Flow frames still empty

This is my 2nd brood box, the bottom deep is full with brood here are the pics from the top box. I have the queen excluder above this box and the flow frames above it. They havent done anything in it yet. Do youn think it is a matter of time. Or are they running out of space and it is an issue they havent taken to the flow yet

![image|230x500]

(upload://yzmz3KebpdLDQwG1GM1sdS1pxHE.jpg)

imageimage

2 Likes

Wow, your bees are amazingly tidy! No bridge comb or anything messy - very nice.

It looks to me like there is still some space in that box, and they have put a nice arc of honey over the top of the brood nest. Did you put some wax onto the Flow frames? That helps a lot with getting them up into the Flow super.

2 Likes

I just rubbed some burr comb and honey on them today

That should help a lot. Nice photos, by the way. Makes it a lot easier to answer a question like yours. :wink:

If they haven’t done anything in the Flow box I believe it is “better luck next year” for the mid-Atlantic.

1 Like

Hi Vince, @Bianca (honey flow team) has some advice that entails using only one brood box. I’m setting my flow hive up to only use one brood box. By the time the bees fill the second brood box, they could have filled the flow super.

In maryland. Everyone has instructed the need of 2 brood boxes first because of colder climate

Hi Vince, I agree your frames are looking beautiful and clean. Can I ask what they are looking like in the first brood box? Bees in your top box are not looking very numerous, this may explain why they are not up in your Flow super, to maintain 2 brood boxes and a honey super you will need either a very large nectar flow or 2 brood boxes full of bees, the population just doesn’t look like enough bees to me.

Hi @Vince_Fillah,

Once again, very effective photos, thank you. And thank you @JeffH for passing on my recommendations.

I understand your concern Vince and agree that you should maintain what your local and experienced beekeepers recommend in your particular climate/region.

I would also like to acknowledge and agree with @Rodderick that it looks like you simply do not have enough bees, a strong enough colony, for it to make a suitable time to have the Flow Super on top. I recommend removing the Flow Super and only return it when the 2 x brood boxes are completely drawn out with comb and are full with bees to the point that they look similar to the photo below. You may need to wait until next season if you don’t foresee ample remaining flows in the season to offer this.

Brood%20box%20

Bianca

My bottom box is pretty full. My bees did swarm in May, this is my first year bee keeping. I did have a hard time finding the new queen and was afraid they were queenless.

I added the second box since the swarm and those are the pics you see. Are the brood pattern on these frames at least enough to show that the hive is healthy and has a queen.

Like i said i am a rookie, but there wouldnt be that brood post swarm if there wasnt a queen

Fair enough Vince, it looks like the bees have been through a decent honey flow for the faces of the honey on those frames to look so straight & neat. Sometimes in that situation your frames on either side could contain 100% honey. If that’s the case, you might be able to hire or borrow a spinner in order to harvest it.

Your hive does look low in numbers, that could be a result of the recent honey flow burning them out, HOWEVER, upon looking at the health of the brood in those frames, it wont take long before your hive is bursting with bees, especially if the brood frames in the lower box look as good as the brood frames in the top box.

1 Like