[Brad Bee]

I have been cutting up my foundation and using it as starter strips. I needed 5 deep frames to put a deep super on a nuc today so I just stuck 5 full sheets of foundation in and checker boarded the super and the nuc. I came back 45 minutes later to pull a frame of bees from the nuc and the foundation on the #5 frame already had comb being drawn on it. It wasn't A LOT of comb, but there were several spots the size of a quarter that had white wax on them. I found that amazing.

 

[NewJoe]

when they need it, they can work very fast!

 

[Brad Bee]

They dang sure needed it. I have never seen a build up this fast. I started the nuc with 3 frames of bees and brood. It was a strong nuc, but dang.... I found a laying queen on 4/25. Today there was bees pouring out of the top when I opened it. All 5 frames had capped brood in them. I added the deep super and will probably add another deep super later in the week. I need some drawn comb, so I may keep them in a nuc all year.

These bees are from a swarm I caught last spring. They build up fast. I guess they are mutts, but they're making more bees than they have stores to feed. Very small honey bands on the frames and not an abundance of pollen.