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Author Topic: building out comb?? How quickly should I expect?  (Read 2911 times)

Offline llgoddj

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building out comb?? How quickly should I expect?
« on: June 28, 2012, 10:45:25 am »
Dear All,

I am a new beek this year. Started my top bar from a nuc in late May, so I have about 1 1/2 months of brood rearing etc. I am located on Long Island, New York. My question is, if it can be answered, is how quickly should I expect bars to be made by the bees, both brood and honey comb. It seems as though they are building them awfully slow and am wondering if there will be enough stores for them for the winter, without my robbing them of a single comb for myself. Of course I would love to have at least one comb to "harvest", but right now, unless they start building at breakneck speed????

Thanks for any comments.

larry

Offline Joe D

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Re: building out comb?? How quickly should I expect?
« Reply #1 on: June 28, 2012, 05:10:29 pm »

You may not get any for your self the first year.  There are numerous variables, how many bees, their activity, the nectar flow,pollen and frame size.  I caught several swarms in 1 week, put some in langs, and 1 in a TBH.  1 lang had a super at 2 months, 1 was not finished with brood box, and the TBH had 6 frames ranging from complete to half a frame.  Good luck with your bees.



Joe

Offline AllenF

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Re: building out comb?? How quickly should I expect?
« Reply #2 on: June 28, 2012, 06:57:59 pm »
You rarely get honey with a first year hive.   They burn it all making wax and growing the hive.   But putting a new hive on existing drawn comb is a different story.