2013 Hive 2

Hive status:  New package 2013
Hive origin:  Package from QRC, CA origin
Queen type:  Carniolan

Significant events/observations:New package installed on drawn comb in a single deep on 4/30/13.  The queen is Carniolan (first try for me) from the bee supplier.   Pail feeder on top.  Great weather for installing, 75 and sunny with a week of the same, lows in lower 50s.

5/4/13:  Inspected with Drew and spotted queen, eggs.  Taking sugar syrup and foraging, they've had great weather for the first week after installation.  Went to a second deep of drawn comb and removed entrance reducer.

5/19/13:  This hive is quite strong compartively.  Both deeps had a healthy amount of brood in them.  I stole 3 frames of eggs/brood from this hive.  One went to H1 to replace the frame I removed to start a new nuc and the other two went directly into the same new nuc.  The queen was located, so I'm sure she stayed in H2.  If I did not remove so many frames and replace with empties I could have added a honey super, perhaps at next inspection.

5/27/13:  This hive is now of comparable strength to H3, reduced due to the number of frames of eggs removed to support H1 and Nuc1.  Still doing well.  Huge dark queen.  Still no need to super.  Locusts blooming.  Brood in both deeps.  No need to super yet.

6/2/13:  Swapped a frame with N1 to provide brood and eggs.  Upper deep bursting with bees, lower deep not that busy yet.  Did not super.

6/10/13:  Reversed deeps and added queen excluder and honey super.

6/15/13:  No honey in super.  Reversing deeps was a GREAT idea, tons more eggs and larvae.

6/28/13:  First super now half full.  Will add another soon, but not needed yet.

7/5/13: Two honey supers nearly full, lower deep full of honey and bees, not enough room for queen to lay.  Need to add brood super and honey super.  Added a honey super of undrawn wax foundation.

7/11/13:  Removed 4 deep frames of honey and replaced with 1 deep of comb and 3 deep frames of plastic foundation.  Added a shallow super to the brood chamber and moved super of undrawn wax foundation (still not starting to draw it out) between other two honey supers to encourage drawing out.

7/13/13:  Pulled 1 super of capped honey, left on one super of uncapped honey and one of undrawn wax.  Found queen up in supers with some small amount of eggs/brood.  Returned her to the deeps.  Why is she above the excluder?!?  Lucky catch.

7/23/13:  No eggs spotted.  No queens were laying at this time.

8/3/13:  No eggs or queen spotted.  Left alone at this time in case she's there and not resumed laying yet from the mid-summer rest all the queens were taking.  I remember that this hive had the youngest larvae on 7/23/13, probably 5 day old compared to 7 or 8 day old larvae in other hives.  Either this queen is still on her rest and about to start laying again or she will need to be replaced or the hive combined with a queen right hive.

8/10/13:  Queen resumed laying!  Eggs.  Bringing in nectar, ok on space.

8/17/13:  Lots of bees, eggs spotted, nectar, honey, space ok.

8/25/13:  Ok on food and space.   Did not inspect deeps.

9/11/13:  Eggs spotted, seemed ok on space but added a super of drawn comb in anticipation of fall flow.  Hive is big and busy.

9/28/13:  Removed empty honey super, now at 2 deeps and 3 supers with about 2 supers full.  Pulled 1 frame from center of upper deep and saw tons of eggs.  Removed queen excluder due to honey super barrier.  Closed upper off-set entrance.

12/22/13: 10+ frames of bees, frames of honey near edges of upper deep with center frames nearly empty.  Still have entire super to move up into.  Strongest hive.