How to unite a mean colony with a gentle one

tom · June 11, 2006, 06:14:12 PM

Hello

I have a hive that is buckfast and italian cross and they are getting to the point that i can not even sit in my orchard without them coming for me and running me away. My other two hives are very gentle and don't pay me no mine but i sat and watched the third hive and the bees are coming from that one so i want to unite them with my hive of carniolans i know about the newspaper thing but when would be the best time to do this morning or late in the evening.

Tom

Understudy · June 11, 2006, 06:24:58 PM

Quote from: tomHello

I have a hive that is buckfast and italian cross and they are getting to the point that i can not even sit in my orchard without them coming for me and running me away. My other two hives are very gentle and don't pay me no mine but i sat and watched the third hive and the bees are coming from that one so i want to unite them with my hive of carniolans i know about the newspaper thing but when would be the best time to do this morning or late in the evening.

Tom

Before uniting the hives please read what Mike says on mean and nasty hives.
http://www.bushfarms.com/beesrequeeninghot.htm

Sincerely,
Brendhan

Michael Bush · June 11, 2006, 08:30:38 PM

If you don't find the queen in the hot hive, I'll bet the hot hive will kill the gentle queen. So you need to find her regardless. Try the link he posted, that's how I figured out and did four hot buckfast hives back in 2001.

tom · June 11, 2006, 08:43:14 PM

Thanks

I have already marked the hot hive queen so she will be easy to find but once i have killed her how long should i wait to put them with my other colony. I hear by then her scent will be gone from the hot hive and it should be easy but i want to know what time of day or morning should i try to unite the two.

Tom

Kirk-o · June 11, 2006, 09:01:24 PM

I followed Michael Bush's instructions on handleing a hot hive last year
worked like a champ
kirk

Michael Bush · June 11, 2006, 10:18:50 PM

> I have already marked the hot hive queen so she will be easy to find but once i have killed her how long should i wait to put them with my other colony.

I'd requeen the hot one. The mean bees still may kill the queen. But ideal would be between 12 and 24 hours. Less they might not be ready to accept a new queen and more they might start their own queen cells and reject the queen because of that. I've seen newspaper combines with hot hives where both queens were killed.

Brian D. Bray · June 12, 2006, 12:34:33 AM

Amen, brother, Amen.

tom · June 12, 2006, 03:35:01 AM

Thank you all

So my best bet is to order a new queen and requeen instead of uniting them together. And to let nature do her job and would the new queen calm them down in the long run because most of the people that i have contacted about carniolan queens are sold out or booked up. But i do have a gentleman that has NWC queens by the end of this month and he said he would be glad to sell me one so thats what i will do then and once i know she is on the way i will wait and kill the other queen when she gets here.

Tom

Michael Bush · June 12, 2006, 08:05:18 AM

> So my best bet is to order a new queen and requeen instead of uniting them together.

IMO yes. They may reject the new queen, but at least you don't now have two queenless hives if they do. If they accept her you have two healthy hives.

With a hot hive, I think the odds of them accepting a queen you introduce are better than them not starting a war when you combine and accepting the queen from the other hive.