adding frame of brood to week hive

[dprater]

9/5 I added a frame of capped brood with all the bees that were on the frame to a week hive. Checked 13 days later and had one open Q cell and two not opened I guess the new bees on the frame I added killed my Q. I know 13 days is not the right number of days the hatch a Q but close. I've done this before and not had a problem.

Do you need to shake off the bees from a capped brood frame before you add it to a week hive?

dan

[rwlaw]

I was taught that if you want to give a frame of brood & bees is to knock the bees off at the entrance. The house or field bees fly off back to their hive & the nurse bees (not yet having the hive scent nor orientated) walk into the new hive pretty much unmolested.
Maybe your queen was weak and giving them some good eggs gave em a chance to requeen themselves, hopefully there's some drones left to mate with. There darn sure ain't any left up here

[10framer]

i'd be concerned about having any drones this late in the year.  i know i haven't seen one in a few weeks.

[rwlaw]

Yup dp I've put frames w/ bees in another hive before too, mainly out of laziness. Maybe the queen got caught up up in the resulting squabble & got injured, but if it's a weak hive anyway, maybe (another thing I was taught) cut your losses in the fall, squash the qcells & combine, that way you'll have a stronger hive for a spring split.

[Michael Bush]

>Do you need to shake off the bees from a capped brood frame before you add it to a week hive?

I just put them in as you did.  I have not had a problem, but a puff or two of smoke helps...

[T Beek]

Yup dp I've put frames w/ bees in another hive before too, mainly out of laziness. Maybe the queen got caught up up in the resulting squabble & got injured, but if it's a weak hive anyway, maybe (another thing I was taught) cut your losses in the fall, squash the qcells & combine, that way you'll have a stronger hive for a spring split.

Watch it closely.  As already said, a combine may be in your/their near future for best chance of survival.  I've got one that may get the same treatment, but I've got less time right now.

Nothing wrong (or lazy  ;) about providing more bees to a weak colony from a strong one.  Its a win-win in most cases in that it inhibits swarming in the strong and strengthens the weak.  IMHO; It is important to provide several shook frames of 'nurse' bees along with the frames of brood though, they won't leave the brood.  

I usually try to 'shake' twice as many frames of nurse bees as the frames of brood I take (works for making NUCs too).  This seems to provide a healthy number of bees to do the inside work needed to get going for buildup.....in my experience anyway.  Good Luck.

[chux]

I added a frame to a weak hive like you did, back in the first or second week of September. The queen was fine. And she started laying in the new comb as brood hatched. Wonderful feral queen!! I did do one thing different. The hives were side by side. I switched their positions to further boost the numbers in the weaker hive. Worked great. As for drones...I had a couple of frames with swarm cells a few weeks ago. I put those two deep frames, and a honey/pollen frame, in a box by themselves with the bees on them. I checked in there this Monday and there was no queen to be found, nor were there any eggs. I checked again Wednesday and saw the new queen and quite a few eggs. She just got back from a mating flight here in eastern NC. There are fewer drones here, but they are still around. Now it may be too late around here to hatch a new queen and get her mated.

[rwlaw]

T beek, sorry typo. Meant to say "w/ bees on, in another hive". Ya, for the most part I like to keep my hives equal strength, do it quite a bit. Switching hive spots works good too, but that laziness factor kicks in when I think of doing that  :-D

[T Beek]

When making splits I make up two hives w/ entrances facing toward the original colony being split, moving them into their more permanent positions after a couple weeks.

Here it is September and I'm thinking of next seasons split duties.   :laugh:  The art of procrastination is really just mindful practice of a future event  :)

[Wolfer]

I've added frames like you did many times without problems. The only time was recently and the hive was weak and the queen wasn't laying yet. She disappeared and they raised a new one who is going gangbusters now.

[dprater]

Thanks for the replys. I checked today and could not find any eggs or a Q. I do have 3 full frames of bees and some pollen and honey.
Just for fun I will give them a few more days and if no eggs I'll combine them with one of my other 6 hives. I did see two drones today. I could have bad timing and just stuck them in the hive right next to the Q and they killed her, just a guess. I will try what Michael said and put a little smoke or not put them right in the brood chamber.

Thanks again
dan