Definitely a good start Alfred & each day that goes by is closer to retirement when you will find you have even less time for some reason!!
Adam, sounds like a really good result but being a bit thick, Im not quite picturing your process of putting the queen at the side of existing colony, do you mean in a nuc on the side or actually in brood box but cut-off?!
I checked my 4 today and found and marked my new queen in one and used my plunger thing to try and chop a part of her wing off??!! I didn't manage to do it properly just managed to cut a tip off I think but did mark her!! I actually found a couple of swarm cells in this colony which is odd being such a new queen which has laid about 3 frames of eggs already so I added a super of undrawn comb and left out queen excluder to encourage them to draw out comb and to give them some room, I doubt I will get any honey off it this year!!
My others seem okay but seem to have scoffed some of the uncapped homey they had put in!!
They were all in a very good mood!!
Adam, sounds like a really good result but being a bit thick, Im not quite picturing your process of putting the queen at the side of existing colony, do you mean in a nuc on the side or actually in brood box but cut-off?!
I checked my 4 today and found and marked my new queen in one and used my plunger thing to try and chop a part of her wing off??!! I didn't manage to do it properly just managed to cut a tip off I think but did mark her!! I actually found a couple of swarm cells in this colony which is odd being such a new queen which has laid about 3 frames of eggs already so I added a super of undrawn comb and left out queen excluder to encourage them to draw out comb and to give them some room, I doubt I will get any honey off it this year!!
My others seem okay but seem to have scoffed some of the uncapped homey they had put in!!
They were all in a very good mood!!