Requeening Delima......

[Steve C]

Ok.....

Got the new queen into the hive, Ole queen in a nuc(with only 2 frames of bees). New queen has been released from ez-cage and is walking around on comb in hive..... I did not see any new larve yet but I think it is to early... yet.... will see by this sat.....

Here is the Delima.......

I can not bring myself to Kill the Ole queen....... :confused:

What are the alturatives to killing the queen....
Is there a Ole bee home that you can send her to for retirement.....???

Thanks
Steve

[beegee]

Don't be sentimental or squeamish. Just pinch her head off and put the two frames back in the hives. How old is the old queen? Did you requeen because she was failing or because you were changing bee races?

You could add 3 more frames to the nuc and feed like crazy, hoping there's time enough to fill the nuc before winter, but you'll probably be back where you started with a few bees in the nuc. You could try making a 2-queen hive with an excluder between two deeps and an entrance on the back side of the top deep. Just pinch her head off.....

[Dwight]

Buy a two frame observation hive and put her in that.

[iddee]

Remember that if she lives till spring, she will be producing drones to mate with your other new queens when they emerge. Is that what you want?
Get a small medicine bottle or simi;ar, pour in an inch of alcohol, drop her in. By spring you will have a very good swarm lure for your swarm traps.

[Steve C]

She is a 2006 Australian queen, and she was a very hard brood producer...
Most of the time she had 3 to 4 full(both sides 80%)frames full....but her bees would not draw wax or store honey.....!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I say this because I have some WallyMutt's(Ferals) beside this hive and they are drawing and storeing honey in a med super right now.... they were from a 5 frame nuc and have already drawed 5 full deep frame w/foundation and working on the Med super now(new foundation)....
The Hives are up to about 8 to 9 full frames of bee's, so as compaired to my Ferals she sucks.....

That is a good idea about the OB.... but I don't have any drawen comb....
Hmmmmm.... does anybody have a few "Honey SuperCell" frames they want to sell me....
I will need only "5"......

[Dwight]

Steve,
How about the comb she is on in the two frame nuc?

[Steve C]

She is on 2 full drawn combs, and there are 3 frames of foundation in there with them(5 fr NUC)....
but her bee's will not for some reason draw out comb.... I have been feeding 1:1, and switched to 2:1......
There is 2:1 on the NUC now and they are taking it....
She is on the two frames I pulled from the 10 fr hive, so there are 2 new foundation frames in the main.... 3 in NUC and 2 in main = 5
That is why I said I needed 5 HSC's.......

[Dwight]

I am not sure about your area but here in Vermont Bees usually don't draw comd this time of year.
My suggestion is that you put the two drawn frames from the nuc into the observation hive with the queen. Put a boardman feeder in place of the two frames of foundation in the main hive and winter it over as an 8 frame nuc.
In the spring they will draw that foundation quickly during a nectar flow.

[Hanginin]

You can buy swarm lures much cheaper than a new queen. I have wintered successfully bees in a 5 frame nuc. Remember that it takes young bees in a nector flow to produce comb. Might be that you need to take a frame from your stronger hives, brush off the bees and give the weak nuc a boost and feed-feed-feed.

[Michael Bush]

I'd drop her in a jar of alcohol and save it for swarm lure. If you can't do that, buy an observation hive. smile.gif You'll love it.

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesobservationhives.htm