Over wintering nucs.

[Yankee11]

Ok,

They havn't even capped the Honey yet and I am already thinking about next year. I have 15 empty nuc boxes and am itching to graft a bunch more queens.

I want to over winter 15 nucs this year and have no idea how to do that. Can we discuss what needs to be done to accomplish this. Timing, any extra equipment, etc. Will they need a nuc super full of honey sitting on top of each nuc?

I am thinking of selling the over wintered nucs in the spring.

Thanks.

[pistolpete]

I see you've caught the bee making fever.  I'm kind of suffering that a little myself.  I made up 4 Nucs this spring and now I just want to make more.  It seems to me like wintering colonies in a full size deep box and then condensing them into a 5 frame Nuc for sale, would be easier than wintering  in a Nuc box.   But I've only wintered double deeps, so I'm really just theorising here.

[GLOCK]

I have found nucs winter well for me . Just as good as my DBL. deeps. I winter 5 over 5 and it works great.
I to have the fever need to get some more numbers.
My weakest hive of last year {a nuc} with just a little over a frame of bees and a frame of honey with sugar over top  is building into a DBL. deep now and I had a hard winter lost 40% but that little nuc came through like a champ . I wintered 10 last year and 6 made it and that was my first try at it. This winter I want 20 nucs and 15 DBL. deeps I am a bee junkie.

[tecumseh]

I have in past years done this.  I think I got there at the urging of Michael Palmer.  He being in Vermont the size of the nuc has to be a bit bigger.   Here size seems to matter little... I have overwinter even in 5 frame baby nuc boxes.... seems to me the smaller the unit the more attention they require.  It does (as Michael suggested) greatly easy the pressure of getting everything done in a very short time window in the spring time.

[blueblood]

  It does (as Michael suggested) greatly easy the pressure of getting everything done in a very short time window in the spring time.

Prepare the nucs you plan to overwinter in the that spring window?  I figured there would be a deadline like we adhere to for normal sized colonies to make it through the winter.  I was just thinking a keep would really have to keep a close eye on the nucs for overcrowding before winter.  But, that side effect could be a good boost for regular hives that are a little light at the end of summer.

I thought of stacking the nucs as well since I am in north.  However, I did not want several nucs with the bottoms missing.  So, I was just day dreaming yesterday about drilling some large holes in the bottom of certain nuc boxes that I could plug up with some type of rubber/plastic plug that would sit flush against the bottom.  This way, I could use them as a bottom nuc if I needed.  Otherwise, with the holes exposed, it could be an upper nuc box.  Make sense?

[Yankee11]

I would imagine I would need the right ratio of bee to honey.
To many bees and I might not be able to have enough food in a5 frame nuc box. I would probably need to have a way to feed them on warm days.

We have pretty mild winters here so I don't think the cold would be that much of a factor.

[GLOCK]

What I do is make a 5 over 5 nuc and watch it every 10 days till fall and make sure it is heavy with stores .
And I mountain camp them and come spring when the spring build up starts flip the boxes and let them fill both boxes and do a walk away split. Make QCs / or brood builders. nucs are great and do real well getting through winter.
Just give it a shoot. It gives you lots of options come spring and they use way less resources in the winter .
I will always run nucs  there the best for every thing but honey.

[LazyBkpr]

 I have built two Michael Palmer style boxes. Each has the two nuc's with 4 frames in the bottom box and 4 in the top box. I built two custom bottom boards that will accept two standard 5 frame nuc's, which I will double for ten frames each, and I have the standard nuc's which I double up and wrap.   Interested to see which work the best..   If MP can do it in Vermont with the 4 frame nuc's it should be doable here... I just have this stick stuck in my craw about that 5th frame. Having a hard time forcing myself to get over it, so doing the test this winter.
   4 nuc's in two 4 over 4 boxes built as one unit. 4, 5 over 5 nuc's in the standard nuc bodies with single bottom boards, and of course normal 5 over 5 nuc's doubled and wrapped...  I anticipate doing a lot of pacing this winter....

[Riverrat]

The key to overwintering a nuc is making sure they have enough food to overwinter. I overwinter nucs in a 5 on 5 configuration and have good luck with it.  When spring arrives put the feed to them and split the nucs when they have built up.

[Yankee11]

So I have the nuc boxes from plans on this site and the bottoms are attached. I will need to build the same boxes but without the bottoms and stack
them on top?

That would be a 5 over 5?

