Starting with package bees

[T.Smith]

Hello, I live in north Louisiana and have just purchased 5  3lb packages with queens. I am short on drawn comb, so will start them out on 3 frames of drawn comb and the rest plastic. As for the second hive body and supers they will all start with plastic as they fill up. My question is what can I expect these packages to get drawn out if I hive them on april 1 and immediately feed as long as they will take it.

[Michael Bush]

>can I expect these packages to get drawn out if...

You can expect anything you like.  They will do whatever they do.  Sometimes they amaze you with how fast they draw comb.  Sometimes they just piddle around and don't do anything.  Most likely they will draw about eight medium frames or five deep frames of comb in about two weeks.

[fcderosa]

It all depends if the bees read the same how-to book you have.  General rule; don't buy your bottles till you've checked your supers. :-D

[JP]

Hi there Mr.T, where did you purchase your packages and what type did you purchase, Russian, Italian? Russians can be slower to build, but do great once they get going, make a lot of swarm cells though, good and bad about this. Good, you can make lots of splits, bad if you let them get ahead of you and they swarm out on ya. Like M.B. said, hives are  individualistic, some do squat at first, some will surprise the dickens outta ya. Now, if you can get hold of some swarms, you can count on them for the most part to blow any package of bees outta the water reguarding growth rate, as swarms are geared to building and boy, do they ever! One word of caution, if you do catch a swarm you might have some of them tested for ahb traits as they have been discovered in Ruston, in July of 2005. Good luck and have fun!

...JP

[T.Smith]

I am getting my bees from avoyles honey farm. I think they are italians.