regression

[raybo1331]

my pressent bees are on 5.4 is it possible to go to 4.9 in one move or should i do two steps

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buzz

[Clayton]

Hi,

I doubt they can. I wasn't able to get bees to 4.9 from 5.2 cell size (some did however) from 5.2 you will usually get 5.0. But some will hit 4.9. So to answer your question. You will have to regress 2-3 times to get to 4.9. But you should use 4.9 foundation, don't bother with the inbetween stuff. Some colonies may surprise you. To speed things along use full sheets of foundation not starter strips. You be lucky to hit 5.0 this season if you use strips. It may very well take you till next spring to get sufficient 4.9 combs. You will have to go through alot of transition combs before they size down. Keep your metric ruler handy. The first year is a tough year, very tough. But no one said it will be easy. I only got about three good combs per colony. Thats 3 out of 20. Its not enough to gain stability. You have to keep gathering combs and working the bees up. Its hard to undo 100 years of sizing up in one season.

Clay