Saturday Plans...Hive Conditions and weather permiting,
PLAN A
* If Alpha hive did not have any signs of brood, the queen is to be replaced with the new queen
PLAN B
* If Alpha hive did have brood - take some of the frames of brood with bees and food frames and make a split and install new queen, call new split / Hive - Charlie Hive
Plan B was initiated...and completed, Charlie Hive is now online
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Alpha Hive - has new frames with new foundation replacing the removed frames. The hive now has a top hive feeder the size of a small super providing sugar water to help with the comb building and new brood. I borrowed that feeder from a fellow beekeeper just this once. I will be ordering mine very soon. Alpha hive is still using an entrance reducer. I didn't have a painted/sealed hive cover, so I used a piece of 1/2" plywood as a temporary cover. Hopefully the weather will not adversely affect this temporary cover.
Beta Hive - checked the feeder jar - half consumed.
Inspected a few frames
* found brood of various ages, found a lot of capped brood
* didn't inspect all other frames, just looked at outer edge frame
the bees are drawing comb on new foundation frames
Hive entrance is still the entrance reducer set at smallest opening.
Charlie Hive - Since Alpha hive queen started laying - took a couple of new brood frames and made a split and called it Charlie Hive - also took 2 frames that had pollen, uncapped honey, capped honey. Installed the new queen and removed the cork from the candy filled end of the queen cage. I will leave the hive closed(entrance blocked to prevent bees from leaving) so the bees acclimate to new environment and a new queen. Hopefully the transplanted worker/nurse bees do not turn on new caged queen.
The feeder now used on this hive came from the Alpha hive and it was half empty.
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