As a follow up. Introduced new queen last week. Tried to find old queen, went through all frames twice and rebuilt from one box to the other. Couldn't find old queen.
Swapped top and bottom box over by emptying bottom box, shaking bees off top box frame and putting into bottom box. Then put back on base. Blocked entrance. This was to change bee spacings causing issues as one box was overseas and other nz box so the spacings together were getting badly bridged by wax
Then went through other frames. Still No queen found.
Put QE on bottom box, added empty top box and shook frames in and sieved them checking as I went.
Sieving never seems to work. Smoking them down has them boiling out the top.
No queen seen. Put frames in leaving QE in place.
Added new queen between two brood frames with entrance pointed upwards in bottom box.
Closed boxes. All accomplished with very aggressive bees trying hard to make my life a misery.
Was late getting back to the hive to check new queen. 5 visits to ED for kid and 2 trips to school for other kid. Bad week. Both ok now.
Opened top box today, moved it away. Checked excluder. Dead queen on excluder. Smaller than expected but I had found queen cells last week so maybe slimming.
Checked new queen. Still in cage with dead attendants. Marshmellow still in place.
Open cage up and she walked onto my hand. Bees immediately took interest. Seemed happy not aggressive. Shes now in the hive. I'm thinking the old queen smell was gone as shes been dead a while and new queens pheromones are in place.
Will check next week.
Bees still a little tetchy but no where near as bad as last two times. Maybe a calm queen calms by pheromone and not just breeding.
Swapped top and bottom box over by emptying bottom box, shaking bees off top box frame and putting into bottom box. Then put back on base. Blocked entrance. This was to change bee spacings causing issues as one box was overseas and other nz box so the spacings together were getting badly bridged by wax
Then went through other frames. Still No queen found.
Put QE on bottom box, added empty top box and shook frames in and sieved them checking as I went.
Sieving never seems to work. Smoking them down has them boiling out the top.
No queen seen. Put frames in leaving QE in place.
Added new queen between two brood frames with entrance pointed upwards in bottom box.
Closed boxes. All accomplished with very aggressive bees trying hard to make my life a misery.
Was late getting back to the hive to check new queen. 5 visits to ED for kid and 2 trips to school for other kid. Bad week. Both ok now.
Opened top box today, moved it away. Checked excluder. Dead queen on excluder. Smaller than expected but I had found queen cells last week so maybe slimming.
Checked new queen. Still in cage with dead attendants. Marshmellow still in place.
Open cage up and she walked onto my hand. Bees immediately took interest. Seemed happy not aggressive. Shes now in the hive. I'm thinking the old queen smell was gone as shes been dead a while and new queens pheromones are in place.
Will check next week.
Bees still a little tetchy but no where near as bad as last two times. Maybe a calm queen calms by pheromone and not just breeding.
