First Inspection of the Nucleus after Installation in it's Hive
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- čas přidán 16. 05. 2017
- In this ongoing series of video's for the beginner beekeeper I take a look at the newly housed nucleus colony that we placed into it's full sized hive approx. seven days ago in our allotment apiary.
In this series of video we aim to help the beginner beekeeper by setting up an apiary from the start of the 2017 season and establishing a new bee hive by selecting a nucleus colony as if we had purchased it and following it's progress through the entire season.
Week by week we will show you all you need to know about making your first season in beekeeping as simple and as straightforward as possible.
Check out the playlist for all the previous videos.
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Wonderful! I checked mine today shortly after I watched this video. The bees seem to like the way you work your hives. I try to do the same. So far so good! Thank you once again.
Hi Jeffrey,
Thanks for commenting. I think if you take your time and are gentle with the bees they reward you with a calmer frame. Of course it doesn't always work out that way!
Stewart
Excellent video (as always) Stewart - you're running about a week ahead of me, which is perfect!
Hi Peter,
I'm glad you're enjoying the videos and the timing is working out in your favour.
Stewart
Watched this a couple of times now. My first inspection is later today. Thanks for this.
Hi Lee,
I hope your inspection went well, good luck with your beekeeping journey.
Stewart
It did, thanks. And I saw the queen this time - didn't se her when installing the nuc.
I just got my first nuc yesterday 😊 and really appreciate how you don't talk down to us newbies, nor do you make it seem like it's so easy any idiot could do it. Practical and informative.
Thank you.
Hi Mulle,
Congratulations on becoming a beekeeper! I'm genuinely excited for you. Good luck with your first year in beekeeping.
Stewart
Hi Stewart, I did my first inspection today after moving from a nuc last week. Very helpful video, thanks. Just wondering approx how long can it take for the bees to draw out the empty frames? Wanting to be being prepared for the addition of the first super...
Many thanks
Hi Stewart. Love the videos. On the nuc I received the bees had extended the comb below the frames. Should I remove this or is it ok to keep? Thanks again.
Great video this week. Thank you.
Thanks Anthony.
Stewart
Great video
I would add a dummy board into that space- just in case I forget and they fill it with brace comb- I'm sure you will add one later.
Did the queen cup have an egg or larvae? If it was just an egg then I wouldn't have worried as these are mostly removed by the worker bees and don't necessarily signify swarm preparations.
If you put some insultation into your roof (50mm kingspan) and close off that second feeder hole your colony will build up that more quicker. If using open mesh floors there is no need to leave feeder holes open when not in use.
Keep up the good work
Thanks Eyeman,
I'm guessing you have bees yourself? Are you in the UK?
Stewart
Hi Stewart, absolutely loving your videos. I've just ordered a full colony that I'm expecting mid July. I'm hoping that by getting a full colony they will be established enough to get through the winter. Anyway, just wanted to stop by and say thank you for your videos, they are fantastic (I'm even watching them whilst being away on holiday in Portugal 😄). One quick point though, this video doesn't appear in your Beekeeping Basics 2017 playlist. Looking forward to the next instalment 😀
Hi Mikey,
Thanks for the comments. I'm glad you are enjoying the videos. A full colony in July is going to be quite a handful to manage so make sure you have extra equipment available in case you need it. The video will be added to the playlist shortly, it's a technical issue with youtube to help drive more viewers to my videos so you will see it pop up in there shortly.
Enjoy Portugal :)
Stewart
Thanks For the super quick reply! I was kind of hoping that they would be past the point of wanting to swarm at that stage but seeing your comment has made me think I should get an extra hive/nuc and a skep just in case! I think I'd be worried if they swarmed though as I can't help thinking that 2 small colonies at that time of year wouldn't make it through winter.
Hi Mikey,
With any luck your bees will be past swarming but if they feel the need they will do what they do! It's all part of the enjoyment and frustrations of being a beekeeper.
Adding a super to give them more room will help as July (for me) is the main nectar flow so they can become overcrowded with stores quite quickly.
regarding small colonies going through Winter I will be showing how to prepare for Winter later in the Summer but it's quite easy to get nucleus colonies through the Winter so don't get too concerned about it just yet.
