[mrspock]

I'm wondering how I can make best use of drawn comb to entice bees to draw supers of undrawn foundation.

I'm using an excluder, and understand that undrawn comb right above the exclude is the worst choice.

Of the two options which is the better way to entice bees to draw comb in a super?

Each line represents a "super", whether drawn or undrawn:


Drawn
Undrawn
Drawn
-------------- Excluder
Deep
Deep


OR....


Undrawn
Drawn
Drawn.
-------------- Excluder
Deep
Deep



Thanks in advance,
mrspock

 

[dnichols]

I've tried coaxing the bees in several different configurations and nothing seems to matter unless you have young bees and a good flow and or feed like crazy. Let me know if you get something to work.

 

[Vance G]

The last post being said; Put your undrawn box on during a strong flow. If you have a frame of capped brood to move up above the excluder that is the best way of breaking the barrier, the bees will cross it. If your supers are mediums, put two of them on with the deep brood frame filling both levels in the middle of the boxes. I just put a drawn deep super above a medium super of foundation frames and a couple of them built a ladder up the middle of the medium of bridgecomb and have the supers nearly full of honey. They just plain prefer drawn comb to fill if it is available. That is why you don't mix drawn and undrawn frames other than putting a bait brood frame up in the supers.

A monster honey flow cures most problems. Fix the ones it doesn't as you find them, they just get worse.

 

[jmgi]

If you are using plastic foundation in your supers, I would bottom super, put the new super under already filled supers. If you are using wax foundation, I would put the new super above existing supers. From my experience, I have found that bees hate plastic foundation, even the wax coated stuff, they hesistate to draw it even in a good flow, but they will do it eventually if they need the storage space. Wax foundation on the other hand, is much more acceptable to the bees, and they will draw it without hesitation if a good flow in going and they need more storage space. Just to add, I did a side by side comparison this year with lots of hives using plastic and wax, and the wax is drawn out much quicker and accurately than the plastic. The bees like to cross comb the plastic, building burr comb between the frames and storing honey in it, rather than drawing the plastic out. Having to go in and cut out all that burr comb all the time is a pain.

 

[mrspock]

Thanks to everyone who replied. I didn't anticipate that the answer would be bottom supering, but what everyone says makes sense, and that's what I'll do.

Thank you.