My plan is to sell these nucs come spring. Would these sell well being overwintered? Or do most people want the brand new queens? The nucs I sold this year, people had to wait until the queens were mated and started laying. Seems that they would have accepted a overwintered queen if they could have gotten their nuc a little sooner.

To me, a fall mated queen that has overwintered is just as good as a new spring mated queen.

[Riverrat]

The nuc will still have a young queen come spring since she has not been laying much. Overwintered nucs are as good if not better than a nuc made up in the spring

[brooksbeefarm]

All above is good advise, but what works in there area may not work in yours?? Trail and Error will be the best answer. Jack

[robo]

My plan is to sell these nucs come spring. Would these sell well being overwintered?

Northern overwinter nucs sell for a premium in the north,  in your area, probably not much difference

Or do most people want the brand new queens? The nucs I sold this year, people had to wait until the queens were mated and started laying. Seems that they would have accepted a overwintered queen if they could have gotten their nuc a little sooner.

To me, and a lot of folks I know,  overwintered nucs offer much more than a spring split.   There is a certain dynamic in an overwintered nuc because the bees are offsprings of the queen and not just a hodge podge of bees and an unrelated queen.    To me, a spring split is nothing more than a package of bees with comb and brood,  not a cohesive colony.

To me, a fall mated queen that has overwintered is just as good as a new spring mated queen.

Too me there is no comparison,  Fall queens are way better than early spring queens that are forced produced in not such ideal conditions.

[Intheswamp]

I thought of stacking the nucs as well since I am in north.  However, I did not want several nucs with the bottoms missing.  So, I was just day dreaming yesterday about drilling some large holes in the bottom of certain nuc boxes that I could plug up with some type of rubber/plastic plug that would sit flush against the bottom.  This way, I could use them as a bottom nuc if I needed.  Otherwise, with the holes exposed, it could be an upper nuc box.  Make sense?

Save the plug you cut out and smear the edge with silicone caulking to get a good coating on it.  Then follow-up with another bead on top of that silicone sealed edge.  With a little attention to detail while working with the silicone the plug should make a good friction fit.   You could even drape a piece of plastic food wrap over the plug while the silicone is curing and push into the hole for a custom fit...you might need to go back afterwards and spread a thin layer of silicone on the edge to make a tight fit.

FWIW,
Ed

[Yankee11]

What I did this year was put the grafted queen in the nucc and I didn't sell them until that queen had 2 to 3 frames of capped brood of her own. Thats why folks had to wait.

I do agree though. Overwintered nucs would sell like hot cakes.

[Riverrat]

I thought of stacking the nucs as well since I am in north.  However, I did not want several nucs with the bottoms missing.  So, I was just day dreaming yesterday about drilling some large holes in the bottom of certain nuc boxes that I could plug up with some type of rubber/plastic plug that would sit flush against the bottom.  This way, I could use them as a bottom nuc if I needed.  Otherwise, with the holes exposed, it could be an upper nuc box.  Make sense?

If I understand right you want to drill large holes in the bottom of one nuc box to set on top of another running a double nuc. I'm a little skeptical on this working. I'm thinking burr comb is going to be an issue. Along with the possibility of the hive wanting to raise another queen in one of the boxes after the queen moves to the other box. And with the amount of distance between the 2 boxes she may not move up into the other box unless they build ladder comb.

[LazyBkpr]

When they come to get their Nuc have them bring their hive. YOU put the frames in, show them the bees and the queen. Close up their box for them, tell them to put it where they want and unscreen it..   You will be a very popular fellow if you do that. PLUS you get to keep your nuc box to start another colony.  You can offer a discount if they have assembled frames to trade you.......    But... that depends on who assembled them and how well..    amazing what people will do sometimes.

[robo]

However, I did not want several nucs with the bottoms missing.

Oh how your loosing out.   A 2-high 5 frame will grow so much faster than a 10 frame.   I never move a 5 frame nuc into a 10 frame box,  they always go 2 high first.   I have run them as high as 4 when I don't get the time to change them out.   None of my wooden nucs have permanent bottom boards.  I even double up my poly nucs with a wooded nuc box on top.

[Woody Roberts]

I too would like to overwinter some nucs to sell in the spring. Thinking about building another long hive or two and divide them into 5 frame sections.

I have no trouble overwintering single deeps here that I make up in August. I've thought about just pulling the queens and five frames and combine the others. The problem is the cost of the equipment. I realize most of it would pay for itself the first year but I still have to pay for it up front.

I planned on doing it this year but when the time came I just couldn't part with them. I did sell two though.