New hive trouble

**Mark** · 05-03-2011, 06:40 AM

Hello My name is Mark and I have set up my first hive and I have a problem?
I have been to several bee classes and opened at least a dozen hives in the past several weeks. So I do have a little clue what to look for.
I started my hive 2 1/2 weeks ago with a package of bee’s and released the queen from her cage on day 4
I am currently feeding the bees with a top feeder (water/sugar). One hive body only.
After 1 week I opened the hive up and noticed the y were pulling foundation on my frames like they were supposed to do, everything looked well. Did not look for queen.
After the 2nd week (Sunday) I opened the hive up and noticed five big queen cells in the center on one of the center frames and one queen cell in the center of a frame next to it. On the end two frames on each end the bees have not pulled any foundation on them. I have no cap brood at all, had lots clear and yellow liquid in many of the cells in the pulled comb area. I notice several red and gray cells. Again nothing capped except the honey in the top corners of the frames. No eggs in any cells that I can see. I did a complete search for the Marked Queen and could not find her. I will search again today (Monday)after work. I am thinking, I have or had a queen and she has laid some eggs, but the bees are not happy with her and are trying to create a new queen?
Yesterday, Monday, I went through the hive again and no queen, I cut the queen cells out and opened them up. They had larva in them.
I order a new queen, should be here tomorrow.
What do you think happened….

**fish_stix** · 05-03-2011, 07:06 AM

For some reason they didn't accept the queen and were trying to supercede her. By cutting the cells you possibly destroyed any chance of them raising a new queen. Hopefully they had other eggs or young larva to make new cells. Never cut or destroy queen cells!!!!!! The bees know a lot better than you what they need. It's far better to let them do their bee thing and later, if you don't like the queen, you can buy another and requeen. Much easier to requeen a hive that has a queen than try to force them to accept your idea of what they need.