I got my first package with a queen 8 days ago. It was nice and warm and I got most of the bees transferred. The problem is the temperatures dropped significantly throughout the rest of the week. I am sure I made a lot of rookie mistakes, but to only find a very few bees even moving now that the temperature has gotten much higher (up to 70 F) I’m afraid the colony is down for. Am I just being impatient? Or should I clean out all the dead bees and look for a replacement package and queen?
Hi and welcome to the forum. Sorry to read about the demise of your first colony. My first thought was that the colony could have survived if it had honey or sugar/water to be able to draw on so that it could generate enough heat to be able to save itself.
I think a better option would be to acquire a nucleus colony from a reputable operator. That way you have drawn comb, brood in all stages, as well as resources which would allow the colony to manage harsh temperature changes.
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Thank you for the welcome and the advice. I’ll look into those options and see what’s available.
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Hi and welcome @hazsam19, sorry it’s under these circumstances. I think Jeff might be right about the feeding at this early stage when a package is first installed in spring. Even in nice weather it’s a good idea because the population is low and workers are not familiar with where to forage around their new home right away. We also had some very cold nights with frosts in this region (I’m in PA) recently, and a new box without drawn comb won’t retain much heat.
You could just get a nuc, but if some are moving around still you could give them some 1:1 sugar water. If the queen is still alive, she and the remaining workers could be added into a box with two to three frames of brood and nurse bees from another hive.
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I’ve ordered another package with a queen that I’ll be picking up this coming weekend. I also ordered a feeder that sits inside and replaces 2 frames. Temperatures will be 50’s - low 60’s for the high, 40’s for the lows the first few days, and raining part of the time. Should I consider wrapping the box with some insulation to help keep heat in? Put a heating pad on top? Should I add a top feeder too? Just wanting to do everything I can to make this package of bees thrive.
Sounds good, glad you’ll start over. I like your frame feeders and I think insulation is a good idea. An easy diy solution is to put a folded-up move blanket or similar inside a trash bag, and put that on top with a brick to hold it down. In a pinch I’ve also closed the hole in the inner cover so the bees can’t get up in there and stuffed a sweatshirt into a smaller plastic grocery bag and under the peaked roof/lid. The top is where heat would be lost and can turn into deadly condensation inside the hive. You can wrap the sides too but with the top covered it won’t be as critical.
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