Stewart
The Norfolk Honey Company Thanks for the advice. My intention is to get the super on as soon as they are settled. I'll also be purchasing a nuc box and another hive now though just in case. Thanks again for the videos and advice 😀
Great, Good luck with it Mikey and let me know how you get on.
Stewart
You added pollen substitute when you transferred the Nuc in the prior video. But it was gone when you were doing your “first inspection”. How long would you recommend keeping the pollen in the top?
great video
Fab video. We've just put our 2 nucs into proper hives. Our mentor has told us to do this in a slightly different way. We transferred the 5 nuc frames and instead of filling the rest of the hive with frames (we're using foundationless although he doesn't know this as he'll likely go a bit bananas), he suggested we add them one at a time at weekly intervals, always leaving one of the original nuc frames on the outside edge.
We'll be doing our first inspection this weekend. I've been watching the hives from the outside every day and it's utterly fascinating. I enjoyed watching grooming behaviour, nasanoving and drones coming and going this afternoon... Magical.
I was reading the other day that removing queen cells won't stop bees from swarming if they've already decided to. What are your thoughts on finding queen cells and how do you know if they're just messing about and experimenting or really planning to go AWOL??
Hi Wendy,
Yes, there are several ways of building up the colony, I have put all the frames in because I need to store them somewhere near the apiary and it's just easier for me to leave them in the hive body.
Good luck with your inspection, I always love seeing new beekeepers getting stuck in for their first inspections, the look of amazement is a real picture.
Regarding your queen cell question I work to a "three strikes and you're out" policy I check for queen cells and if I find charged queen cells then that is one strike. The following week another queen cell is two strikes and finally if they are still trying in the third week then I have to do something with them. That might be removing the queen into a nuc, creating an artificial swarm or some other management technique.
Stewart
Thank you so much for your reply. The "three strikes and you're out" policy is great. Gives me time to weigh up the solutions.
With the Queen cells. If there is larvae in them what do you do? I'm very new, does this mean the bees may try and swarm if a new queen is made?
my 6 day old hive has had a 2nd brood box added to give the queen plenty of room, there was no sign of swarm cells when I changed them over, plus there was sealed/unsealed brood and plenty of stores... yesterday around 20 or so drones had been tossed out of the hive, anyone know why this might be? tia
HI Stuart - Great video again! AT what point would you start thinking of adding a super on top of that brood box?? Thanks
Hi NIcky,
Thanks for the comments. I'll be covering when to put a super on in the next video. Wait until the brood box is fully drawn is the basis of the advice.
Stewart
Great explanation , as always thank you . If the queen is lost will they be making another queen?
Hi Iris,
Yes, the bees are so incredible, if they lose their queen they can reproduce another.
Stewart
Enjoyed your video! Brand new to beekeeping.....Getting ready to inspect my first hive tomorrow after installing a nuc last week. I was curious what type of feeder you are using. Also, should you always destroy the supercedure cells?
Hi Kinda,
thanks for commenting. Welcome to the world of beekeeping, I'm sure you will get a huge amount of enjoyment from your hobby. Good luck with your first inspection, I'm sure it will all be fine, just take your time and (unlike me) keep your smoker well lit!
The feeder I am using on this hive is called a rapid feeder and can be found on the Thornes beekeeping website.
www.thorne.co.uk/health-and-feeding/feeders-and-food-supplements/feeders?product_id=1641
Stewart
Thank you! Looking forward to working with the bees....completed the local Certified Beekeeper course and have been waiting a while to get things going....
Thanks for these videos. Do you not block the second hole on the crown board to stop bees going into the roof space? Can you put the roof resting on the feeder or should you use an empty super box to house it?
Hi Stewart, are you on OMF or solid?
Hi Peter,
Mostly OMF, the colony at the allotment is on OMF but I do have a few older solid floors that get used from time to time.
Stewart
Hi capailldubh,
Thanks for commenting.
I leave the second hole open to help with ventilation and the roof is just deep enough to sit down on the feeder and touch the crownboard.
Any taller and a super or eke would be needed.
Stewart
Hi again Stewart.
