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I just made it through my first winter of beekeeping and at my last inspection found the bees making a couple of queen cells. I figured they would want to swarm this year so I have another hive ready for them but I got to second guessing myself a little bit on the placement of the queen cells. Instead of being towards the bottom of the comb they were near the center of a small comb the bees had built right next to (on the same bar) as the brood comb. I was planning on cutting this little section off when I inspected but found them building the queen cells on it so I left it. It is not crossed and lays straight with the rest of the comb so I didn't figure it to be a problem for now. Could this also mean that they want to supersede. I read that queen cells found towards the middle of the comb is a sign of superseding. The egg laying pattern is still very tight and I did see the queen for myself and she looks good and is laying lots. I found lots of drones and drone cells and worker cells in the brood nest. I did open up a little bit of space in the brood nest as I still have room in the hive to expand a little bit. What do you all think. My plan was to split the hive here soon before the queen cells hatch. What is the best time after the building of the cells to do this. Should I wait until the cells are capped? Or do you think that they are superseding the queen and to let them be.
Thank in advance
Thank in advance