> Feed the bees 1:2 sugar syrup for brood stimulation, as well as pollen patties, until they stop taking it.
Almost a sure way to get them to swarm. I would only feed until there is nectar coming in.
http://www.bushfarms.com/beesfeeding.htm#when> Feed empty foundationless frames into the brood area one at a time, as they are filled, to expand the brood nest.
Good plan. If they are really booming and the weather has warmed enough, you could probably do two at a time.
> When the major honey flow starts to come on, remove the queen and all open brood from each hive to conduct a cut down split. Leave one frame of eggs in each long hive to allow for a new queen to be reared, and put honey supers, with queen excluders below them, over the brood area of the long hives. Configuration of supers will be in multiples of two side by side, over the brood nest.
I always try to get my supers NOT over the brood nest so I don't have to move them to get to the brood nest. I move the brood nest to the back and put the supers on the front. But I also have a top entrance so they have to go through the supers. But you can try it that way if you like to lift boxes. But that's what I was trying to avoid--lifting boxes.
Also keep in mind that all this is only a plan. The bees often have different plans. :)
>Once the long hives have re-queened, and good broodrearing has been re-established, keep honey supers on the hives as needed, feeding new empty ones to the bottom of the pile, for the rest of the season. These hives will then be stripped of honey supers in the fall, and then fed 2:1 syrup, if necessary, to be full for overwintering. Same process for the second year on long hives.
Are these long deeps? Like with deep 9 1/4" frames? 33 deep frames is almost a hive as it is. You may not get them to work the supers.
>As for the cut-down splits:
> Keep the each queen with young open brood and a frame of pollen in a five frame nuc. These splits will be fed 1:2 syrup as long as they take it. The rest of the frames will be placed into single deep hive bodies. 8 frames brood, one frame pollen, and an empty foundationless frame. At least one frame of eggs per queenless colony.
It's not exactly a cut down split when you take your frames out of the long hive to make the split. A cut down split involves removing space for brood and crowding them into the supers. You cannot crowd them into the supers with a long hive unless you restrict their access to the long hive.
> Queenless colonies will raise queen cells, which will be cut out when capped. All frames resulting from cut-down splits will then be separated into 5-frame nucs in the following manner: 2 frames brood, one frame pollen (if there are enough to go around) two empty frames, and two queen cells (if there are enough to go around - I could always take a few from the long hives as well, as they will be on the same timing with the queen rearing)
That can work, but odds are they will build up faster with stronger splits. Again, though, I don't know that these are deeps, but assuming that, three frames of brood and two of honey is a small split but strong enough to probably take off pretty well. More would probably so better and build up faster and then might be able to split again.
> The two frame nucs will then be heavily fed pollen and nectar as long as they will take it.
Two frame nucs are a great way to mate queens. Not so good for building up into a colony.
> When the nucs become crowded in their boxes, I will move them to 10 frame boxes.
That's a big jump from two to 10. I try not to increase space by more than double at one time.
> I will then add two supers of empty shallow foundationless frames as needed to allow for colony growth. This way I can draw out some comb for additional honey supers. A drawn out frame, if available, will be placed in the center of each shallow super.
Sounds like you have planned the bee's year. Good luck with that. ;) They usually have their own plans. It's not a BAD plan, just keep in mind you'll need to play it by ear...