New queen/ Old queen

[SteveBee]

What will happen if I put a new queen in and I already have a queen? Will they immediately kill the new one?

[Oldtimer]

Pretty much Yes.

But what are you talking about? Just dropping it straight in, no cage? If so, virtually guaranteed they'll kill it. If releasing from a cage they will probably also kill it but if you used a staged release method and kept them seperated a couple of weeks then it could go either way.

But why do you want to do this? There are ways to run a two queen hive, is that what you want to do?

[Daddy'sBees]

Now if you want to replace the original queen, then the hive needs to be queenless for at least 24 hrs before placing a new queen in the hive. Then use a proper queen box w/candy to allow for a slow queen introduction to the hive.

[SteveBee]

I have just opened the hive for the first time. I don't see any signs of a queen. No capped brood cells and no eggs or brood. I'm afraid I don't have a queen and I'm trying to start a new hive late in the year. And I'm a rookie.

[Oldtimer]

Talk to the person you bought the hive from, If you've never opened it before, the vendor should at least ensure it has a queen.