Week 3 inspection of package bees

[FlexMedia.tv]

Tomorrow I'll check my two hives during the 3rd week. I haven't opened the hive since I checked to see if the queens were released. So, now I'm going to look for eggs, uncapped larvae and hope to see no queen cells? Is there anything else?
Thanks!
Art

[SlickMick]

Hope you see lots and lots of bees 😄

Mick

[BeeMaster2]

If you do see queen cells, do not remove them. They are probably superceedure cells. If they superceed, you will probably have mother and daughter laying side by side and filling up the hive with brood. Plus you will probably have a better queen for your area because she was mated with local drones.
Jim

[FlexMedia.tv]

Ok, I will. I read somewhere that you are supposed to destroy them but your hint sounds better.
Thanks!

[BeeMaster2]

If it was a case of swarming and you destroyed the swarm cells, you would leave the hive queen less.
Bees normally swarm when the first couple of queen cells are capped. You open a hive and find capped queen cells and remove them, the queen could have left 6 days ago and they have no way of making a new queen. If they have no queen and it is your only hive, it is doomed.
Jim

[cao]

Ok, I will. I read somewhere that you are supposed to destroy them but your hint sounds better.
Thanks!

I personally don't see myself ever destroying queen cells.  They are there for a reason and you could always find a use for them.

[FlexMedia.tv]

Seems natural to me to let them live. What do I know...I don't even know what they look like yet! *Grin*

[Dallasbeek]

Ok, I will. I read somewhere that you are supposed to destroy them but your hint sounds better.
Thanks!

Whoever wrote that knows nothing.  I also know experienced beekeepers who smash every drone they see.  They are there for a purpose, too.  Learn from the bees.  They know more about being bees than we can ever understand.

[FlexMedia.tv]

Dallabeek,
I'm with you there. I learn something from these gals everyday.

[FlexMedia.tv]

Here's the result of my 3 week inspection albeit I don't know what the result is. I know I did a whole bunch of things wrong but if anyone has a moment and is kind enough to let me know what's going on, that would be very nice.
Thanks!
Art

[cao]

Nice video.  I couldn't see into the cells very well but I could see capped honey near the top of the frames.  I also saw pollen in several of the frames.  The video wasn't clear enough to see larva but you did say that you saw some.  There was some capped brood on the frame shown at 2:09 of your video.  All of which are a good sign things are going well.  I would advise picking up frames with both hands.  It's way to easy for the frame to slip when only using one hand.  The bees get a little upset when that happens.   Once I pry the frame loose I usually grab it by the tabs on each end.  There are usually less bees at the end of the frame than the middle.  The tabs allow for a better grip and also allows you to flip it upside down to see the other side.  I don't use a frame perch but typically you don't need to put that many frames on them.  Once you pull the first frame and put it on the perch there is plenty of room to remove the rest. 

If you have any specific questions about something that you see on a frame, take a picture looking down towards the bottom of the cells.  As they say a picture is worth a thousand words.   

[GSF]

Good video flex, also nice place there. Another tip on handling the frames is to puff a little smoke on the ends to run the bees off. Keeps them from getting smushed and you stung. (spell check says smashed - I say smushed)

[FlexMedia.tv]

Cao,
Thanks..I'll take a pic next time or blow up some stills from the video. I didn't see any eggs but couldn't negotiate the jeweler's eyepiece headband and see at the same time. You don't use a frame holder? Do you look at the frames one at a time and replace? After I stacked 1/2 of them on the holder, it didn't seem like a good idea.

GFS,
Thanks! Next time I'll grab both tabs cuz ya know what? You can under estimate one side and drop a frame in a hive. Want to know how I know? Had a couple bees give me the "middle winger" if you know what I mean. They have no patience for that!

I'll do another inspection in a week? When do I put my super on?

Thanks for the help
Art

[cao]

When I pull the first frame, I just (gently) lay it down.  Typically on the inner cover that I have taken off.  The second gets put back in the first ones place and so on all the way to the other end.  Then I will slide the frames back in place(usually all at once and slowly to allow the bees to get out of the way) and insert the first one back in.  The advantage is that as long as the queen is not on the outside frame then she stays in the hive.  When you had three or more frames on the perch, the queen could have been out there.  There is a greater chance of something bad happening to her when she is outside the hive. 

As far as adding a super, from what I saw you probably have at least a couple of weeks.  Three weeks after installing a package the population of bees should be at the lowest.  Once you have brood hatching(which it should be just starting this week) the number of bees will increase.  It will take a while for them to get crowded.  I like to wait until I have bees solidly covering at least both sides of seven frames out of ten before adding the next box.

GSF
I say smushed too.

[FlexMedia.tv]

I never thought about the queen being outside the hive. Her wings are not clipped. She could have left me for a younger beekeeper! Good information. I'll keep learning as I go!

Art