Splitting beehives using the Demaree method | Trying something new this year.

This year I am going to try to accomplish two goals by using a swarm control method called the Demaree method. Goal one is to prevent the hives from swarming and goal two is to produce a massive honey harvest. Unlike previous seasons when I split off half of the colony into a separate box; this year I will try to trick the bees into staying put. The more bees in the box, the more nectar collected, the more honey to harvest. Let's hope it all works out.
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This Channel:
Although this beekeeping channel is primarily about beekeeping I am also a quasi pepper who believes in becoming self-sufficient. With that in mind, I have started a garden, planted fruit trees, replaced the hedges in front of my house with blueberry bushes, and have recently built a chicken coop. In short, I will share a lot more than beekeeping on this channel.
A little about me:
I am a person who believes you are never to old to learn something. Be it beekeeping, farming, raising chickens, painting, filming and editing video, making wine, beer, bread, cheese, and other fermentation consumables, play guitar etc... If I see something I want to try I start it immediately. If there is one thing I could choose to pass along to my children this would be it. Never be afraid to try. My wife famously told me once that if you are not willing to be bad at something, you will never be good at it. I am bad at quite a few things.
I hope you find my beekeeping videos fun and entertaining as well as get something out of them. I hope I inspire someone to get out and try something new. If you do enjoy my videos, please take a moment to spread the word about this channel and help it, and myself, grow. Have a great day and BEE Happy!
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Learning Final Cut Pro

[@HiveAlive]

Hi there! I think my last comment got removed as I had included an email address in it so here goes again... We were shocked to see the condition of our pollen patties in this video. Please understand this is not the standard that we expect from our products. We are investigating what could have happened here but in the meantime we would like to resolve this for you so please get in touch with us! We sent you an Instagram message with our email address. Looking forward to hearing from you so we can get you sorted out.

[@BugFarmerBees]

Thank you so much for reaching out. I suspected what happened to me couldn't be a common occurrence because I have heard nothing but great things about your product. The good news is I was able to reconstitute the product by laying them on a cookie sheet and spraying them down with water and covering with plastic wrap for about a half hour. After a week on the hives the patties were completely reconstituted due to humidity in the hive and were mostly consumed by the bees so all is good. The bees seem to like them and the queens are laying up a storm. Overall I am happy with the performance of your product on the hives and will likely try them again in the future. Again, thank you for reaching out to address this issue. I really appreciate it. Take care.

[@nickford5549]

Your packing sucks . That what happened

[@rlfamilyfarm6488]

@@BugFarmerBees @HiveAlive I just received a case of pollen patties in the same condition. Had I not watched this video I would have assumed this was the products natural condition. I will also have to figure out a way to soften them up. Luckily we got hit with a huge snow system so I'll have extra time in the already busy schedule.

[@andrewklahold2880]

I like the hive alive sugar paddies I use them early spring when ever weather breaks in march only one paddy to a hive then that seems to be all they need to make it through the rest of the cold snaps and I think honey bees mandible are strong enough to eat rock candy

[@BellyUpFishGarage]

For anyone wanting to get straight to the splitting - 13:00. This video was a huge help. I've watched several and this was the first one that made what we're doing here click. Thanks!

[@BugFarmerBees]

Awesome. I am glad it was helpful. I managed to harvest 1300 lbs from that bee yard but the Demaree was a lot of work. :-)

[@BellyUpFishGarage]

@@BugFarmerBees I’m a first year beekeeper. Single hive. Trying to decide the best/most reliable way to split this coming spring.

[@bachmanmwb]

This is among the best and simplest videos I've seen so far on the Demaree method. Thank you so much for sharing it!

[@BugFarmerBees]

You are welcome. Those hives produced a ton of honey this year but I have to warn you the Demaree method requires a ton of work.

[@bachmanmwb]

@@BugFarmerBees aside from what you demonstrated, in addition to removing queen cells from the top brood box a week or so later, what additional work should I be prepared for?

[@clarkkent7973]

I have never seen this used. How excited to see how this works!

[@BugFarmerBees]

We will find out together :-)

[@adamsoutdoors]

Looking forward to an update on them. I’m planning a few of them when we get closer here in OH.

[@BugFarmerBees]

I checked them last week and removed about 60 queen cells from the upper boxes and found the girls already back filling with nectar.

[@adamsoutdoors]

@@BugFarmerBees do think it will yield what everyone says? That is my main reason for doing them on some. Want to get the honey benefits with keeping all the bees in one hive.

