[Grant]

Alright you smart guys, why did my queenless cell builder build out this burr comb on my cell cups?

Here are two pictures on two different frames. You can see how the bees started to draw out comb that encompasses that sealed queen cup.

Grant
Jackson, MO

http://i954.photobucket.com/albums/ae26/revgrant1/queenrearing2.jpg
http://i954.photobucket.com/albums/ae26/revgrant1/queenrearing1.jpg

 

[beedeetee]

I don't have an answer for you but my last bunch did they same thing. I thought possibly that the queens in those cells had died or not taken for some reason. Since I was going to requeen my cell builder I just left the frame with those large things in there with one normal cell.

Don't do that. When I went back to remove the cells they had completely drawn out the frame. I cut the comb out and found that at least one had emerged from the tip and at least one had a dead larva in it. It wasn't clear what the others had done but they were empty.

I had a frame of foundation right next to the cell frame that they were basically ignoring. I will be interested in what people's thoughts are.

 

[wildbranch2007]

I have it happen all the time the later in the season that I raise the queens.
my guess is you have a really strong queenless cell builder and a flow is on, i use the cloak board on a three deep hive with tons of bees and they always do that, thats one reason I like the nicot system over the jenter later in the season, hard to get the jenter cells out of the little holes with all that comb on them. most all the cells like that have hatched as they usually leave the end of the queen cell exposed.

 

[jim lyon]

Pretty common occurance during a honey flow. Placing a frame of foundation in them (placed 2nd frame from wall) will help somewhat.

 

[Joseph Clemens]

It rarely happens in my queen cell builder. My cell bars are narrower than my queen cell cups (just 3/4" wide), and when I place the cell bars in the cell builder I only spread the combs enough to fit the cell bar between them -- this creates about 7/8" space between the combs, enough to fit the queen cells, but not much else, certainly not the space bees usually need to build comb.

See SketchUp plans for single cell bar

Occasionally the bees lightly attach the cell bases to the comb on one or both sides of the cells, but it has always been a tenuous attachment that easily breaks free whenever removing the cell bar (I have never had a cell become damaged by this).

 

[danno1800]

Are there actually live queen cells under there? If not, then they are doing what bees do--building comb in empty spaces. Like another commentor, I usually place a frame of foundation in my cell finishers to give them something to do with the wax other than web up the queen cells. Great picture!

 

[beedeetee]

In my case there were cells in each of those pieces of comb. And I had a frame of foundation a couple of frames away that they were pretty much ignoring.

Also in my case I was using the Jenter system which meant that I had to get those things through a hole about the size of a normal queen cell. That's why I left the cell bar in that hive to hatch out. I did cut a couple out and got them through the hole okay. I had extra cells so it wasn't a problem other than a hassle.

 

[Michael Palmer]

Alright you smart guys, why did my queenless cell builder build out this burr comb on my cell cups?

Because your cell bar frame is creating a huge violation of bee space. the frame should be only as wide as the cell bars. So, that means the frame is only 3/4" wide. Either cut down the frames you have or build new ones.