Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

MEMBER BULLETIN BOARD => GREETINGS/TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF => Topic started by: Cindy on July 02, 2019, 08:51:44 am

Title: New Beekeeper Old Lady
Post by: Cindy on July 02, 2019, 08:51:44 am
Hey all! I am a new beekeeper and an old organic gardener. Hoping for some input from like minded persons and that is why I am here.
I already need some advice and even though I asked for guidance elsewhere have received none as of yet, so I have my fingers crossed that someone here has some good advice.

I bought two packages and started beekeeping this May. One hive is booming, with bearding on both front and back, even after adding more boxes.
The other hive wakes slower and is certainly not as busy or populated. Still, there are a lot of bees and capped honey, nectar and pollen coming in. So I just figured they had different personalities.

Yesterday morning I noticed a queen and a few workers in front of the slower hive. I picked her up and she was barely moving, I set her back down and she turned and laid on her side with 5 or 6
workers starting to lick her. I came back 10 minutes later and she was gone. I couldn't find her in the grass but the bees were upset and bopping me so I only did a partial inspection. There was no evidence of
anything that would hint at what happened to her.

I came back an hour later and tried to inspect again. I found drone cells on every honey frame, like clusters of 10 to 20, I didn't get to look into the whole hive but I did not see any eggs or the queen and
only one that looked like it might be a capped queen cell, but it was horizontal, sideways in cross comb, attached through two frames and connected to the next frame in the bottom box. So I didn't go further
into the hive for fear of breaking it. I wonder how long I should wait to see if this cell is a viable queen or should I bring in some eggs from my thriving hive for them to make more queen cells with?

I have no proof that there are eggs because there were none in the top boxes, but there were capped drone cells there
and I couldn't go to the bottom box without breaking the only capped queen cell I found.

Thanks for any and all advice.
Cindy
Title: Re: New Beekeeper Old Lady
Post by: BeeMaster2 on July 02, 2019, 09:09:59 am
Cindy,
Welcome to Beemaster.
Queen cells are always vertical. I recommend that you pull a frame of eggs and larvae and add it to this hive. If the top box is full of bees put it in there or in the first box full of bees.
I really suspect that you have a new queen in the hive and you found the looser of a fight or the bees just removed this one. They probably picked it up and carried it away.
I say to put the frame of eggs in the first full box so that you do not disturb the brood nest any more than you have to. This is to protect the new queen. Do not inspect this hive for 2 weeks.
Good luck and let us know how it works out.
Jim Altmiller
Title: Re: New Beekeeper Old Lady
Post by: iddee on July 02, 2019, 09:20:14 am
What Jim said, except I would check the frame with eggs that you add in 8 to 10 days just enough to see if it has capped queen cells. Then leave it alone for another 2 weeks. Adding a frame of eggs will always help to boost a hive, will never hurt it, and is a good way to know for sure.
Title: Re: New Beekeeper Old Lady
Post by: Cindy on July 02, 2019, 10:51:42 am
Thank you! I had read that queen cells were vertical but wasn't sure that in a desperate situation they may have done whatever they could.
I will add a frame of eggs/brood now and stop fretting. That should solve the situation or help it either way right? The hard part will be to wait!
Thank you!
Cindy
Title: Re: New Beekeeper Old Lady
Post by: cao on July 02, 2019, 10:58:20 am
 Welcome  :happy:.

Good advise are ready given.
Title: Re: New Beekeeper Old Lady
Post by: CoolBees on July 02, 2019, 11:28:30 am
Welcome to Beemaster.

What Cao said - 2 of the best (iddee and sawdustmaker) have given you excellent advice. Not much to add. You've come to the right place to ask questions. I hope all goes well for you.
Title: Re: New Beekeeper Old Lady
Post by: Ben Framed on July 03, 2019, 12:04:17 pm
What Jim said, except I would check the frame with eggs that you add in 8 to 10 days just enough to see if it has capped queen cells. Then leave it alone for another 2 weeks. Adding a frame of eggs will always help to boost a hive, will never hurt it, and is a good way to know for sure.

Agreed and welcome!