Hive with no queen; should I combine it or requeen?

[babsbag]

The hive with lots of bees and no queen or brood is a captured swarm and it hasn't been 25 days yet so not too worried. They need to build her some comb too. I will put a new deep on them today so they have more room to roam. I will give them another week and then buy them a queen. Fortunately queens are 15 miles away so easy to obtain.

I thought about the burr comb but I can't kill the brood and start over, not in a swarm that is a small as that one. I could leave it a shallow box but that isn't a very big brood nest. Not sure....still pondering it.

 

[Latestarter]

Can you leave it there and place another deep above (when the time comes of course) so when they move up you can then pull the medium? Just a thought...

 

[babsbag]

That's not a bad idea...see, that is why we have BYH. Thanks @Latestarter

 

[Mini Horses]

Geeesh. Bees are a LOT of workNot to mention that it sounds like a little "Peyton Place" story going on.

 

[Happy Chooks]

Maybe there's something wrong down in that lower deep that the queen doesn't want to lay down there... Have no idea what it might be... mites/wax moths/ants/AFB... If you have a spare deep with frames, could you just temporarily move the existing hive and then place the full deep on the bottom board followed by the/a new/clean deep to be 2nd level then replace the super(s)? I know it sounds like a lot of work, but from what you've described I'd be really worried about swarms and hive health in general...
Following/waiting to see what happens here.

Quick check today in the super, and the queen is NOT laying in the super! They are actively storing nectar. Yay!

 

[GLENMAR]

Hoping we all get lots of honey. I'm checking mine again this weekend.

 

[babsbag]

OK, all you bee experts, I have questions.

I checked on most of my bees today and some are doing well. One hive has three deeps on it and the top deep is packed with honey and they are working on the super. The other two deeps are full of brood, and I mean full. Very will mannered bees too which is always a plus. My other purchase nuc I didn't check, ran out of time.

One captured swarm does not appear to have a queen. It looks like maybe a worker is laying as there is a very small amount of drone brood but no other brood. I gave them a frame of uncapped brood today. They are a very small colony so I was wondering if I should just try to combine them with another swarm and if so do I need to do three weeks of open brood first to suppress the laying worker? Or another option is buying a queen in a few weeks and I can get one easily enough but is it just getting too late in the season for them to build up sufficiently for winter?

If I combine them can I just put one hive on top of the other with a sheet of paper in between them? Does the top box need an entrance?

What would you do...inquiring minds need to know.

 

[GLENMAR]

I'm not sure. I have not tried that yet. I'm planning on making a split next week with a new queen, so I don't think its too late.

 

[babsbag]

I gave them the frame of brood last week but haven't checked on them. It has been 105 + here all week so have to do it super early. And then my son is getting married tomorrow so had to travel for the wedding. I will try on Mobday. Also the hive to take brood from is three deep boxes and a super so it is heavy to get into. The brood is deep of course and hard to get to but I need to give them another frame if I am going to requeen. I want to make sure any laying workers are suppressed.

 

[Happy Chooks]

It took 3 weeks for mine to suppress the laying workers. They still didn't make a queen cell, but I gave them a caged queen. I kept the queen in the cage a bit longer before releasing her to make sure they would accept her.