My queen is scheduled to arrive today........and it is pretty feakin chilly here at 1pm: 49 degrees F and mostly cloudy (even that jogger is wearing a jacket!). Should I do a split on such a chilly day? It might get above 50 by 3 or 4 pm (assuming the queen arrives by then).
I guess if I have a queen coming, I don't really have a choice, but BRRRRRR!!!!
Love, Marla
you can keep your queen alive for a few days in the kitchen. Just give her a drop of water everyday....
It is not too cold for splitting at 49 degrees. Just dont piddle around splitting them and you will be fine. Do it and tomorrow add your new queenie.
Thanks, BMAC!
Love, Marla
anytime Marla.
Marla,
We live some miles south of you, about 20 miles southwest of Springfield. Of course, here's another opinion from another beekeeper, but I would not split them today. The weather is forecast to be much better tomorrow and Sunday that I would definitely wait for the 60's and the sunshine of the weekend! I just got back from around Bloomington. It's just dang cold! And with that wind blowing the way it is here, I wouldn't even lift a lid to peek in unless I had to. I'd pay more attention to the bees than I would a thermometer. I found a bee outside one of our hives that I thought was dead until I picked her up and held her in my hand. She started to move after she warmed up. With the conditions as they are now, the forecast of mid 30's tonight, and the promise of a better tomorrow, I'd leave them alone if they were mine.
Your queen will be fine until tomorrow as long as you give her a drop of water as BMAC said, and both her and your bees will be better off with the warmth and the sunshine of the weekend.IMHO
Arvin
Thanks to you, too acbs! It got a lot warmer about 4-5pm. I broke into the hive only to find it isn't as strong as I had originally thought. I'm gonna start a new thread to ask for more advice.
I'm glad to hear that it will be a nice warm weekend!
Love, Marla