Wax question

**emck** · 05-07-2002, 03:58 PM

hello all

I have just started a new hive with a nuc and when I look at the newly
produced wax on the foundation it is not translucent but dark. Is that
normal?

Also, how long on average should it take for a small hive to build up up a
frame and how can I stimulate them to produce more wax? I am currently
feeding 1/1 syrup.

Thanks

Edward

BILLY BOB · 05-08-2002, 07:12 PM

Hello Edward,

I don't know about the dark wax. What color is the wax from the nuc? Feeding will help them to speed up. Have you tried feeding corn syrup?

Corn syrup is like honey a fructose sugar, ready to be used by your hive. Sugar is sucrose and has to be converted. That takes time and energy for your bees.

Billy Bob

[This message has been edited by BILLY BOB (edited May 08, 2002).]

**pancho** · 05-08-2002, 10:50 PM

Billy Bob do you mean the same corn syrup from the grocery store? If so what brand do you use ,some of them have vanilla in them,Does that matter?
Thank You for your help I'm learning as fast as I can!
Pancho

**Clayton** · 05-09-2002, 06:53 AM

Hi,

Yes it is the same corn syrup. But you will find it quite expensive in the store. Most beekeepers buy it in bulk pails or drums and don't use such a fine grade to keep costs down. Use the light syrup not the dark. I prefer to feed honey as there can be no problems with it getting mixed up in the supers causing adulteration. But one should only feed there own honey. To feed to stimulate fill container half with water (warm) and half with honey. This will simulate a thick nectar. You can also go 25:75 too. There is also the packet method of emergency feeding for winter using honey.

regards,

Clay

**emck** · 05-10-2002, 07:13 AM

the wax on the nuc is dark.

Do you think that they are removing the wax from the nuc and placing it on the new foundation?

where can I buy corn sirop in bulk?

thanks

edward

[This message has been edited by emck (edited May 10, 2002).]

**MountainCamp** · 05-10-2002, 08:47 AM

Better Bee in Greenwich, NY lists Corn Syrup in their catalog. The # is 800 632 3379.

BILLY BOB · 05-11-2002, 03:34 PM

Edward,

How old is the wax, and how dark is it? Light brown, brown, dark brown?

**emck** · 05-11-2002, 04:55 PM

I am not sure how old the wax on the nuc is but the new wax is brown.

Also after an inspection today, I discovered drawn-out sections on the new frames that are thicker and not as uniform as the rest of the frame. These sections were also brown in comparison to the light wax covering the rest of the frame.

**dfortune** · 08-31-2012, 12:09 PM

The dark wax came fom another darker frame that the bees chewed off and used because they are not creating enough new wax. 1 to 1 syrup might be too thick to stimulate wax production. I would use 2 water to one sugar.

Oh i just realized this post is 10 years old. Ha ha

**KelpticFest** · 08-31-2012, 12:14 PM

A little late to help a new nuc, but I understand that during wax buildup they also need lots of pollen or pollen patties.

**Michael Bush** · 08-31-2012, 02:47 PM

>A little late to help a new nuc, but I understand that during wax buildup they also need lots of pollen or pollen patties.

I know of no evidence that they need pollen to draw wax and a lot of evidence that they do not... Huber settled it pretty well 200 years ago...

**KelpticFest** · 08-31-2012, 05:26 PM

Haven't had the opportunity to check 200-year-old references, but there are a lot of experienced beeks around who apparently haven't either. Anyway - a new nuc late in the year can use all the help it can get. Or just die.