[Emmett]

I installed my bee package yesterday. To my surprise, the queen cage did not come with candy (I was under the assumption it would). I have the cage in there, hanging in between two frames. Can I just release her myself in 4 (3 now) days? Thanks!

 

[Gray Goose]

I installed my bee package yesterday. To my surprise, the queen cage did not come with candy (I was under the assumption it would). I have the cage in there, hanging in between two frames. Can I just release her myself in 4 (3 now) days? Thanks!

well if there is no candy plug it sounds to me like you must release her your self
3 days is long enough IMO
be very sure to do it low and in the hive so she does not fly off.

maybe place an empty medium over the hive and a towel over most of the top, work her out below the towel just above the bees.

hopefully there is a cork, you can pull and immediately set the cadge on the top bars so she walks out and goes down.

have a smallish flat blade with you for when the cork breaks off and the hive tool will no longer work....

Good luck

GG

 

[Emmett]

Three days as in I put her in yesterday, so release tomorrow?

 

[mtnmyke]

Yes, release her tomorrow or the next day. Also, I've had far too many queens fly off on me to not learn.

I'd remove the cap/cork and plug the hole with a piece of marshmallow, just enough to cover it. Then place the cage back in. This will only take them an hour or so to get her out while everything is calm and she can't fly off.

If not, remove the cap/cork and immediately put the cage back down in the frames. Come back the next day to remove the cage and leave them alone to get settled.

 

[Emmett]

Should I order some varroa strips and treat right away in a week or so?

I think I'll do the mini marsh mellow idea. Seems the safest.

 

[msl]

a brood less hive is prime for oxalic

 

[mtnmyke]

a brood less hive is prime for oxalic

Could pretty much kill every mite in one treatment.
If you don't have a vaporizer though, you can use strips. You just can't put honey supers on for about 6 weeks. But as they are a package they'll likely need that much time to get fully established anyway.

 

[Emmett]

Do these look good? https://www.amazon.com/Mann-Lake-DC...=1&keywords=Apivar&qid=1617206989&sr=8-5&th=1

 

[mtnmyke]

Apivar is a simple and effective treatment, so go for it. However, it's important to change what you treat with to reduce mite resistance over time.

Also, do some research on oxalic acid vaporization. It's a mechanical kill of the mites vs a chemical kill like Apivar. As such, mites cannot become resistant to it. Takes a bit to get setup up but each treatment afterwards is pennies.

Go with the Apivar, which will give you more time to research.

And thank you for being on top of your mites!

 

[Vance G]

Do NOT assume your caged queen cannot fly! Consider removing three outer frames on one side of the hive toward the back away from the entrance. Remove cork and instantly cover with a finger or thumb. Put the box down on the bottom board and set it there. Replace frames and STAY OUT of the hive for ten days. So often a newly introduced queen is murdered by the strangers she is given to because the colony blames disturbances on her because she is still a stranger! Even on your initial inspection only pull frames until you see eggs and larvae. That is all the proof you need she is there. a month after her release it will be time to take a good look at your colony but remember the bees and brood pay a price for anytime you tear their world apart.

 

[GregB]

If you don't have a vaporizer though, you can use strips.

More like OA dribble though.
Strips are slow working and pretty much pointless for a quick brood-less cleanup.

 

[mtnmyke]

More like OA dribble though.
Strips are slow working and pretty much pointless for a quick brood-less cleanup.

Would still work and for a new beekeeper who doesn't understand all the treatments it's the easiest way. We forget how it is to be new and often the simple solution is the best. I've known beekeepers who burn out when their new for being overwhelmed by the amount of advice and treatments, and methods of keeping bees that widely vary - although they may all be correct.

 

[JWPalmer]

Agree that Apivar is the simplest and safest treatment for a new beekeeper. Use a hive body nail or similar sized piece of wire to hang a strip in the brood nest and you're done. If using Apivar, I would wait until a brood nest has been established, two to three weeks after the package was installed. If going with an OAD or OAV, as soon as there are eggs or open brood. Again, do not rush a hive disturbance with a brand new queen that is not laying yet.