[@vincentsabol2267]

My name is Vincent from north east ohio. I'm going to try the Demarest this year and I was trying to figure out how to do it with a deep and medium brood chamber and you just showed me how to do it thank you. Love your videos, have a great bee season.

[@BugFarmerBees]

WOOT WOOT for NE Ohio! That is where I was born and raised! We can do our Demaree splits for the first time together and see how it works out. I can say that I have already whacked about 60 queen cells from the upper boxes and the girls are already back filling with honey. Also, I did go back and add an upper entrance shim for the bees to come and go from the upper level.

[@jameszdepski8132]

I hope this works out for you. You've given them a lot of real estate to deal with. The colony you showed us was really just the size of a strong 5 frame nuc., now those numbers are divided. Hopefully you dont get a march cold snap. But you may be successful. I'll stay tuned, same bat time,same bat channel.

[@BugFarmerBees]

Based on what I have seen since this video was filmed I am feeling pretty confident :-). Thanks for sticking around to see how it works out.

[@chanceneal4899]

I agree they are extremely week as a single deep there was no need to do this to them

[@thomasdooher7138]

Fascinating! My new bees are coming in April. I have been reading and watching your vids particularly, to make sure I don’t lose them this time. There are two things I missed last time; check on the bees more frequently than I was (my mentor told me NEVER to open the hive) and make sure they have enough nutrients. I was only giving them sugar water in the dearth and you have to supplement with pollen etc. Thanks for your work.

[@BugFarmerBees]

April is just around the corner. Get the hives set up and make sure you have some food for them. That way you can put them in the box and let them get after it first thing :-) Happy beekeeping.

[@davidlaing7684]

My hive alive patties were moist and packaged like yours. I hope you reached out to them as it maybe a old stock. You can freeze the extra one when you get the replacement.

[@BugFarmerBees]

The Hive Alive folks took very good care of me. :-)

[@jenniferdeghuee7590]

Thanks for the video. A couple of comments on the Demaree method, it's awesome but takes a lot of work. You need to remember to inspect the bottom deep as that Queen can swarm once the box is built out. I love doing the Demaree swarm control method but it can be back breaking, time consuming and uses a lot of equipment. The upside is you can prevent swarming and make a large honey crop. The maneuver you showed on the first colony wasn't strong enough for this method. You want your hive bursting with bees. Additionally you need a nectar flow for the bees to build out the foundation in the deep box with the Queen. I would also be concerned about starvation as neither deep had a lot of stores and because of the low population, you might end up with SHB in your pollen patties. Often, I add an upper entrance and let the bees in the top box make a new Queen (it also gives a way out for the drones). I will run the hive as a 2 Queen colony and boost the bee population even more. After the nectar flow, either do a split, use the Queen for something else or let the queens decide who remains.

[@BugFarmerBees]

Hi Jen. It is a lot of work and I am pretty confident it will work out. I have been back since and the bees are pulling comb quickly in the bottom box and the queen is already laying up half drawn frames. I have removes ~60 queen cells from the upper boxes and the girls are already bringing in the nectar. My flow is in high gear. I will be re-inspecting the entire hive for each demaree tomorrow with a guest beekeeper to make sure the queen still has room to lay. Also the pollen patties were about 90% consumed as of Tuesday of this week. Thank you for all of the pointers and sharing your knowlege of the Demaree method. Between your information and what I learn this season I should be able to really knock it out of the park next season.

[@muraduslu7601]

thanks for the video. An upper entrance would be fine for drones, new queen and even for the worker bees.

[@BugFarmerBees]

I actually went back the next day and added upper entrances to all of the hives with the demaree :-)

[@brianbennett4374]

Good luck. Looking good 👍

[@BugFarmerBees]

Thanks. I really appreciate that. Take care.

[@jonclemons1421]

Can you tell what all was in the deep on top of the 2 supers above the excluderand what was in the top box? And when will you check for queen cells in those top boxes?

[@BugFarmerBees]

The bottom brood box contained only three frames. A brood frame, an empty drawn frame, and a food frame. Above the brood box was a queen excluder, one or two empty supers with empty frames and then another queen excluder. Above the top queen excluder was a medium super with food and brood, and a deep super with the remaining 7 frames of brood, food, and eggs from the initial brood chamber and three empties to finish out the box. I went back the next week (next weeks video) to check on them and removed about 60 queen cells from the top boxes.

[@lindaferguson593]

What did you use on the outside of the boxes that appear as a natural wood color? Thanks!!

[@BugFarmerBees]

Hi Linda. The Bee Castle hives are wax dipped. So far they have held up well. After the first season in the sun they don't look as pretty but they are still tight and water proof. Thanks for stopping in to have a look and for taking the time to comment, I really appreciate you. Take care.

