I just installed a nuc last week, but have not found any brood anywhere. I did finally find my queen today so I know she is there… any thoughts on the lack of brood?
They do have drawn comb on the 4 frames that came with the nuc, but they are drawing out the remaining frames now… I am feeding them 1:1 sugar syrup. I was just concerned with what I perceived as a lack of brood in the hive. I am a first time beekeeper though so I may have missed eggs down in the cells… I know they are hard to see.
I’d recommend checking again in a 4-7 days. Sometimes the queen just has a short hiatus but if you were just unable to see the eggs, you should see some plump larvae or even capped cells soon.
It takes a bit of practice to see eggs. An led torch can help sometimes, plus a bit of sunlight can also help. You’ll generally find eggs & or larvae in the empty section of comb below the obvious honey arc.
Here’s a decent pic of eggs and larvae - the dark comb makes it easier to spot them. The more you study pictures in your spare time, the more likely you’ll be to catch the curve of a tiny young larva or the presence of an egg, which although miniscule is solid as compared to a glint of light at the base of an empty cell.
When you check next time you could also take pics of central frames and then zoom in and look at them after your inspection.
Hi All,
We installed our new NUC last Saturday on a 60 degree F day. It is now Friday and the next three days are to be unseasonable cold with the night time temps getting down to 30 degrees F and daytime highs around 40-50. Do we need to put a bee cozy wrap around the hive during the night? Second question, I have a protein patty on the frames and an in hive feeder with sugar syrup above, I’m thinking the syrup will be too cold for the bees, will the protein patty be enough for three days until the temps raise to normal 60-70 F again?
Thanks!!
I think a bee cozy will be a big help, so go for it. I put mine back on for a few days after taking them off earlier on too!
Re food, nucs usually come with two frames of honey plus what’s in the upper corners of the brood frames, so I think your bees will be alright without the syrup during the cold snap. And the patty is good insurance. I’m not sure if it’s really a problem to leave the feeder in though honestly…might not matter 
