View Full Version : problems with 2 hives
mid mo bees
10-22-2009, 12:32 AM
hello all, hope all is well.i was preparing to start wintering my hives.i was inspecting my 2 tbh(i have 2 tbh & 1 lang)trying to find out what kind works better with my disability. anyway while i was inspecting my hives i found alot of bees alot of stores & no brood.not sure what to do. some local beekeepers are telling me to cut my loses & discard my bees. i dont feel that is the wright thing to do.any advise would bee greatly appreciated.
devdog108
10-22-2009, 05:32 AM
Hey Mid, more info please. Did you see any eggs? any emerging brrod. Did you go through the entire hive? Are you sure your queens just havent shut down? I would say they have......
Don't listen to everyone you hear. The queen is likely shutdown for lack of a flow. Have you guys had a frost yet?
On 10 -11 you stated you had 2 weak hives you had just put together, are these the same hives ?
You did not mention there stores, 80# or 90# is a fairly safe bet.
Have you been feeding any ?
Kinda of late for new hives to be building up in our area.
Maybe the beekeepers you are talking to are trying to save you from disappointment. Sometimes the truth hurts !
Perhaps you might want to try a combine.
Best of luck
PCM
mid mo bees
10-22-2009, 10:19 PM
i did not see any eggs or brood & yes i did go through the hole hive.
mid mo bees
10-22-2009, 10:22 PM
we did have a bad flow & it has got real close to a frost . i started feeding 2-1 sugar to water.
mid mo bees
10-22-2009, 10:24 PM
no these are different hive.they have 15 bars of stores.
I am much further north. About 2 weeks ago I had the same question. I had checked my hive and found no brood. I believe the queen has just shut down for the year. The bees are feeding well and appear to be queen right. In Eastern Oregon the nectar and pollen are gone and we have had frost. From what I have read it is not unusual for the queen to shut down in late fall/early winter. But like I said, I am much further north and this may not be true for your region.
BDJ
mid mo bees
10-25-2009, 10:03 PM
thanks for the reply. i went out on saturday it was in the high 60's i went throuugh those hives 1 of them i seen pupa, the other 1 i found the queen and she is so skinny. i guess she has got ready for winter.
brooksbeefarm
10-25-2009, 10:18 PM
I have hives in Hickory and St.Clair county's about 50 miles from you and most of my queens have shut down there and here at home also. We've had one light frost and maybe two? but the bees are still working the aster on warm days. Good luck neighbor. Jack