Late season issues...

[BashfulBearApiary]

This is my second year beekeeping. My first year everything went pretty smoothly but this year has been pretty interesting. I currently have a hive, 8 frame deep x2 plus one medium fill of honey. I'm pretty sure the hive is queenless. Almost all frames are full of either honey or pollen. Upon inspection yesterday I found only s handful of capped brood. No eggs, no larva. Bees were very upset I was in the hive. Did not locate the queen. Being this late in the season, would she have stopped laying already? The aggressiveness leads me to believe the queen is gone. Any thoughts?

To late to re-queen? Combine with another and overwinter a large hive? Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[LAlldredge]

Being this late in the season, would she have stopped laying already? The aggressiveness leads me to believe the queen is gone. Any thoughts?

To late to re-queen? Combine with another and overwinter a large hive? Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks!

2nd year here- She might, especially if they are backfilling the brood nest for winter prep. Colonies don't like to be opened up this time of the year or to make any adjustments to their config. I avoid it. You may not have a problem. Just normal understandable defensiveness for the time of year.

[beemandan]

What is your varroa management strategy?

[BashfulBearApiary]

I have alternated between oxalic vapor and MAQS this year. My mite count at this particular location has been fairly decent this year. Maxed out at about 3/100 at the height of the season.

[fieldsofnaturalhoney]

Being this late in the season, would she have stopped laying already? The aggressiveness leads me to believe the queen is gone.

I don't know about your neck of the woods, but in mine, inspections are just about over and most queens have stopped laying or are only laying small patches. Hives being queen less is not the only reason for aggression. Not sure if I would risk messing up what they have going on (you thought they were made last time), but that depends on your weather & your ultimate goal/options "to fix" it if there is a problem.

[JWPalmer]

How long ago was the previous inspection? Unless you rolled the queen, chances are good she is still in there but no longer laying. Even here in Richmond, most of my queens have stopped laying. This is the time of year for most of us that you winter what you have and hope for the best. It is too late to make changes regarding queens or hive configurations. I have not opened my brood nests for several weeks and only have been into the hives to add patties and syrup. Saw no activity at one hive the other day late in the evening, even though other hives were active. Popped the hive top feeder and found the upper box packed with bees. They just were not foraging that evening.

[DeepCreek]

IMO I would say the queens have slowed down in Ohio. When she slows down that means their won't be many eggs. Did you check every frame? Also, the queens body size slims down as she slows down, so she's easy to miss on inspection. I'd wait a bit and give it another inspection before potentially making matters worse.

[JConnolly]

Some of my normally easy going hives are seriously grumpy right now, some are still gentle. They get very jealous of their food this time of year. Right now brood production can still be going but the volume can be way way down making it hard to find eggs, especially if the locations are sporadic with back filled pockets of honey and pollen. So late in the season the bee math you need to know is that it is 5-1/2 days from hatch to cap. So if you saw uncapped brood two weekends ago, and you saw uncapped brood this last weekend, then you had a laying queen present last week. If you see uncapped brood this coming weekend, then you had a laying queen present last weekend.

[bossk77]

I am a first year beekeeper with two hives. One of the hives is doing well with plenty of capped honey, hopefully ready for the winter. The other hive swarmed late this year (mid-July) and I have fed them constantly the last few months with no success in getting them to recover. The capped brood has been very sparse and it seems like the amount of bees in the hive does not increase at all, not sure if there is even a queen. Now it seems like some wax moths and hive beetles have moved in. Should I give up on the hive for this year and start from scratch in the Spring? Should I give them a frame from my other hive and try to help them survive the Winter? I feel like starting with a fresh nuc in the Spring might be the way to go, but I welcome any advice.

[beemandan]

Should I give up on the hive for this year and start from scratch in the Spring?

Yes

Should I give them a frame from my other hive and try to help them survive the Winter?

Absolutely not.

[bossk77]

Should I give up on the hive for this year and start from scratch in the Spring?

Yes

Should I give them a frame from my other hive and try to help them survive the Winter?

Absolutely not.

Thanks, that's definitely the direction I was leaning.

[JWPalmer]

Very good advice from beemandan IMO. Where are you located bossk77?

[bossk77]

Very good advice from beemandan IMO. Where are you located bossk77?

I'm in upstate NY, winter will be coming quickly for us here.

[beemandan]

I'm in upstate NY, winter will be coming quickly for us here.

You may want to go into your profile and add your location. It will make the advice you get and give more meaningful.

[bossk77]

I'm in upstate NY, winter will be coming quickly for us here.

You may want to go into your profile and add your location. It will make the advice you get and give more meaningful.

Will do, thanks for the tip!