How often to inspect a new hive

Beekeeping - Basics
1

Hi Friends
I moved my colony from the Nuc into the flow hive. I was able to see larva at the egg, small, large and capped stages. I couldn’t spot the queen due to the amount of bees but will try again next time. I put in 3 empty frames to fill the remainder of the hive.

I’m just wondering when should I do the next inspection? And how often do you inspect a new hive with a young queen? It is spring time here in Melbourne. I have no concerns but am just really keen to see how they are progressing.

I’ve been watching the entrance every day and there is a fair bit of activity with bees bringinh back pollen. Also it seems some of the bees fly out of the hive only about a foot or so and then land and go straight back in. Do you know what they are doing? They usually face the hive when doing this. Its almost like they are inspecting the outside of the hive

Many Thanks

Jason

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Sound like orientation flights!

If you have no specific concerns then every couple weeks is adequate. For the purpose of learning about the hive’s normal processes you can inspect more often but not more than weekly. You don’t need to inspect every frame every time but you may want to do a full inspection at least twice yearly.

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I agree with @chau06, generally you should not inspect more often than once per week. When you do inspect, it should be because you have a specific question to answer. Common questions might be:

  1. How much food does the hive have?
  2. Do all of the frames have fully drawn comb?
  3. What is the brood pattern like? Is it nice confluent ovals, or is it spotty with gaps (failing queen)?
  4. How much space do the bees have? They will need more when the frames are 80% full of brood, or food and every frame is well-covered with bees.
  5. Are there any queen cells or signs of swarm preparation?
  6. Are there any pests or diseases causing problems?

With a new nucleus, it would be reasonable to leave them alone for 2-3 weeks, depending on the nectar flow. If you have a very strong flow right now, they may already have filled those empty frames that you put in. If there isn’t much of a flow, you could leave them 3 weeks. If you have no idea, I would leave them 1-2 weeks and then check.

I am really glad that your supplier did the right thing and replaced the nucleus. Well done for questioning him. :wink:

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Interesting I’ll do some research.

Thanks for the tips. I’ll probably do another inspection next weekend which will be 2 weeks. I want to get an idea on how fast they are expanding.

Is there a general rule of thumb for predicting a honey flow or is it very area and weather specific

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It is very specific. If you can afford a hive scale, like the Arnia hive scale system, that will make it easier for you. Otherwise, it is very much a matter of local knowledge and “hefting” the hives by lifting one side, or opening up and inspecting if the weather is good.

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Nice :wink: that’s all you need to know queen is there. 2-3 weeks when the flow isn’t on. 1-2 weeks when spring is in full swing is what I do.

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Sounds like a great start Jason! At your next inspection be on the lookout for queen cups and/or queen cells, and the amount of drone comb or how many drones. These are all various signs of swarm preparation that is bound to happen during a strong nectar flow. Have extra equipment ready to do a split if necessary, and/or be ready to place your Flow super on if appropriate.

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