That feeling after youve been at your hives and wondering

[irishguy]

Just like the title suggests, That feeling after youve been at your hives and wondering did you make the right choice. One of my over wintered nucs have been building up well, BIAS on 7 frames, 1 frame of half drawn comb filled with eggs and 1 frame with old drawn comb and rest frames with stores.

Was watching the queen and shes wandering about and looks to me shes looking somewhere to lay but not wanting to lay in the old comb for some reason. Bees seem to be now filling the brood area with honey so i took a min to think about what i needed to do next. I went back to the house, queen excluder, super with drawn frames and back down to put on top of BB. Insulation bonnet on both and left them at it.

Now im wondering should i have just waited untill next week and by this time, bees would have drawn out the rest of the frame only half drawn and started laying in it. Also the queen might have started laying in the other old drawn comb. Im now thinking what i did was a bad move because theres 1 and 3/4 frames that needs filled and with all that empty space, it wont have the bees to heat it

Also seen bees working on a queen cup on one of the top bars, nothing in it but was thinking maybe this might be a sign of swarming starting.

With my little knowledge i have with looking after bees, im wanting this year to go better than last 2.

 

[Finman]

.
If you have only 2 hives, it is difficult to get answer, have you done better this year. Of course you have done, because you have every year more experience. But many things will happen, and some hives are not the most important thing in your life.

Variation among hives is so big, that you do not know have you done your best, even with long experience.

Take it easy. Enjoy about hobby and do not blame yourself.

.( and learning every day something new is nonsense)

 

[Finman]

.
i would be unhappy, if my hives would have only 7 frames brood. It is better be 17. My hives have layed only one month and new bees have emerged during one week.

I have several twist size colonies after winter, but I have helped them with other hives' bees. I must evaluate, should I join some colonies that I get them productive for main yield.

So, it depends, how big was the colony after winter. And spring in UK has been cold this year.
.

 

[oliver90owner]

BIAS on 7 frames, 1 frame of half drawn comb filled with eggs and 1 frame with old drawn comb and rest frames with stores.

Non comprendez. Not building up nicely if only one frame with eggs?

 

[Brigsy]

I understand that to mean:

7 frames Bias
One drawn empty frame
One frame half drawn with eggs
Stores

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

so eggs on most frames as well as the one full of 'em - needs space ASAP IMHO

 

[irishguy]

BIAS on 7 frames, 1 frame of half drawn comb filled with eggs and 1 frame with old drawn comb and rest frames with stores.

Non comprendez. Not building up nicely if only one frame with eggs?

Last few weeks I've been adding frames and they've been getting filled with eggs and honey/pollen. Every time I go back in, there's alot more bees than previous week. To me, I'm thinking this is building up nicely.

It's not just eggs on the half drawn frame. On the frames where I mention BIAS. To me, BIAS means brood in all stages which I gathered to mean, capped brood, UN capped, larvae and eggs.

I understand that to mean:

7 frames Bias
One drawn empty frame
One frame half drawn with eggs
Stores

Yep! The drawn frame, seen the Queen walking all over it, plenty space to lay but not wanting to. Bees have started putting honey in some of the cells thou.

so eggs on most frames as well as the one full of 'em - needs space ASAP IMHO

Yep, eggs on most frames and not much other room to lay apart from this old dark drawn comb but as I mentioned above, to me, it looks like she's not wanting to lay in these. Maybe I'll go back in a week and she's laid in and I'm wrong but looking at her, looked to me she wasn't wanting to lay in it. In BIAS frames, all cells are full with eggs, brood, larvae and now bees are filling it with Honey.

When you say new space, was that in brood area by removing frame of stores and adding new foundation or comv or put super on like I did?

 

[irishguy]

.
i would be unhappy, if my hives would have only 7 frames brood. It is better be 17. My hives have layed only one month and new bees have emerged during one week.

I have several twist size colonies after winter, but I have helped them with other hives' bees. I must evaluate, should I join some colonies that I get them productive for main yield.

So, it depends, how big was the colony after winter. And spring in UK has been cold this year.
.

17 frames, sure my BB only takes 12 frames.

 

[irishguy]

.

Take it easy. Enjoy about hobby and do not blame yourself.

.( and learning every day something new is nonsense)

Hard not to when most things I do, I've people saying I should have done this or that then say to someone else and they say no, ya should have done this instead!

 

[irishguy]

Also seen this in one of my bait nucs. That's 2 I've seen in a few weeks and seen a large wasp near them. Is this a wasp nest?

 

[rje66]

Yes.

 

[rje66]

Yes

 

[Finman]

17 frames, sure my BB only takes 12 frames.

Take the excluder off.

I have 10 frame boxes, but they lay only 8 frames. I use 3 brood boxes without excluder.
.

 

[irishguy]

Yes.

Yes

Yes it is a wasp nest?

Edit.. Just Google imaged it. That's getting burnt next time I'm at my hives.

 

[irishguy]

Take the excluder off.

I have 10 frame boxes, but they lay only 8 frames. I use 3 brood boxes without excluder.
.

3 brood boxes on top of each other?

10 frame boxes but only 8 frames, why?

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

When you say new space, was that in brood area by removing frame of stores and adding new foundation or comv or put super on like I did?

super it

 

[irishguy]

super it

Sounds good. All I need know is for these half filled frames to thaw out and I'm good to go for changing them for the empty cell comb frames I have in now. Hopefully it'll be a great summer and that's 2 years in a row with Honey

 

[beeno]

Hi irishguy,
IMHO you are reading the bees right if they are backfilling the brood nest. Better to be a bit early rather than too late. Changing the combs is a good thing too as long as they don't contain syrup. Have a great season.

 

[bpmurray]

Finnie is very knowledgeable, but I'm guessing he's not as familiar with Irish bees in Irish weather. Seven frames is building up well, so you should put a super on as you did. Leave the excluder on, with the lines of holes at right angles to the brood frames. What you are trying to provide right now is enough room for the bees - there's probably room enough in the brood box for eggs for a little while more and, if things get tight, the bees will move the honey into the super. However, until that happens, keep an eye first on the bees in the supers.