# installing Bees



## brianbonner (May 10, 2012)

When installing my bees I had a mishape trying to remove the cork in the queen cage, it ended up pushing it inside thee cage. When I checked today she had not gotten free but her helpers had escaped I jiggled the cage until the cork was out of her way and when moving it back to the hive she flew out! Is this a problem? wont she join her fellow bes like the ones from the package? How big a deal is this?


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## Greg Lowe (Feb 3, 2012)

She may come back to the hive but you may want to start looking for a replacement.


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## Annabee (Jul 25, 2013)

How many hives do you have?

I'd say there's a lot better chance of a happy ending for her if its just one or two .. but you def want to check and see if shes made it in. There's places that are selling queens, you might need to be ready to order one for immediate shipment if she isn't in there over the next couple days.


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## brianbonner (May 10, 2012)

just the one TBH but better call my bee gal


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## fruitveggirl (Mar 8, 2013)

Yes, definitely get a replacement. Also, I'd recommend another hive. It's great to have two on location for emergencies. If you can't get another package now, consider splitting your hive when it's stronger.


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## mrobinson (Jan 20, 2012)

Patience ... she may well have flown back! (Where _else_ could she go?) 

Don't borrow trouble. A queen apart from her suitors is a dead-bee, and so she'll probably find the entrance lickety-split and get back inside. If she does not make it, you'll know soon enough. But meanwhile, "don't assume."


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## brianbonner (May 10, 2012)

mrobinson said:


> Patience ... she may well have flown back! (Where _else_ could she go?)
> 
> Don't borrow trouble. A queen apart from her suitors is a dead-bee, and so she'll probably find the entrance lickety-split and get back inside. If she does not make it, you'll know soon enough. But meanwhile, "don't assume."


This is how I felt about it, but I do not trust my instincts yet 

I try never to ASSuME


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## mrobinson (Jan 20, 2012)

Actually, when it comes to self-sufficient wild creatures such as honeybees, it probably is safest to "trust the bees" than to trust your thoughts of what the bees might be, should be, or could be doing. A honeybee's natural home is: a tree. (In a pinch, a wall or the eaves of a house will do nicely.) Somehow, swarms do manage to survive in all those places without a lick of human good-intentions. Hence, if we place them in an artificial situation that is intended to approximate a natural one – an hTBH is just a funny-shaped "space in a wall" – and basically just _leave them alone_ in there most of the time, honeybees will prove themselves to be remarkably maintenance-free.

Since we _are_ their custodians in this artificial place that we've dumped them into, of course we _do_ need to be attentive ... watching them every day is not only good stewardship but great fun ... we should resist the natural human urge to _meddle_ with them. We anticipate that they will find our artificial-home to be "ideal," and to thrive there. They probably will, and virtually without our "help."


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## brianbonner (May 10, 2012)

mrobinson said:


> Actually, when it comes to self-sufficient wild creatures such as honeybees, it probably is safest to "trust the bees" than to trust your thoughts of what the bees might be, should be, or could be doing. A honeybee's natural home is: a tree. (In a pinch, a wall or the eaves of a house will do nicely.) Somehow, swarms do manage to survive in all those places without a lick of human good-intentions. Hence, if we place them in an artificial situation that is intended to approximate a natural one – an hTBH is just a funny-shaped "space in a wall" – and basically just _leave them alone_ in there most of the time, honeybees will prove themselves to be remarkably maintenance-free.
> 
> Since we _are_ their custodians in this artificial place that we've dumped them into, of course we _do_ need to be attentive ... watching them every day is not only good stewardship but great fun ... we should resist the natural human urge to _meddle_ with them. We anticipate that they will find our artificial-home to be "ideal," and to thrive there. They probably will, and virtually without our "help."


I tend to have this attitude but this is an experiment, so i have to observe. That said I question the amount of food on the mountain at 7000ft is their a spring source of nectar? It seems on my place the pussy willows will give spring nectar & they are not sucking down the sugar water anymore.

These are mutt bees Italian/Carny/Russian so I am very excited to see how they work out in the TBH & next year I will install one in a warre hive


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## brianbonner (May 10, 2012)

The queen is ALIVE found brood cells and drones & I believe they have had numerous orientation flights as well. I did not find the queen but she is obviously at work


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## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

Did you add a replacement queen, or should we presume that the one that flew out of the queen cage referenced in post #1 did eventually return to the hive?


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## brianbonner (May 10, 2012)

Rader Sidetrack said:


> Did you add a replacement queen, or should we presume that the one that flew out of the queen cage referenced in post #1 did eventually return to the hive?


Yes the original Queen that flew out of the cage returned to the hive, probably right after flying out. One problem solved and now I have a chicken dying on me. arg


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## Harley Craig (Sep 18, 2012)

Here is a little gem of info I read from Michael Bush "If the queen flies, the first thing you do is stand still. She will orient on you and probably find her way back. The second thing to do is encourage the bees to guide her back with Nasonov pheromone. To do this,take a frame out that is covered in bees and shake them back into the hive. This will cause them to start fanning Nasonov. Third, if you don’t see the queen fly back in (be watching and you may) then wait ten minutes with the cover of the hive off so she can smell the Nasonov. If you do these three things the odds are very good she will find her way back.

If you didn’t do those things, there is probably a little better than 50/50 chance she will find her way back anywa"


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## mrobinson (Jan 20, 2012)

Trust Nature more than Man.


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