[Docsmaple]

I have one langstroth and a horizontal insulated hive. The langstroth was 3 boxes deep, the horizontal hive has two colonies in it. When I went to harvest yesterday, the langstroth super only had 3 frames of honey or near honey. One frame capped, the other 2 with nectar. The other frames were not even drawn out. The second box down had brood in a rainbow patterns that were hatching out. 4 frames of brood with the outside frames a combination of pollen and as small amount of honey. The bottom box had draw comb but very little if anything in it. I put the middle box with brood in the bottom position and the 3 honey/nectar frames on top as a second box with foundation to the outside of the honey/nectar frames. I put in a frame feeder with 1:1 syrup in hopes of building comb and brood. What else should I do or should I do something else?

 

[squarepeg]

hi chad. on in the opposite latitude of the country from you so i can't offer much advice on what might be appropriate up there.

my first reaction to you post was that it's probably a little late for getting any more comb drawn, and that using thicker syrup might be better to get your hive heavy enough for the long winter up there.

hopefully some of our more northerly located folks will chime in. good luck!

 

[JWPalmer]

Hi Chad, a little farther north than SP, but still in the south here. I had a similar situation where the lower deep was devoid of brood and stores. This is how I would handle it. You already put the deep box with brood in the bottom position, good. Put the deep of empty comb on top of it. You did not say what size frame feeder you have, but you want the feeder in the top box next to the wall with one uncapped medium next to it and maybe the other uncapped medium against the other wall. Put the capped medium in the freezer for now. Expect to feed a gallon of 2:1 syrup every day or two. It is getting late in the season but the idea is to get the bees to fill almost the entire upper box with capped syrup, and a small broodnest in the center frames with the traditional honey dome. If they manage that, you may be able to get them to start on the medium. At this point you would move the two frames back up and replace them with the drawn deep comb. I also doubt any undrawn foundation will get drawn out, but if you keep the sugar on them there is a chance they will get started. I would aslo make sure there was plenty of pollen available. Open feed pollen sub powder like Ultra Bee, or put a patty in the hive if you do not have a bunch of the natural stuff coming in.

 

[Docsmaple]

Thank you SP and JWP for the replies. I have 1 gallon frame feeders in the horizontal hive. They were put in yesterday and are empty today. We are supposed to be rainy and cold (50s) the next 5 days so I refilled the feeders. On the Langstroth, I added 2:1 syrup today as I didn't get it done and ran out of sugar. I can't believe how much it takes. Anyway, the bees are reacting quite well and will put in a pollen patty tomorrow even if it is in the rain as it will be a quick. job. The aster and goldenrod are mature and there is a flow on up here currently, but became scared yesterday when I saw so little stores. We can get a hard freeze is September easily. I'm not sure how important the queen's timing is going into winter but the queens I got came from down south. Thanks again. Much appreciated.