I need some advice on how best to "introduce/combine" a new queen to a NUC. Basically, I have a single deep split down the middle with a luan board. Each side is a 5 frame NUC, one side with an old queen (that I am ready to get rid of) and the other with a newly mated queen that is just starting to lay. One NUC has an opening in the front, the other has its entrance facing the other way in the back. I want to combine these two with the newly mated queen heading it up to start a new production hive. I just want to do it in such a way so as to give the new queen the best chance of being accepted by the other side NUC. I had planned to kill the old queen, place the 5 frames with the new queen in a separate box, put a sheet of newspaper under that with the 5 frames from the NUC that is now queenless in another box below that. Essentially a newpaper combine, just am not sure how to configure the entrances and will this work...any other ideas? I appreciate any input. Thanks.
I also have a similar situation. had a package that went queenless and they were getting low in number . took a deep box and divided it with a piece of foam board . took two frames of bees and eggs and capped brood and put in box then took a piece of #8 screen and covered this side so the bees could not get into the other side. filled the other side w/the other frames and bees . checked them 5 days later and had queen cells on two frames , removed the screen but left foam divider. watched the bees for a good while, they were going in and out both sides of the box . i plan on taking the foam board out this week if they seem to still be going ok
two ways you can do this .if doing a paper combine,spray suger water on the paper and make a couple slits in the paper. put the queenless nuc on the top.you can cage the queen if you like.the other way and i do this often when i combine two nucs is to cage the queen and put the 5 frames in the hive box ,then smoke them. add the other frames and smoke them again .wait five min. and smoke them again then put the top on. after 2 days let the queen out. ...schawee
pinch the queen you dont want. pull the divider after a few hours and if you are concerned about fighting crumple newspaper between the middle frames to slow down the introduction, but it probably isnt necessary.
deknow