Hive turned happy, right before my eyes

JP · July 08, 2007, 12:28:51 PM

Hey all, yesterday was a great day for me. I did two removals and both were small hives. Thought the second one was sure to be hughe, but it was a pleasant change from what I usually have to go through, just because people consistently, unknowingly, underestimate the duration bees have been in their bldgs. Anyways, because they were small, I got everything, including both queens. One disappointment though, one of the queens didn't make it. Went to the beeyard and checked all of my hives to see which ones might be queenless. I had a hunch about one I had transplanted two weeks ago. The queen had flown off twice when I did the transfer, and as things turned out she didn't make it back.

So, this queenless hive had drawn out about 4 and a half frames, but had no queen. I placed the queen (which was in a queen cage) on top of the frames and the bees were just loving her up, but just in case they got too frisky with her, I kept her in the cage, with a little candy in the plug end. Closed the hive up and watched a fantastic metamorphosis as this hive got very active. The bees had real purpose now and I watched as the hive just came alive. Before I added the queen no flights, now they were coming and going and circling it was a beautiful thing, couldn't help but be elated, I was proud and happy that I could give this hive what they so definitely needed, a queen!

JP · July 08, 2007, 05:21:59 PM

Hey, I read my post and don't think I was clear on what queen I added to my queenless hive. It was one from my yesterday removal that I added.

qa33010 · July 09, 2007, 01:39:07 AM

Now that would be cool to witness. Did their buzz change pitch or volume?

JP · July 09, 2007, 02:23:00 AM

I do recall the sound from the hive changed from a buzzing to a humming if that makes sense, but what was really cool was how they acted. They instantly became organized around her, and I could see them becoming organized right before my eyes. Hard to describe exactly what I saw and experienced but it was mesmerizing, truly a different hive in minutes.

hilltop hives · July 09, 2007, 12:38:09 PM

JP, I know what you mean. I made a split with the intentions of them making their own queen. for some reason it didn't work out. They got to the point that they just wandered around on the comb. All of the capped brood hatched out and I thought it was a goner. I ordered a queen just to see if it could be salvaged. As soon as I put the queen in they came alive, that same day they started bringing in pollen and nectur. By the next day you couldn't tell anything was ever wrong. By the way this was a Russian queen with Italian workers and they took to her like it was one of their own.

JP · July 10, 2007, 10:17:22 AM

Wasn't that a beautiful sight hilltop, made ya feel good, right? Made me feel really good.

Cindi · July 10, 2007, 10:51:45 AM

JP, wow, that must have been something nice for the human emotion. These warm and fuzzy feellings come from the bees all the time eh? I have that feeling of elation every time that I draw out a bottle of honey from my honey pail. The aroma that comes through my nostrils takes me back right to the very time when we were extracting the honey last summer. These scents are incredible and so beautiful, the very depth of Mother Nature herself, that the bees are living in. I love these feelings that arise from working with the bees in so many ways, nothing can compare. Have a wonderful day, I am happy that your hives responded in such a way as to delight the very depths of your soul. Cindi

JP · July 10, 2007, 03:55:58 PM

Cindi, what can I say, only another bee keeper can experience and appreciate what we go through, working our bees. We are bee farmers if you will. My Dad has gardened for well over thirty yrs now and I helped him many yrs, mostly in my youth and my teen yrs, and I remember his ups and downs, mainly concerning weather and time. Same thing for me, this yr not enough rain, not the best honey crop, and time, wish I had more to devote to the bees. I have always loved animals and insects, anything live, and I always go for the underdog in sports, of course unless its my favorite team. The hives that aren't that strong need that extra tlc, and its great to see them become strong with our help. Don't they realize our efforts and sentiments when they sting us on the nose!! :-D ;)