Starting on OB Hive

[kmartin]

I have one hive that's doing well and another that's just been started from a nuc.  I want to start an OB hive I just built.  So far, my plan is to;

1) Wait at least a week (maybe 2) for the nuc to get established.
2) Take one frame of open eggs / brood with nurse bees on the frame from the nuc.
3) Take two frames of capped brood (older the better) and one frame of honey and some extra bees
4) Place in a 4 frame nuc (close them up for a day??)
5) Wait a month
6) If we've got queen transfer everything to the OB hive

I'd appreciate any feedback or suggestions.

Ken

[rdy-b]

how many frames is the ob hive?

[kmartin]

6 mediums

[rdy-b]

whowe thats big   :) what kind of configureation are the frames? 6 frames should suport itself very nicely.how many frames are visible? you will have a bee TV. 8-) swarms work good to stock OB if you can get one.

[Michael Bush]

It will take more than a week for a nuc to get established.  It will take more than one frame of bees to get the observation hive established.

[kmartin]

If I wait 2 weeks that will have given the nuc over a month to develope.  I was planning on using 3 frames of open and capped brood.  Is that not enough to raise a queen?  Will mixing bees from different hives cause additional problems?

[Moonshae]

How do you overwinter an observation hive with so few frames? Keep removing honey frames as they fill and cap them, freeze them, and put them back in after they empty some frames over the winter? Or does the hive size limit the number of bees to a supportable number for the frames in the hive?

[kmartin]

Moon,  I don't know if will work, but I was going to move them to 8 frame medium and feed before it gets to cold.

[buzzbee]

i think you can feed the observation hive over winter ,if needed, since they are in the warmth of the house.

[Moonshae]

i think you can feed the observation hive over winter ,if needed, since they are in the warmth of the house.

Oh, ok. I had read here that the bees react to the outside temp, and figured they'd just cluster. That's good to know...I'm planning to add one next season. I can't get enough of watching my girls outside without disturbing them, it'll be nice to take a peek inside at any time!

[kmartin]

Did some more studying, MB' site has a ton of information.  Caught something that I had missed before, so I am going to change the plan.  I will make of a nuc, from the strongest hive (leaving my second hive alone), and try the The Hopkins method, made the shim tonight.  If it works, I'll move the nuc into the OB

[Michael Bush]

>Will mixing bees from different hives cause additional problems?

It will work best if they are from at least three hives.