What factors dictate when you feed 1 to 1, 2 to 1 sugar syrup, pollen substitute or fondant?
Thanks
Stuart
Hi Stuart,
You ask quite a complex question that really needs an essay to answer, however, weather conditions, colony strength, colony condition, time of year and more, all factor into what type of feed to provide.
If you are just getting started with a nuc here in the UK in mid-Spring then either 1:1 or 2:1 syrup would be fine. If you are looking for ready-made syrups then my bees are doing really well on the Happy Valley Honey syrup and fondant with vitamins and proteins added. Give Paul at HVH a call to discuss your needs, I'm sure he will be very helpful.
www.happyvalleyhoney.co.uk
Stewart
Hi Stewart.
Will that size of feeder fit under a standard roof, or would you add an eke?
Thanks
Stuart York
Hi Stuart,
All of my national feeders fit beneath a standard national roof. I like the green Maisemore jumbo feeders particularly.
Stewart
Excellent video as ever.
i have two poly nucs, each with about 4 frames of capped brood.
Im currently planning to add nuc extensions to them both and keep feeding to try to build up hoping they will have some flying bees for june. Am i better concentrating on one and adding a frame of brood to that one from the other and move into a full brood box?
I want to try to have a strong colony and to keep the other going too (1 year old queens) but i fear theyre too small as they are to take advantage of summer flow etc.
Not on facebook or would place there...apologies
in hope...
Paul
Hi Paul,
Thanks for the comments.
It's been a struggle this Spring so it sounds like you're doing really well. With the weather set to warm up in a week or so I think both your colonies will be coming on nicely by then. I would just manage them individually and let them expand through May giving them more room as they require it. If you're adding many more frames I would also feed them to give them the energy they need to produce more wax and really draw those frames out fast then get them into a full size hive.
Stewart
hi Stewart, why are they making queen cells when they have plenty of room? thanks Phil
Hi Phil,
As the colony expands they sometimes find they cannot make new comb and cells for the queen to lay in and so run out of room. I think this is probably a trigger for queen cells although there was only the one charged cell I think.
Stewart
That nuc doesn't look ready to swarm, to my untrained eye. why then would it have several queen cells? also, and this probably sounds silly, but do you usually get stung when messing with the hives?
Hi Morgwino,
Honeybees will throw up queen cells for a wide range of reasons not just because of swarming so it's always difficult to pinpoint the exact reason sometimes.
I do get stung but not on a regular basis, it's all about the type of bees and the care you handle them with.
Stewart
frame five from the nuc. would you look to moving it out of the hive as it looks a bit of a mess and may hide a queen cell in side.
or in time will the bees make it uniform. but
Hi Robert,
Yes you are spot on with your assessment. I will be moving that frame out towards the edge of the hive body over the coming weeks and hope to explain how and why I do this in the coming videos.
Stewart
what does it mean if the queen cell have something in them ?
Hi Mostafa,
Thanks for the question. Generally it means the bees are preparing to produce a new queen that will heaad up the colony. This could be because the colony is going to swarm or it could be for other reasons.
Stewart
That nuc is ready to explode
Hi Troy,
Yes, I think within a couple of weeks it will look very full of bees, hopefully we will continue to have some good weather for them.
Stewart
Your video's are good but it is getting a bit monotonous to listen for a couple of minutes per video to the plugs for patreon etc ...could you not just put up a written bit at the end with all the relevant info for new visitors?
Hi Dreamofahive,
My apologies if you find the patreon message monotonous, I try to keep it short but it is an important part of my attempt to make this channel viable by generating a small income through viewer support. My only real income is currently through the sale of my honey so I need to other revenue elsewhere. I feel the information I pass on is of value and hope that my subscribers would appreciate how much work goes into sharing all of this information.
I am a beekeeper first and marketeer second so I will try to amend my "Advert" for support but I hope you appreciate why it is there.
I am always looking to improve and appreciate your honest feedback.
Stewart
P.s. Fancy signing up for $1 per month? :)
how rude Dreamofahive
Nothing comes free. You have all of human knowledge at your fingertips. Seems a little whiney to complain that you have to sit through what's basically a short ad