[@jamesdygert4656]

How do the drones get out of the top? Thanks for the videos

[@BugFarmerBees]

Great question. I address it in next weeks video but I'll tell you now if you promise to tune in next week :-). I went back the next day with an upper entrance for each of the hives :-)

[@richardkuhn4358]

Good job

[@BugFarmerBees]

Thanks Richard.

[@BrianCooper901]

Very cool! I'm doing something similar and I'll be checking my upper boxes for queen cells this weekend unfortunately the weather is cooler but you have to stay on their schedule!

[@BugFarmerBees]

I know right. My bees hadn't built any swarm cells yest but they were getting close. I am watching them very closely. :-)

[@PennsylvaniaBeekeeper]

No wax moths! What is your method for storing frames of comb?

[@BugFarmerBees]

It if funny you asked. I actually used Para-Moth from Mann Lake last fall and stacked them in the basement with a pile of moth crystals on a piece of burlap every 4 boxes. This spring I aired out the boxes for a couple of days before giving them to the bees and everything worked out. Here is an Amazon link: a.co/d/30DCm4P

[@IsaiahBerry-q4u]

Why do you use two queen excludes if your not trying to requeen the top boxes?

[@BugFarmerBees]

The goal is for the nurse bees to finish raising the brood in the top boxes above the queen excluder while the queen believes she has swarmed and has plenty of room to continue while the flow kicks off. The upper excluder is there to protect the hive from having two queens (which would cause a swarm and defeat the purpose of this internal split) if the nurse bees make queen cells and I fail to remove them in the next couple of weeks. My goal is to have one queen and a massive population of workers in the hive during the flow.

[@beverlysteen]

Do you have a separate entrance for the top most box?

[@BugFarmerBees]

I came back the next day an added an upper entrance. Now the drones can fly :-)

[@vincentsabol2267]

I watched your video on Demarest again and I was wondering why did you put a excluder on top

[@BugFarmerBees]

The upper excluder was placed to stop any queen that accidentally hatched in the upper box from getting to the bottom and causing a swarm. So far I have removed almost 70 queen cells from the upper boxes. As soon as the brood is all hatched I will remove the upper excluder.

[@JohnWhite-gq1wy]

Don't you need a separate entry for top box?

[@BugFarmerBees]

I actually went back the next day with an upper entrance for each box. :-)

[@kevinkessell3540]

what strength magnet do you use to hold your hive tool? Hope all the splits all work out.

[@BugFarmerBees]

here is the one i use. it is a fishing magnet with the eye cut off. a.co/d/0DupVUP

[@AranMiller]

@@BugFarmerBees @kevinkessell3540 Thank you for asking and answering this question. I was going to ask the exact same one.

[@11PiedPiper]

How are the upper bees entering and leaving the hive?

[@BugFarmerBees]

I went back the next day and added an upper entrance. :-)

[@noahG82]

I had the opposite issue with my hive alive pollen patties. Mine were almost all melted into goo... I've started getting global patties with the Apis Biologix. They seem to be perfect consistency! Hope everything works out for you, and thanks for the video!

[@BugFarmerBees]

I will have to give those a try. Usually I make my own but I wanted to try "the good stuff" this year and it bit me in the butt. :-)

[@rtxhoneybees]

Thank you for demonstrating the Demaree. I am wanting to try it on a couple hives. I do have one concern though. I assume you will be harvesting honey in the top box as that is one of the ways you get the extra honey. What is the history of the honey you moved up there? Did you feed sugar water? Did you treat? I always take great care to make sure I am harvesting and selling only real, untreated, and unadulterated honey. I am not sure how you do this with the Demaree. Thoughts?

[@BugFarmerBees]

I did not harvest from that yard because it was their first season and they had a ton of comb to draw. They kept what they found. They were fed a couple of gallons of 2:1 syrup to top off in the fall but there was very little left in the boxes this spring. Most hives had about a 1/2 to a full frame left which I left in the bottom box as food for the queen and carbohydrates necessary for the girls in the bottom to draw the empty frames. The honey is clean :-)

[@rtxhoneybees]

@@BugFarmerBees Thanks. My gut tells me to leave any honey in the bottom so as not to risk having any adulterated or treated honey in the top. However, that is more challenging than it sounds because single deeps tend to have honey over the top of most frames, even the ones with brood that need to be moved up.

