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Author Topic: Notes for making nucs & splits  (Read 17849 times)

Offline Jim134

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Notes for making nucs & splits
« on: May 21, 2012, 09:30:23 am »
  I do hope this help you out in making Nucs & Splits  


                                            Notes for Making Nucs & Splits

Nucs and splits are the same thing,but generally terms used to describe their purpose. Splits are made to increase your colonies from your bees. Nucs are purchased from someone else and they make them to sell at a profit.

Nucs and splits are simply small hives containing a Queen, several frames of brood, and a frame or two of honey and pollen. They are started as 3 to 5 frames. The following steps will insure a successful start to a new hive.

Nucs can be started at any time in late spring, summer and early fall. Late season Nucs require additional brood and food to build strong populations before winter. Successful Nucs in New England are best when started in May and June.

Donor Colony-Pick a strong, healthy colony headed by an overwintered Queen. Should have 6-8 brood frames including open brood with eggs and larvae. A strong 5 frame Nuc needs 3 frames of brood plus two with honey and pollen.

Steps for making a Nuc

1) Setup Equipment. Any size box will work. When using a ten-frame hive use a follower board to create a false wall for the frames

2) Select the frames. 1 frames. 1 frames of capped brood,1 frame open brood with eggs and larvae, and 1 frame of honey and pollen. Extra brood frames can be added to make it a 5-frame Nuc.

3)  Introduce a mated within 24 hours After 24 hours the bees may start Queen cells. A mated Queen will not kill developing Queens and may be killed by an emerging Queen.
              
               . Do not let Nuc raise its own Queen. This does not normally result in a quality
                 Queen. Often they are from old larvae and become intercaste Queens
                 (part worker & part Queen).    

4) The 3 mile rule says that the Nuc must be moved to avoid bees returning to the old hive.This is not necessary if you pull brood frames with the adhering young worker bees. Screen the entrance for 24 hours allowing the new Queens pheromones to be distributed and the bees will know they are in a new location and reorient themselves to the Nuc location.                              

5) Feed syrup & a pollen patty. The Nuc will be populated by young house bees and emerging brood.It will lack the older foraging bees making feeding a necessity for the first month.                                
             . An extra advantage making Nucs is that it that it interrupts the brood cycle as the new
               Queen begins laying and that reduces mite loads.
 Nucs can be used for many purposes;to increase colonies, to sell bees,for mating Nucs, for holding
 reserve Queens, and proving Queens before introducing to a honey producing colonies.

Common mistakes that cause Nucs to fail:

            .   Split too early before temperatures are consistently warm 50-70F.
            .   Start with too little brood and bees. Chilled brood,or neglected  brood
                due to low worker population.
            .   Queen is not accepted or Nuc is allowed to raise their own.
            .   Become overcrowded and swarms before additional frames are added


      BEE HAPPY Jim 134 :)  
      
« Last Edit: May 21, 2012, 02:21:45 pm by Jim 134 »
"Tell me and I'll forget,show me and I may  remember,involve me and I'll understand"
        Chinese Proverb

"The farmer is the only man in our economy who buys everything at retail, sells everything at wholesale, and pays the freight both ways."
 John F. Kennedy
Franklin County Beekeepers Association MA. http://www.franklinmabeekeepers.org/

Offline golddust-twins

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Re: Notes for making nucs & splits
« Reply #1 on: June 01, 2012, 05:23:41 pm »
Thanks Jim,  this helps alot.

Corinne

Offline beeghost

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Re: Notes for making nucs & splits
« Reply #2 on: July 23, 2012, 01:48:24 am »
Ive actually had great luck when letting nucs make their own queens. All but one (one virgin had DWV) turned out to be very good layers and built up strong enough hives to swarm this year..........and that is from queens born and bred in August/September 2011. I'll be making splits into 5 frame nucs again at the end of August again this year and hopefully most will over winter and make it to next spring!
Coyote Creek Bees - Est.2011

Offline Beregondo

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Re: Notes for making nucs & splits
« Reply #3 on: August 04, 2012, 12:10:47 pm »
I've had good luck letting splits raise their own queens as well.
Those bees are pretty smart - as long as you give em the resources to raise a good queen, they will. They only use larvae that are too old if they don't have brand new ones available.

Tips for good walk-away-split queens:

Ensure that there is at least one frame with eggs and very young larvae.
You'll get better queens if the eggs/very young larvae are along the bottom edge of a comb.
Next best is if the comb is new, soft, easily reworked wax.

Ensure that there is open nectar and pollen in the frame next to the one with eggs and/or very young larvae. This puts good nutrition for the developing queen close at hand, esp. if you face a side with both pollen and nectar toward the eggs/larvae.

Once split LEAVE IT ALONE for at least 3 weeks, a month is better.

It takes a couple weeks for an egg or newly hatched larvae to emerge as a queen, and another week or so to mate.
That means there wont be any eggs til then, and once the eggs are laid, it will be 3 weeks before workers emerge, and around forty days (total from when the workers are laid) before that new generation begins to forage.

Walk away queens are a great idea in spring...they might be kinda foolish in August.
Every technique and tool has its time and place.
Most of them don't work well if applied in the wrong time or place.
 
     

Offline max2

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Re: Notes for making nucs & splits
« Reply #4 on: December 22, 2012, 05:47:24 pm »
Good advice, Jim.

My experience with this is different:"
               . Do not let Nuc raise its own Queen. This does not normally result in a quality
                 Queen. Often they are from old larvae and become intercaste Queens
                 (part worker & part Queen).  "

I have done splits many times and let the bees make their own queen with good success. 

Offline Jim134

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Re: Notes for making nucs & splits
« Reply #5 on: December 22, 2012, 06:53:54 pm »
Good advice, Jim.

My experience with this is different:"
               . Do not let Nuc raise its own Queen. This does not normally result in a quality
                 Queen. Often they are from old larvae and become intercaste Queens
                 (part worker & part Queen).  "

I have done splits many times and let the bees make their own queen with good success. 


IMHO This will help you raise a good Queen 
I have raise a lot of Nuc on Queen Cell with good success.

http://youtu.be/qIYz65Vquxg


    BEE HAPPY Jim 134 :)
"Tell me and I'll forget,show me and I may  remember,involve me and I'll understand"
        Chinese Proverb

"The farmer is the only man in our economy who buys everything at retail, sells everything at wholesale, and pays the freight both ways."
 John F. Kennedy
Franklin County Beekeepers Association MA. http://www.franklinmabeekeepers.org/

Offline Maryland Beekeeper

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Re: Notes for making nucs & splits
« Reply #6 on: January 08, 2013, 07:20:55 pm »
could you ? cut strip of new eggs, smash every other inch down with finger to queen frame  ? FatBMan has a video

Offline Jim134

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Re: Notes for making nucs & splits
« Reply #7 on: January 09, 2013, 04:27:10 am »
could you ? cut strip of new eggs, smash every other inch down with finger to queen frame  ? FatBMan has a video

If you own the bees you can do whatever you what.


             BEE HAPPY Jim 134 :)
"Tell me and I'll forget,show me and I may  remember,involve me and I'll understand"
        Chinese Proverb

"The farmer is the only man in our economy who buys everything at retail, sells everything at wholesale, and pays the freight both ways."
 John F. Kennedy
Franklin County Beekeepers Association MA. http://www.franklinmabeekeepers.org/

 

anything