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Caught a swarm back in May. All I had at the time was a shallow super so thats what I put them in. The queen lays a good pattern. They have filled out all the foundation in that super with pollen, honey and brood. However, they wont move out of that super.
Ive had a deep with plasticell foundation on it for about a month but they arent drawing comb. I reversed the hive bodies last weekend and also been feeding 1:1 sugar syrup for two weeks.
Whats the deal?? How can I get that queen to move??
Try swapping frames from top to bottom supers, alternating one foundation, one drawn/brood/stores, one foudation, one drawn/brood/stores, etc. Do it so that the frame above is opposite what is below also. Bee sure to keep that syrup on the hive constantly, and feed pollen supplement if pollen stores are low. :)
most time the bees will not draw foundation or move into a new box unless you have a significant flow to encourage them to do so. feeding 1 to 1 syrup will (when fed over a long enough period and in enough quantity) encourge them.
your area should have been getting a few more rains than we have here, but I would guess the primary flow is over at your location.
I personally would move the primary brood area back to the bottom of the stack and not get to wound up about mixing frames (top to bottom and this way and that... which sounds really confusing to me only I would guess?). just off hand this sound like a sure fire way of creating other problems.
you should not have any shortage of pollen sources at your location unless you are deep into a solid pine plantation.
what kind of syrup feeder are you using?
and good luck...
I would bait them up into the deep with a frame of brood from the shallow just long enough to get them started drawing the deep then move the shallow frame back down in the shallow super or they will build comb in the open space bellow the shallow frame. It is getting about late enough it will be tough to get them to draw plastic. I would put on wax foundation and get rid of the plastic. They will draw wax faster than plastic especially if there is no flow on. OOPPS!!!!!!! did I say that I may have started another war in the debate on wax verses plastic:D
The bees are bringing in the pollen. It is a little dry here (im closer to Houston than Tyler) but I have water out for them in addition to the sugar syrup Im giving them through a boardman feeder in a third hive body.
I sprayed the deep foundation with sugar suryp hoping to entice the bees down. I dont have any wax foundation and this time of year ANY order from web suppliers is a month ship time.
Im not necessarily interested in a honey crop off of these bees I just want them build for the winter. If I can get them solid into two deeps by mid September Ill medicate them with the five other hives I bought this year.
Thanks for the input. Anything else you've got for a first year guy would be helpful. Thanks.
RR:
as new as I am I have to agree with you: I have deeps with plastic frame and they didn't touch it so far.
Quote:
Originally Posted by riverrat
Call Kelly http://go.netgrab.com/secure/kelleystore/asp/home.asp I just placed an order yesterday for med and deep frames/foundation and she said it was all in stock and would ship in 1-2 days.......I was in shock had to pick my jaw up off the floor to say "Thank you!"Quote:
Originally Posted by Pangerban
Try drapers super bee in auburn nebraska. Brenda can have the foundation to you in a matter of daysQuote:
Originally Posted by Pangerban
Tecumseh says...
I personally would move the primary brood area back to the bottom of the stack and not get to wound up about mixing frames (top to bottom and this way and that... which sounds really confusing to me only I would guess?).
I must have had too much lemonade that night 'cause it sounds confusing to me too and I wrote it! I was just spouting nonsense I guess, sometimes I just can't help myself :eek:
ray marler sezs:
I must have had too much lemonade that night 'cause it sounds confusing to me too and I wrote it! I was just spouting nonsense I guess, sometimes I just can't help myself
tecumseh writes:
and what were you drinking in that lemondade ray? or as wc fields supposedly said... there's lemonade in my lemonade!
in almost everything you do (manipulations) in regards to the bees there is a most definite downside. with experience most folks learn to minimize these possible problems. with folks just starting up I typically take the tact that the simpler and the more straight forward the approach the better. most newbees (if they stick around that long?) will over time learn the nuances as time goes by....
to reinforce what riverrat said.....plastic based foundation (kind of sounds something like carlin's plastic glass now don't it?) has always had the reputation as being somewhat difficult to get pulled in a throughly adequate manner when compared to pure wax foundation. not much of either will get drawn if there is no flow.
so pagerban where exactly (houston, tyler???) are you really located? just tryin' to visually place you on the map.
Well, here's what we've got.
I checked the bees this evening when I got off work. It was a quick inspection. They are drawing the plasticell foundation (possibly because I sprayed sugar suryp) but its minimal. They seem to be slowing on the suryp from the feeder but I am not going to remove it.
Ill spray the foundation again and see if I can get a little more wax. Things are still pretty dry where I am which is North Houston,... Spring to be exact. To be even more precise, Im in a subdivision,.... SSHHHH. I dont know if my location could be an issue for the performance of the bees but I dont think so. Theres about 20 acres of 50 year growth directly West of my house.
I left things as is today becuase the little bit of wax was encouraging. Ill give it another week and see what happens. Whether it be frame swapping or wax foundation, Ill cross that bridge when I come to it. HOWEVER,..... I do appreciate all the info. Trying to figure these things out is a cool cool thing.
this is what my plasticcoat looks like when it is ready to pull:
10 frames of it but I just pulled 4 frames to let them have another small place for winter:
http://www.memorialspark.com/Bee/plastickote.jpg
panderbang writes: Spring to be exact.
tecumseh replies: well just around the corner by texas standands...and the home of origin of lyle lovett.
by an large ,with the exception of people, bees do quite well in suburbia.
and yes there is a lifetime of cool stuff to figure out what's a happen' in that little white box.
good luck...