Variation on the "nectar bound" problem....

[AliciaH]

I blew it, I got behind on my inspections, but here's the problem...

I have two hives that are TOTALLY nectar bound.  We have a very strong blackberry flow on right now and my theory (judging on the conditions of my other hives) is that they swarmed, but during the time it took for the new queen to go get mated, the colony backfilled everything, leaving her no room to lay.

My question is...is there a possibility she is still in there somewhere?  Yes, I added another brood box with drawn comb, but how long do I give them in case she's there - a week?

I did try to look for the queen in both boxes but the population, in spite of the fact that they may have swarmed, is still really high.  Without frames of brood to close down on her position, I just didn't see the queen in either of the hives.

Thoughts and/or advice?

[AllenF]

Did you open the middle up with some empty frames?    Really, I would just keep putting honey supers on top and let them store up there.   They are making honey.   Time for you to collect the honey taxes.   

[AliciaH]

LOL...honey taxes!  Yea, I was ecstatic with all the nectar until I got to the bottom and realized there wasn't anything other than that! 

But to answer your question, yes, I added a 2nd deep (I run 1 deep and westerns for brood chambers) on top of the first deep with all drawn comb, then rearranged the honey supers a bit adding additional space for storage there.

We got a thunderstorm through last night so the blackberries have been watered.  I'm worried that they will backfill that new space unless the queen starts laying right away.  My plan is to check them again in a week.  Do you think I should check sooner?  If the mated queen is in there, she should jump in right away, shouldn't she?

Or, my other worry is that since it was nectar bound that maybe they threw a 2nd swarm with the newly mated queen and it's queenless 'cause nothing to make a new queen with.  Again, a week should speak volumes?

[AllenF]

If there is flow on, the queen will lay.   And bees always store honey over brood.   2 rules bee live by.   Sounds like your bees are doing well so far. 

[BrentX]

Can a few frames of drawn comb get put into that bottom deep?

If te quen is there eggs should be visible in a couple days.  If no queen s there queen then queen cells will get drawn in a couple days.  My bet is the queen is there.

[Finski]

.
Nectar bound? That happens to small hives very easy and then they swarm without warning.

Of course the hive should get foundation to be build. That is normal procedure to any hives.

1# If the hive is small, put the foundations under the brood. Take food frames from brood area to down stairs and put there foundations.

2# If hive fill with bees more than one box, put the foundations upstairs now in summer.
If the colony does not fill the new box, it is has too few bees. Then do the 1# procedure.

3# if you have big hive, move the "bound " frames to the big hive and give foundations instead.

[deknow]

In a heavy flow situation, it can be hard for the queen to lay as the workers fill cells quickly...same is true of foundationless.  Foundation, is another story....the queen can lay in almost completely undrawn foundation before it is deep enough to hold nectar.  Once there are eggs (then larvae), the bees will draw the cells out in earnest.

http://BeeUntoOthers.com/Advanced_bee_culture.pdf

...this book is worth a read, and it is free.

deknow