Dear Russian Beekeeper:
Thank you for purchasing a Sweet Mountain Farm Russian Nucleus Colony.
Prior to preparing your colony for travel, an inspection was completed assessing its health and vitality. I visually inspect the colony and verify that the queen is laying. Sometimes during shipment, the queen will stop laying for a few days until the colony becomes acclimated to its new surroundings. Please make sure to hive your colony as soon as possible after a brief rest and read through the following tips for success.
TIPS FOR SUCCESS
- Do not transport your bees in the trunk of a car or the back of a hatchback or van. Transporting by pickup truck is preferred.
- Do not leave your colony in an overheated vehicle or cover the box.
- Provide adequate ventilation during the trip home.
- Let your nuc box sit briefly next to the hive and open the door to settle your colony before hiving.
- Hive your colony into 1 brood box
- Place the frames together in the center of the super with empty or drawn frames to the outside.
- Do not chill the brood.
- The temperature should be above 60 degrees Fahrenheit or above when hiving. If not, provide a dark cool spot and feed until hiving is possible.
- Do not hive if it’s raining.
- Provide a permanent water source that has safe landing areas.
- FEED the colony 1 to 1 sugar/water syrup
- DO NOT continue feeding after the first week when nectar/pollen sources are available.
- Stand over the hive with the nucleus box touching the side of the new hive. Lift the frames straight out and over. Do not walk a few feet to the hive with the frame. Queens can fly away during the transfer.
- Perform 10 day inspections. As the colony adjusts, rotate newly drawn frames to the center.
- Stop rotations once the first super is filled.
- Prepare to super liberally as your colony expands
- Install your entrance reducer on day one with the smallest opening engaged.
- Move the entrance reducer to its largest opening during the first inspection, in 7-10 days.
- Remove the entrance reducer during the 2nd inspection, on day 14-20 and store it away until fall.
- Keep an eye on the colonies honey/pollen stores to make sure the expanding colony is bringing in enough resources to feed the growing population. If not, supplement feed to give your bees a healthy start.
Tracking Sweet Mountain Farms breeding success as well as our customer’s management success is essential to gain positive impact on bee mortality rates in Wisconsin. Please feel free to email me with your questions. New Russian beekeepers can get easily confused with best practices for Russian Bees. Russian behaviors are somewhat different than other bee breeds. Please explore the website for more information.
Once again, thank you for purchasing a Sweet Mountain Farm nucleus colony. I wish you much success. If you have any questions or concerns, please email me directly at sue@sweetmountainfarm.com.
Regards,
Sweet Mountain Farm, LLC
Sue A. Dompke