# Unproductive queen, started a split, how/when do I introduce a queen cup



## Richard Cryberg (May 24, 2013)

Chances are good that your problem has nothing to do with your queen. You lost two hives over winter and now you have a sick hive. Why? That is a hint you are doing something wrong. Or things wrong.

Have you done a mite count by an alcohol wash? If not that is the place to start. Then deal with the mite problem you have. This hive sounds bad enough using MAQS would likely kill it so you need to consider some other effective mite treatment such as apivar or oxalic acid vapor.

Do you see DWV? If so it can take three months after you clean up the mites for the hive to recover decently from this virus.

Does your poor hive have EFB or AFB? If it does deal with the problem. EFB is a reasonable bet based on what you said althou you were way short on details that would allow a diagnosis.

You do not say how much drawn comb these bees have, nor what your current honey flow is like. Do you need to be feeding the weak hive sugar?

Until you deal with the above giving a new queen is a waste of time.


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## DaisyNJ (Aug 3, 2015)

I would follow Richard advice and check for mites or other issues and address them. While doing so, you could also add frame of capped brood to weak hive to keep their numbers up WHILE you are addressing the root of the problem. 

Richard - Assuming OPs takes aim at the root of the problem, I heard queen replacement helps expedite recovery as existing queen herself may have been badly infected with DMV (if that is the case). Isnt it ?


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## kaizen (Mar 20, 2015)

Larry.......Richard is on the money. she most likely is not laying sporadically but that the colony opening and removing mite infested brood. I would definitely treat them.
Second....lets get the terms right. queen cups are found all the time on hives. you are hoping to get queen cells that are drawn out and sealed. on the split if you have a few frames each with a cell then you can move one of those frames to this trouble hive after pinching off the queen. but as said you have another problem that should be addressed.


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## Daniel Y (Sep 12, 2011)

depending on how weak it is. In combination with a failed queen. I would consider this a lost colony. I would also agree that you have something wrong going on. I will not go into what or what to do about it since there is in no way enough information to be assuming what might be wrong. You made a split. let it be a split and manage it accordingly. I would be watching for additional cells to be produced from that split and maybe use them in an attempt to salvage the failing colony. that would depend on it's current strength. I would not throw additional resources at it. I don't agree with attempts to save every queen that is not able to cut the grade. I certainly would not put resources to an already failed queen. Maybe use what bees are left to boost a split. Use the bees that remain yes. try to save it as a colony, no. And absolutely no producing a new queen from it.


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## Tenbears (May 15, 2012)

kaizen said:


> Second....lets get the terms right. queen cups are found all the time on hives. you are hoping to get queen cells that are drawn out and sealed. .


Thank You Kaizen! It is far easier to understand and direct if one knows what is really going on And miss use of terminology can be very misleading.


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## Tenbears (May 15, 2012)

Everything everyone has said could be spot on. However there is a lot of assuming. It could simply be a failing or poorly bred queen!


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