I have told that I have one frame colony in firewood shelter.
It has 6W terrarium heater. The cluster is about orange size.
I measured just now with infrared pistol the temp of hive and cluster
out temp -6 C
cluster temp middle +17C
the walls of nuc +7
heater +7
we had a week period night -30C and day short peak -15C
it seems to go over winter. There is no poo in the hive and no condensation.
Cluster have spreaded partly along the heater.
After cleansing flight i take more bees couple of frames from bigger hives.
Finski!! ONE FRAME!!?? You are too much man 8-).
thomas
Finski, you are the master of the bees!
What is your plan for building up your one frame colony in the spring? I think you mentioned before that your pollen patties didn't help your small colonies. If not patties, then what? Are you going to add frames of brood from your big hives?
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That colony has only value of spare queen. it was late autumn when I noticed that it is too small to survive over winter and our winter will be hard and long.
I put heater to 5 other hives too but i do not know how they are doing under snow.
Surely they have got aid from electrict.
That experiment just tell how important is the heat to bees.
under 5 uccupied frames colonies are too slow to start in spring. Half of bees will die in spring before new bees start to emerge and they are few.
many wish that a small cluster - small food consumption - rapid spring build up
but every word in that poem is impossible and reason is nature laws of bees.