My girls are home

[Beecharmer]

Finally -

I got my nuc of bees Monday.  Drove 1 1/2 hours and then waited another 1 1/2 hours for the bees.  They had some trouble in the fields.  Took them home and the next day when it got up to 60 degrees I put them in their new home.  I was kind of nervous, but I suited up (didn't want the bees to go into "attack mode" as Lead Pipe says) and jumped in.  I pried the lid off and smoked them, but forgot to wait a couple of minutes like I was told.  They were very gentle though.  I didn't mess around too long - didn't want to piss them off the first day!  Got them all snug in the hive and stood back and watched.  I was so proud when I saw them finding the water and drinking.  :D  Felt like a new parent.  In a couple of days I am supposed to look for eggs to be sure the queen didn't get killed in transport.  Now I am sort of nervous about that.  Am afraid I won't be able to recognize them.  (Although I've seen them in books many times, the real thing may be different.)  Wish I had a mentor close by.  Have spoken with a couple of other beekeepers in the area, but they must be too busy right now.  I will keep everyone updated.

[Miss Chick-a-BEE]

I'm really bad about being able to find the queen. I've only seen her once! But when you see eggs, in all the proper formation and such, then you can be pretty sure there's a queen. You may not see eggs in just a couple days, but once laid, they grow fast. If I remember right, one week larvae is fat enough to see very easily.

Good luck,
Beth