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TBH not doing so hot.

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bassman1977:
I started a TBH this spring with a 3 lbs package.  They were coming along, and got about 7 bars drawn out.  I have generally been leaving them alone but today I did do an inspection.  There's about 3 bars of bees, a few are definately younger, most are old, but it seems like there are a lot of drones left over.  There's definately no laying workers (yet) and not much drone comb.  I suspect that drones don't die as fast as the workers?  Anyway, I am guessing that the hive has been queenless for at least 3 or 4 weeks considering that all the brood has emerged.  There are some stores and the hive, aside from being queenless looks healthy.  I don't remember off hand, but is it too late to introduce a new queen if I shake a couple frames of bees into this hive?  I am thinking that I will shake the bees in, wait an hour or two, and then put the new queen in.  Sound good?  This is my only TBH (probably my first mistake) so I can't add a frame of eggs from another hive.

As always, I appreciate all help.

bassman1977:
Bump.  Any help out there?

Keith13:
Sorry brother I had to find out what TBH was before anything else. I have zero experience with em

Keith

Scadsobees:
Sounds suspiciously like they swarmed....if they swarm more than once it takes a beastly long time for the new queen to get going.  Even so, if that is the case, a new queen should be almost ready to lay...

If not, you can try to cut out some comb with eggs, pin/glue that to a top bar somehow and see if they will start queen cells...  if not then there is probably a queen or something not mated, if so then they are truely queenless.

bassman1977:
That gives me a great idea.  When I was in there, I saw a bar they had just started to build on.  I'll have to double check the bar length and see if I can fit it into a langstroth and get a queen to lay in it.  If and when she does, I can move it back to the TBH.

Thanks for the reply!

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