Agressive Hive

[Recurve]

Hi 1 of our hives has started to get a little angry even getting stung days after any inspections just from entering our backyard. I decided to requeen it and was planning to make the hive queenless before the queens arrived.

I got a call the queen was ready before I was able to go thru and find/kill the old queen so I made up a small nuc left them queenless for 24hrs and installed the queen.

I am wondering how I go about merging these colonies now when the time comes.

Should I allow the nuc to build up numbers then do a newspaper combine or would it be fine to go ahead and kill the bad hives queen now then newspaper combine immediately or should I wait 24hrs?

I am just worried they may kill my new queen so any advice is greatly appreciated

Thanks

[Michael Bush]

A newspaper combine is fairly reliable.  Just put one sheet of newspaper on top of the colony and put the nuc on top of that.  Fill any left over space with a board to cover the rest.  In a day or two they will be combined.  Make sure both halves of the combine have an entrance so they don't suffocate.  One small slit in the middle of the paper will speed things up.

[BeeMaster2]

Bee sure to remove the mean queen before you combine them.
If you let nature do
It for you, the mean queen would probably be the survivor.
Jim

[Recurve]

Thanks for the advice

After I kill the aggressive Queen should I leave them queenless for 24hrs before doing the newspaper combine?
Also If I do leave them for 24hrs queenless would I need to knock down any emergency queen cells they may have started or will the new queen tear them down?

Thanks

[divemaster1963]

Just go ahead with the combine. I use 2 sheets of paper and cut slits all around so the smell mixes between the two hives.

John

[Oldbeavo]

Leave the hive 5-8 hrs queenless, if you want added security in putting hive together, sprinkle icing sugar over both lots of bees and a bit on the newspaper.
I put 4-5 slits 40-50mm long in the paper .

[Michael Bush]

The newspaper will slow them down.  I would not worry about how long, I would just remove the queen and do the newspaper combine.  If you wanted to do a riskier combine, I'd wait at least 2 hours.

[Recurve]

Thanks again

I am assuming Michael you meant less risky to leave them queenless for 2hrs?

[Michael Bush]

I mean if you want to do something riskier than a newspaper combine.  Like just putting them together with a lot of smoke or spraying them with light syrup with some kind of smell in it.