New bees - 1 week now - what should i expect?

[Algonam]

I am a new beekeeper.
I installed 2 nucs 8 days ago and finally got a chance to properly inspect the hive and make some adjustments.

I found the bees were active. Brood was being created in the original 4 nuc frames but no new activity in the outer frames that they didn't come in.
Should i expect more than that after 8 days?

Our Spring has been wet, until this last week. I can't find anything flowering here except for the odd dandilion or late lilac. It is very very green
and lush. I fed them 1/1 sugar/water today as well as left them 1/2 of a pollen patty on the bars.

I didn't see the queens but I didn't search too hard either. Figured if I had brood cells the queens were there doing their jobs.

Please let me know what I should expect and how often I should check on them, or if I should just leave them alone and just keep the sugar/water topped up.

[tillie]

Good luck with your bees. 

There is only one queen in the hive and you don't need to see her to know that she is there - just need to see brood and eggs in the cells. 

Get a good beekeeping book to read between opening the hive every week or so.  Keith Delaplane's book First Lessons in Beekeeping is a very helpful beginner book.  There are many others on the market and every beekeeper has his/her favorite.

Linda T

[iddee]

If you are using 8 frame boxes assemble thus.... Efefffefe
If 10 frames, then the other 2 empties go on each outside.
When they have the 2 inner empties filled, move another empty in and a full out on each side.

[Algonam]

10 frame boxes.
Now that I am almost set up I can start to enjoy. It has been a busy and confusing Spring!...but I stuck it out!

[Algonam]

I forgot to ask about the entrance reducer.

Do I leave them with no entrance reducer?
Leave them with a small entrance?
or leave them with a medium entrance.

Nucs were installed 1 week ago, I had the entrance covered for the first day and nothing since.

[AllenF]

Leave the reducer in for a while.   Until the hive is booming.   It don't hurt.

[mikecva]

I had little action for the first week after installing a nuc, I kept feeding lots of sugar water and after three weeks I had activity on all but frames 1 and 10. Because of a field behind me (with mice), I use an entrance reducer all of the time. After 4 weeks I did a mite check and only had one show up on the sticky board after three days. I count myself lucky with the nuc I received.

If you are using plastic foundation, and sprayed it with sugar water, I would only open the hive to check for sugar water for the first three weeks and then only very brief checks for another two weeks. then you should be OK with your weeky checks.

[AllenF]

If you got the hive up off the ground, mice are no real problem until winter.    Then it is cold, the hive is warm and there are less bee numbers with them in the winter cluster and the mice are looking for winter time food in the frames. 

[Algonam]

Great info!

I'll install my reducers and check on sugar/water today. Yes, my hives are on stands, roughly 18 inches off the ground.