Author Topic: Queenless-Honeybound? (Read 6603 times)

neillsayers · « **on:** June 21, 2019, 12:24:48 am »

Hi all,

I have a hive that is presenting me with a puzzle. What do you make of it?

Hive is 8 frame with one deep and two medium supers. All 8 of brood frames covered with bees and half of mediums. In other words, booming with bees. Last two inspections I can't find any sign of a queen, no capped or open brood. but nectar, pollen and capped honey everywhere.
Last inspection, 10 days ago, I robbed a partial frame of eggs from another hive, notched it in a few places and placed it in the center of the brood box. Checked on it yesterday and they had repaired the notches, finished drawing out the frame and filled it with nectar. Bees are very calm, not runny or irritable.
Is this simply a case of no room for her to lay with the heavy flow coming in or am I queenless?

Thanks

Bakersdozen · « **Reply #1 on:** June 21, 2019, 06:52:01 am »

Is it safe to assume that your area still has a nectar flow?

iddee · « **Reply #2 on:** June 21, 2019, 07:01:26 am »

Either she needs space in the brood nest, space above it won't work. Put an empty frame in the middle of the brood nest.

OR

Buy you some new glasses.

neillsayers · « **Reply #3 on:** June 21, 2019, 01:12:14 pm »

B13,
Not sure what they are working but they are very busy at it.

Thanks Iddee, I have to check the calendar, I may be overdue for a checkup.

Jen · « **Reply #4 on:** June 21, 2019, 04:16:47 pm »

Hi Neil, I wish I had nectar flow problems

I'm with Iddee, except I would put 3 comb frames, checker boarded from the center out. Remove some of the nectar overload and let the queen have ample room lay. Check back in 7-10 for eggs. Then, add another brood box on top... and replace supers.

neillsayers · « **Reply #5 on:** June 21, 2019, 04:30:34 pm »

Thanks Jen,

I'm out of drawn frames right now but I can put a medium box of new waxed frames on them. I have an extractor ordered but it won't be here for at least two weeks. The way things are looking, this ought to be a good year.

Jen · « **Reply #6 on:** June 21, 2019, 04:49:33 pm »

Crossing my fingers for ya buddy. And I had to buy some drawn wax frames this year for the first time, she's a fellow beek and had a bunch stored from last year. $4 a frame, but I had to have them

iddee · « **Reply #7 on:** June 21, 2019, 05:28:47 pm »

Putting empties on top will not help. She will not cross the honey cap to get to it. Pull a frame out and replace with a foundation, foundationless, or medium frame IN the broodnest. She needs space IN the brood nest now, or she will swarm.

neillsayers · « **Reply #8 on:** June 22, 2019, 04:22:43 am »

Thanks Iddee,

Will do in the AM

Mikey N.C. · « **Reply #9 on:** June 22, 2019, 01:04:23 pm »

Keep us posted.

neillsayers · « **Reply #10 on:** June 22, 2019, 09:11:54 pm »

Update: Been raining steady all day, so I spent some time in the shop and cobbled a temporary deep box out of some 3/8" plywood with 8 foundationless frames with waxed starter strips.

Tomorrow morning, rain or shine, hopefully during a break in the rain, I'm gonna take 4 of the drawn frames in the brood box and checkerboard it with udrawn and add this temp box. When I went in the hive last there was two full frames of bee bread so I'll place them in the center with undrawn next to them.
I'm also gonna pull any capped honey frames and harvest them, crush and strain, and place them back in the hive.
If there is a queen, hopefully the house bees will get some comb drawn faster than they can be backfilled and she will have some room to lay.
I hope there is a queen, this is the only one of my hives that didn't cast a a swarm this spring and they are very productive. She's one I'd like to rear from.

Thank you Jen, Iddee, Mikey and B13 for the help.

Jen · « **Reply #11 on:** June 23, 2019, 12:15:21 am »

Sure thing Neil, sounds like a good plan

Bakersdozen · « **Reply #12 on:** June 23, 2019, 09:35:22 am »

I have been in a similar situation. A strong nectar flow on and NO more drawn wax to put on! :'(

Jen · « **Reply #13 on:** June 23, 2019, 01:03:12 pm »

Me too Baker, I had to buy 24 frames waxed frames from a fellow beek this year. $4 a piece.

neillsayers · « **Reply #14 on:** June 23, 2019, 02:07:40 pm »

I managed to catch a half-hour window in the rain to get down there and add that box. I didn't take any honey frames cuz there just wasn't time. My sweet calm bees were seriously POd. That's why I hate going in a hive in bad weather. Didn't see any brood or maybe more importantly any queen cells or cups.
Part of what got me in this situation is we have a lot of financial stressors right now. I try to keep lumber and frames ready to go and I held off on expenses until July and August. The bees had different ideas. Time will tell how this little drama plays out.

I really appreciate having you kind folks as a sounding board and support team. Thanks!

Jen · « **Reply #15 on:** June 23, 2019, 02:46:40 pm »

Neil, I had a very hard season a few years back when hubby had a couple of surgeries. Was tending to him constantly. My hives got very neglected and mites took over, deformed wing virus and all of that. It was heart breaking... However! towards the end of summer hubby got back on his feet. And I had time to heal my hives. By Golly! They made it thru the winter. I was blown away.

neillsayers · « **Reply #16 on:** June 23, 2019, 10:17:45 pm »

Thanks Jen for the encouragement.

Since I posted last I have a new problem pop up.

With all this rain, the ground softened under one of the hive benches. The blocks it was resting in on one side sunk until the the whole bench with 4 hives toppled over. I happened to look out there before dark and saw it. I went out and saw most of the bees seemed to be clustered in the boxes trying to stay dry. I got a big tarp and covered them all. The rain is supposed to stop in the wee hours tomorrow am. I'll try to sort it out and hopefully the damage won't be irreparable.

I've got another site it mind that is as bad a slope. When all is settled out, I think I will move them there.

Wandering Man · « **Reply #17 on:** June 23, 2019, 11:43:27 pm »

Quote from: neillsayers on June 23, 2019, 10:17:45 pm

Thanks Jen for the encouragement.

Since I posted last I have a new problem pop up.

With all this rain, the ground softened under one of the hive benches. The blocks it was resting in on one side sunk until the the whole bench with 4 hives toppled over. I happened to look out there before dark and saw it. I went out and saw most of the bees seemed to be clustered in the boxes trying to stay dry. I got a big tarp and covered them all. The rain is supposed to stop in the wee hours tomorrow am. I'll try to sort it out and hopefully the damage won't be irreparable.

I've got another site it mind that is as bad a slope. When all is settled out, I think I will move them there.

Man, when it rains, it pours.

I hope you get everything worked out with minimal problems.

neillsayers · « **Reply #18 on:** June 24, 2019, 12:43:35 am »

Thanks WM. Tomorrow's another day, they say.

tecumseh · « **Reply #19 on:** June 24, 2019, 06:55:21 am »

most folks just starting out always have a problem with insufficient supply of drawn comb. tossing a box of foundation on top of the hive with a honey cap below will not help in this sort of situation. in such cases I find 'under supering' to be the way to go. this of course requires more work but it is well worth the effort and really takes no more time than removing several capped frames of honey and shuffling these around. As to Nells other problem with the hive it sounds like to me the queen has been replaced but the weather is not agreeable for the new queen to mate.....