I recieved a new package of bees 1 week ago and they are thriving, bringing in lots of pollen. My question is how long until I do a mite check? I have checked the bottom tray and I cannot see any mites, but I want to do a thorough check and I dont want to disturb the new package too soon. Any advicè would be greatly appreciated.
Hopefully you have already checked on them to make sure that the queen was released?
After that, I would leave them for a week or two, and then see how the frames are doing. At this time of year, if you have a good nectar flow, they may build crazy comb inside the hive. If they do, you need to correct that sooner rather than later, or it will become a big mess.
As far as mite checks go, I wouldn’t worry about it until the bees have a decent brood nest. Mites need capped brood to multiply, so their numbers will initially drop off if you bought a package, because they wouldn’t have anywhere to breed.
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Sound advice from @Dawn_SD, with nothing more to add other than I hope you enjoy your bees and that they thrive!
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Urs, i checked to make sure the queen was released. Thank you for theninfo!
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