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Author Topic: Did my hives combine on their own?  (Read 2564 times)

Offline AshCo

  • Brood
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Did my hives combine on their own?
« on: May 03, 2015, 10:18:53 pm »
Hi Everyone. I am new to beekeeping...I installed two packages into warre hives last Saturday. Things went smoothly, but one package had a lot more dead bees than the other. This hive appears to be much weaker and it seems to me that the stronger hive is actually getting larger (but that shouldn't be-it's too soon). So my question is would they combine on their own? Is it possible that the bees from the weaker hive are heading over to the stronger one? I opened the hives yesterday and visualized both queens, but I didn't see any eggs, just a lot of clear liquid and pollen. I have attached two pictures of the weaker and stronger hives. Is there anything I should do? Does the weaker hive have enough bees to support the queen? Thank you so much for your help!
Ash

Offline Maggiesdad

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Re: Did my hives combine on their own?
« Reply #1 on: May 03, 2015, 10:38:52 pm »
I'd love to hear the answer to this, too.

One of my three TBHs looks very similar to your weak hive.  After 5 weeks, that's all the comb they've drawn. I don't think they have enough bees to keep the brood warm... but my queen is in there also.

Offline Michael Bush

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Re: Did my hives combine on their own?
« Reply #2 on: May 04, 2015, 09:19:53 am »
>So my question is would they combine on their own?

Yes.

>Is it possible that the bees from the weaker hive are heading over to the stronger one?

Yes.  In recent years it has become a common problem.
My website:  bushfarms.com/bees.htm en espanol: bushfarms.com/es_bees.htm  auf deutsche: bushfarms.com/de_bees.htm  em portugues:  bushfarms.com/pt_bees.htm
My book:  ThePracticalBeekeeper.com
-------------------
"Everything works if you let it."--James "Big Boy" Medlin

Offline AshCo

  • Brood
  • Posts: 2
Re: Did my hives combine on their own?
« Reply #3 on: May 04, 2015, 12:23:41 pm »
Thank you for your replies. The weaker hive appears to have about the same amount of bees in it today. I'll be watching them closely for the next few days/weeks.
And Michael, I have the Practical Beekeeper and it's been my primary source of information on learning about all things bees. Thank you for actually printing it! It's much easier for me to thumb through a book than a website.
Cheers!
Ash