The Honey Factory

[OhZark Biddies]

View attachment 2209504View attachment 2209506
The top 2 pictures are showing capped Queen cells in the new hive.
View attachment 2209508
I saw this “chain of bees” when I was looking at the original hive. Have you ever seen anything like that? Anyone know why they are doing that?
View attachment 2209509This looks like a capped Queen cell. The only problem is that this is in the original hive. They have a super on top that they aren’t using yet and they have 2 or 3 frames in the 2nd brood box ( that this frame came from) that are still pretty empty. And 1 or 2 other frames partly used. I think those are the 4 empty frames I put in when I did the split on June 16th.
So, I’m not sure what to think. What do you guys think? Are they trying to replace their Queen? ( seems like she has been doing a great job but I have never seen her). Are they getting ready to swarm? Am I not seeing Queen cells but rather something else?
I’ve messaged my mentor but haven’t heard from her yet.
View attachment 2209517
I think there are Queen cells in the making on this frame too. Also from original hive.

Edit: I was too slow, lol... so what Ralphie said

The chaining behavior is called ‘festooning’ ... I forget what the literature says it is... but to me it’s just one of those things bees do

I think it’s one of those things that has theories but isn’t really known... but you can google ‘honeybee festooning’

 

[featherhead007]

A friend of mine at the World AG show "notice the BEE" He's a Deputy Sheriff friend of mine.

 

[OhZark Biddies]

View attachment 2209504View attachment 2209506
The top 2 pictures are showing capped Queen cells in the new hive.
View attachment 2209508
I saw this “chain of bees” when I was looking at the original hive. Have you ever seen anything like that? Anyone know why they are doing that?
View attachment 2209509This looks like a capped Queen cell. The only problem is that this is in the original hive. They have a super on top that they aren’t using yet and they have 2 or 3 frames in the 2nd brood box ( that this frame came from) that are still pretty empty. And 1 or 2 other frames partly used. I think those are the 4 empty frames I put in when I did the split on June 16th.
So, I’m not sure what to think. What do you guys think? Are they trying to replace their Queen? ( seems like she has been doing a great job but I have never seen her). Are they getting ready to swarm? Am I not seeing Queen cells but rather something else?
I’ve messaged my mentor but haven’t heard from her yet.
View attachment 2209517
I think there are Queen cells in the making on this frame too. Also from original hive.

Looks like a supersedure cell, rather than a swarm cell? since it’s in the center of the frame?

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

View attachment 2209504View attachment 2209506
The top 2 pictures are showing capped Queen cells in the new hive.
View attachment 2209508
I saw this “chain of bees” when I was looking at the original hive. Have you ever seen anything like that? Anyone know why they are doing that?
View attachment 2209509This looks like a capped Queen cell. The only problem is that this is in the original hive. They have a super on top that they aren’t using yet and they have 2 or 3 frames in the 2nd brood box ( that this frame came from) that are still pretty empty. And 1 or 2 other frames partly used. I think those are the 4 empty frames I put in when I did the split on June 16th.
So, I’m not sure what to think. What do you guys think? Are they trying to replace their Queen? ( seems like she has been doing a great job but I have never seen her). Are they getting ready to swarm? Am I not seeing Queen cells but rather something else?
I’ve messaged my mentor but haven’t heard from her yet.
View attachment 2209517
I think there are Queen cells in the making on this frame too. Also from original hive.

The bees know when their is something wrong with their queen, they are preparing to replace her with a stronger queen.

 

[karenerwin]

View attachment 2209539

Thanks, Ralphie!

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

I have just started my very own honey factory.

I was going to ha e two hives but decided to just buy one batch of bees, in case I kill them instead of two.

I can use advice from anyone and everyone with experience.

I do not plan to over winter my bees. I will use them as protein for the birds when their work is done.
My bee box:


View attachment 2078027View attachment 2078028

I have it level side to side and and 1/8th bubble high on the back side.

Here are my new workers;View attachment 2078032View attachment 2078033View attachment 2078034

this was right after I moved them into their new home.

I was out and visited them a little bit ago. There were 50-100 bees crawling on the box above the door. I hope that’s normal.

I have Saskartraz bees. I think that’s because the Sasquatch developed them.

@R2elk might know more. As I said these are my first ones.

I know they were friendly and would purr when they sat on my arm, so I could pet them.


It was a tad intimidating to have a box of bees clumped together and buzzing like mad in my hands. I was not sure how getting them into the box would go.

It was not bad, I took the queen out first. She assured me we would get along fine and she had no hostility towards me. Hopefully, she pays her rent.

Her box had a wood plug and not a candy plug in it. I popped the plug out and put a marshmallow into the hole.

I hung her box between two supers, then dumped the rest into the box and replaced the supers I had removed to make space to dump them.

All of this was accomplished without a sting!

I am a tad nervous they won’t like my box and leave tonight.

I gave them a pollen patty and a jug of sugar water inside the box and I have a chick waterer set up outside the hive for them.

They have been here 4 hours. I will check on them in an hour or so.

We put these on our hives for the winter, I don't know if it's an option for you?
https://www.polydome.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/shell_vent.png

 

[karenerwin]

The bees know when their is something wrong with their queen, they are preparing to replace her with a stronger queen.

Well, I hope they replace her with another Queen that continues on with these super calm and chill bees! I didn't even smoke either hive today when I went in. She is supposed to be a new Queen, I just got her a few months ago with the nuc I bought.

 

[BirdsBeesTrees]

I'm going to sew Velcro on these from B&B Honey Farm from Minnesota and put these on for winter too.
https://www.bbhoneyfarms.com/store/c-58-beehive-winter-packing/p-486-colony-quilt-1--two-deep-colony

 

[Kusanar]

Well, I hope they replace her with another Queen that continues on with these super calm and chill bees! I didn't even smoke either hive today when I went in. She is supposed to be a new Queen, I just got her a few months ago with the nuc I bought.

Well, she should be the current queen's daughter, so I would guess (uneducated guess) that the chances are good of that happening.

 

[CindyinSD]

Well, she should be the current queen's daughter, so I would guess (uneducated guess) that the chances are good of that happening.

I just read that a queen and her daughter sometimes serve the same hive simultaneously and that this likely happens more often than beeks realize--as you wouldn't know unless you happened to see them both on the same frame sometime.