thought i'd post this just because i think it falls under the SH category.
the hive with the poor brood pattern is dead. it warmed enough for me to pop the tops and put syrup on. i had not fed the last week because the bees were very busy on the fruit trees and weeds. with the cold snap and rain, i decided i'd better feed this week. when i opened this hive i found dead, clustered bees. also fewer bees than had previously been in the hive. my guess is that this queen was dead. i found capped brood, but no new brood. i suspect that over the last week or so, many of the bees had drifted to other hives, or died. i pulled the capped brood and tossed it in another hive remembering that someone said capped brood could survive cold temps. maybe some will be salvaged in the new hive.
Sorry about losing your hive.
What is "SH category"?
sorry :-)
sh*t happens
Ugh...bummer Kathy....sorry...that SH sure does happen