Newbee questions

[JackM]

Well one of my packages had a queen that just doesn't lay well.  About 8-9 days ago my mentor advised me to split that hive out and see if it would grow some queen cells.  Three days later I had at least 2 very good looking cells.  Have not been in that hive since then.  Now the split that took the queen and brood into a nuc, well in that same time frame, looks like she has laid about 9 eggs, and that sorta spotty.  Mentor has advised me to just pinch her and go for the new queens.

So (working up to the questions here)  In another few days I should have some virgin queens running around that hive.  Do I wait and let the bees pick their queen?  Do I pick one and say you live and the other dies?  Will I have to worry about swarming?  Ummmm other questions I should be asking?  Remember this is my first year and I have never seen a virgin queen, though been told they act 'speedy'

[buzzbee]

let the bees sort the queen. If this was a new package this year,unless you overfeed and they fill the brood nest with syrup,you should not have to worry about swarming.Just be sure there are plenty of open combs for her to lay in. Congestion would be your main reason for swarming,not overpopulation.

[Kathyp]

let them decide.  all you need to do is watch that the new queen gets back into the hive mated and starts laying.  you are a ways out from that, so leave them alone for now.  pinch that crappy queen and recombine the nuc with the original hive.  window screen between the hives works great, or do a news paper combine.  be sure to leave an upper entrance on the top box while you are combining the hives.  should only take a couple of days to do it and we have good weather for it right now.