Hive Hegression

[Barnabus]

Hi:
I am ready to try to start regressing my hives to small cells as well as to medium brood boxes. My mediums are setup with eleven frames as has been suggested on this forum.
The hives now consist of two deeps. These are two hives that I caught as swarms back in April. The two deeps are full of brood, honey, pollen and are ready to have room added.
Has anyone put a medium in between the two deeps and had the girls draw it out and use it for brood? If so, did you use any special techniques that helped.
Because the deeps are full, I'm sure they will accept it on top, the question is will the draw it out and us it for brood or will the store honey in it.
Although the deeps are full there is no signs of swarm, I've been watching them very close and I thing now is the time to try the change.
Thanks for any suggestions.
Barnabus

[Phoenix]

Has anyone put a medium in between the two deeps and had the girls draw it out and use it for brood?

Yes I have, no special technique.

the question is will the draw it out and us it for brood or will the store honey in it.

You can't predict what the colony feels they need.  If they feel they need to rear more brood they will, if there is a heavy nector flow they might just take advantage of the flow and fill the frames with honey.
Take what they give you.

[drobbins]

Barnabus,

I'm doing the same thing and have done exactly what you describe
I inserted a medium box of SC starter strips with 1 bait frame between the 2 deeps about 4 weeks ago.
They drew it out in to this point in about 2 weeks

http://www.drobbins.net/bee's/window4.jpg

the pic is shot thru a viewport I made in the box
after drawiing it this much they just kinda quit
I'm guessing the flow has ended around here
2 days ago I installed a queen excluder between the medium and the upper deep to get the queen to stop laying up there and in 3 more weeks when the brood is emerged I'm gonna take it off and cut it down to a medium.
I'm thinking I'm gonna feed em some to try and get em to work on the medium more and start raising brood in it
I want to insert another medium box of starter strips but I haven't decided if I should do it now or wait a while longer. Most people seem to think this isn't really the best time of year to be doing this, I think spring would have been better.

Dave

[Michael Bush]

>Has anyone put a medium in between the two deeps and had the girls draw it out and use it for brood?

Sure.

>If so, did you use any special techniques that helped.

If you want to hurry things along, then cut some open brood out of one of the deep frames and tie it in a medium and put it in the medium box with the queen and an exluder above and below.  Then the bees will have to take care of the brood and the queen will be with the brood so they will take care of her.  But you could just put it there and they will draw it and it's more than likely she will lay in it.