 

[Emmett]

I've done some research on getting a vaporizer and think I'll go with that. I have a little electric boat motor battery which should work right? I just want to make sure I have understand everything before purchase the stuff. So I take the vaporizer, hook it up to the battery, put in half a teaspoon per deep, insert heated vape+oxalic, put cloth to block the rest of the entrance, wait for the right amount of time, and shazam (wear gas mask/gloves too). My question is, is this correct? What is the right amount of time to have it in for, and how many times do I need to do this, and these are the right things right (linked below)? Thanks!

As for the initial subject of this thread, the queen is out, hopefully alive but when I put the marshmallow in they weren't too clingy or trying to sting her. I'll check on her in a week or so.

https://www.amazon.com/Varomorus-Durable-OXALIC-Vaporizer-Treatment/dp/B07DY9VM8T/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=B3DNJ4JQFL77&dchild=1&keywords=oxalic+acid+vaporizer+for+bees&qid=1617399548&sprefix=oxalic+acid%2Caps%2C252&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzU0RYUVVVWVBWNFdOJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNTE0NDg5MjMzVU9TWFQzUU1EMyZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMTYxMDAwMjc4OFhBRjdUVFU4SCZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0147GM7CQ?pf_rd_r=DMQ0A5H9ECSGF018CPHS&pf_rd_p=5ae2c7f8-e0c6-4f35-9071-dc3240e894a8&pd_rd_r=a1aa097c-3838-4f5a-8af2-d8997a8fc0a4&pd_rd_w=zsnS6&pd_rd_wg=kLACe&ref_=pd_gw_unk

 

[AHudd]

So I take the vaporizer, hook it up to the battery, put in half a teaspoon per deep, insert heated vape+oxalic, put cloth to block the rest of the entrance, wait for the right amount of time, and shazam (wear gas mask/gloves too)

Put the oxalic in the pan, insert into hive and then turn on the switch. It goes into the hive entrance cold.
I advise against any CCC (Cheap Chinese Crap) when it comes to treating bees.

Alex

 

[mtnmyke]

Yes, the cheap vaporizers are terrible! There are many band style vaporizers being made and sold by members on here if you look in the for sale section. They are adorable and work 1000x better.

 

[Roland]

Give the girl a spritz of clean water and she won't fly.

Crazy Roland

 

[Jim Braun]

Emmett,
Those amazon items look OK. You need 3 1/2 minutes according to information I've read. Then another 2 minutes cool down time. If I use more than a 1/4 teaspoon or 1 gram for non US folks, I will leave it run for 5 min then unhook from one post on the battery (I use a small lawn mower style) to get a full burn. Be aware you will likely scorch your solid bottom board, not so much on screened bottom board. My 10 frame boxes are screened but my 5 frame nuc size are not. What I do for the nucs is I use a shim with a hole drilled at the bottom 1/2" seems OK. I put a 6" x 8" piece of aluminum flashing on the top of the frames, set the loaded wand on the flashing, set the shim over the rod of the vaporizer turn the solid top upside down on top of the shim then turn the unit on. Place a towel over the front entrance.

I don't use gloves but I do use a respirator.

With no capped cells 1 time should kill any and all varroa. I'm getting ready to do my OAV on my colonies today or soon. With capped cells I will do every 4 days x 5. This goes through the whole brood cycle or 21 days. I'll do an alcohol wash to see how I'm doing after the second time. Last year I did monthly OAV and had good luck with my big colonies, not so much with the nuc sized one.

Later in the year, August and September is a good time to do OAV again so you have healthy bees going into the winter. That will help them make it through the winter successfully. Consider the 4 x 5 schedule at that time.

Glad to hear that the queen was successfully got your queen released.

 

[Gino45]

Back to the thread topic: I don't get the need for 4 days wait time to release the queen. This is especially true of a package in which the queen traveled with the group. She has already been accepted.
I've always release queens based on how the bees are reacting to the caged queen. If they have accepted the queen, they will not have their noses to the screen as they will with a 'foreign' queen.
Furthermore, when uncorking I just shove a little beeswax loosely into the hole and place the queen between the frames at the top. It will take awhile for the workers to clear the passage, but queens introuced this way always get out and are well accepted.