containing drawn comb with a good deal of honey and some pollen cells
   - took 2.5 gallons of sugar water with Bee-B-Healthy over the next week
   - saw queen on 5/28 and capped brood, not as great a pattern as I might wish, somewhat honey bound? added an Illinois box with drawn comb and lots of honey cells
   - over the last week saw bee or two fanning at the small entrance though hive has a screen bottom.  Heat control or queen mating flight?


Today (6/15), I went through all 20 frames, hive is fairly full of bees, docile, some capped brood (one just coming out of its cell), but saw no queen, no eggs, and no larvae. Also no queen cells.  Lots of nectar drying and less pollen than I would like to see after the last meeting's presentation. Started feeding again (one gallon).

Is it superseding?  Is it honey bound?  Did I miss the eggs and larvae?  Is the queen enjoying the dating scene and the house bees have reworked her queen cell?  Should I check again in say, a week? Do I need a frame with eggs?  Do I need a queen? Am I screwed?

Mark

P.S.  The other hive installed the same day seems healthy and bountiful in all respects.


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