The club apiary will be staffed every Saturday this summer beginning at 10AM for apiary management and your hands on participation and education. On June 17, 2023, we will be concentrating on queen inspection and evaluation.
Here are a few things to help you decide if you need a queen.
1. No signs of a queen. No eggs or small larva.
2. Drone brood only may indicate a laying worker.
3. Poor quality queen. Sparse brood pattern even with enough bees to manage more brood.
THINGS YOU MUST DO:
1. Look in every frame in the hive.
2. Look for a queen. She may be present but not laying. You cannot introduce a new queen until you get rid of the old one.
3. Determine if you have enough bees to support a queen. Minimum of 3 full frames of bees.
IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO DETERMINE THESE THINGS, YOU MUST SEEK GUIDANCE FROM A MORE EXPERIENCED BEEKEEPER, LOOK FOR SOMEONE IN YOUR BEEBUDDY POD TO LOOK AT YOUR HIVES WITH YOU, OR POST ON THIS FORUM ASKING FOR HELP.