Hello,
I have always an empty 5 frames home-built hive in my backyard in town - just in case - and a few days ago a swarm settled there.
I'm more than happy but I'm a bit worried as this is a small swarm and we are already end of July (I'm close to Paris in France):
- My beeyard is too far away to get them a frame of brood
- I feed honey 1-1 to spare the nectar foraging, and they really like it
- They crop pollen so I assume the queen is laying
I plan to keep them here during the wintering - feeding if needed - and move them to the beeyard next spring, but I'm wondering if the colony will be strong enough at this time, it's why I'm seeking advice here. Actually, I don't have many options, but I'd like you opinion anyway :)
thanks
not sure of your winter temps. But if you want to keep them you could always just feed them starting now so they build up and throughout the winter if need be to sustain them. Hopefully someone more familiar with your area will respond with greater detail
Keith
You will have to feed them a lot. We have to feed nucs here to get them through winter.