[@framcesmoore]

Ha I am doing the same this year this is gret. Hope it works out good for u and me

[@BugFarmerBees]

Fingers are crossed. We have to be willing to try new things to see what works :-)

[@Stuff-Does-Happen]

New to beekeeping here, starting my first hive within a month. Question, instead of doing a Demaree split, why not just give them another deep brood box? So then you'd have, from the bottom up, DD QE MM? What would the difference be? D QE MM QE D? It seems like more work to do a Demaree if you're trying to get honey also. Maybe for making nucs easier but even then. Maybe I'm wrong though? Still kind of confused about this method. Does this make 2 queens? Like 2 hives stacked on top of each other? Would this be better to keep multiple hives other than setting up each hive individually? As soon as I typed this out you said "Now the reason is to prevent swarming" lol. But couldn't you do that also by just adding another deep brood box on the bottom/ removing swarm cells?

[@BugFarmerBees]

Yes, the reason for the demaree is to prevent swarming. Every spring the bees go through a massive build up. Usually for me, the build-up is at it's peak just before the flow kicks off. Without doing either a split or (I am hoping it works) a demaree split, the bees will want to swarm because they have a huge population in the box. I have tried exactly what you propose in past seasons and the bees swarmed anyway. Just removing queen cells and adding boxes doesn't kill the urge for them to swarm. There are other methods like adding boxes and checker-boarding empty frames in every other position but that too has failed for me in the past. The only thing that has ever worked for me is to actually split the hives and remove the queen. The only problem with this is the remainder of the bees in the hive have to build a new queen cell, wait for it to hatch, and wait for her to mate before she can begin laying again. The issue with all of that waiting is the field bee population will dwindle as the flow reaches high gear. Every day we wait for the new queen we are missing about 1500 new bees daily from being born into the hive. I chase the Demaree this year because it give the bees the feeling like they have already swarmed by heavily reducing the hive population around the queen while keeping the entire population of bees in the hive. Yes, it is more work, but I hope it creates massive bee populations and an extra box or two of honey per colony. Sorry for the long answer but that is my rationale. Welcome to beekeeping by the way. I hope four first season goes well. Just remember when inspecting your hive to take it slow and steady. Bee can't hear but they do react to vibrations. Always remember, slow is fast. Take care.

[@jimjim7708]

From my experience, which is little, it helps to put at least one empty drawn comb down below because they may not see those empty frames as space and swarm.

[@BugFarmerBees]

You are correct. The biggest issue I have been having so far is the girls are drawing out comb in the brood box and filling it with honey. I have to keep finding drawn empty comb for the queens to lay.

[@EfrataHoneyBees]

It was fun... you doing and explaining this process. An option as an additional twist would have been to allow a few of the hives to use the top box of bees with an entrance which would allow them to actually become their own colony and then make their queen and she could get out for her mating voyage so you could do a walkaway split if you need to. Just a thought! Or are you just interested in them backfilling with honey?

[@BugFarmerBees]

I guess my goal is to just create a huge colony and pack the boxes with honey. I have since gone back and provided an upper entrance so they can get out without going through the brood nest. Maybe I will create a two queen hive and see what happens :-)

[@EfrataHoneyBees]

@@BugFarmerBees sounds good. share how that goes. Bee Blessed!

[@gregroberts6396]

Bug farmer wanted to know was there a reason why you put 2 queen excluders in the demaree method you showed us? I understood the one above the queen but you put another above the 2 honey supers. Thanks Greg

[@BugFarmerBees]

Sure. The nurse bees attending to the uncapped brood and eggs in the upper two boxes cannot smell the queen pheromone and will create queen cells. If I miss a cell and one hatched there will be two queens in the box and therefore a swarm situation. After the two upper boxes are all hatched and back filled I will remove the upper entrance.

[@gregroberts6396]

Thank you. That is a great idea in case you miss a queen cell.

[@jamesruan913]

You don’t explain how the upper box that am guessing makes Queen cell then hatches ,but don’t see exit or entrance for her to leave the hive for her mating flight ? Or I’ve I got what your trying to do all wrong?

[@BugFarmerBees]

I forgot to mention it in the video but did address it in next weeks video. I came back the following day and added and upper entrance and came back a week later and eliminated all queen cells from the upper boxes. Now there is only one queen in the bottom box and the top boxes are being back filled with nectar. Thanks for taking the time to drop a comment and seek clarification. Take care.

[@Manuherikiabeekeeping]

Lol, ive recently had a similar thing with a pollen patty batch from a New Zealand supplier called Ecrotek and thier vitahive pattys which like your hive alive ones could pass for bricks😳😂( im in southern New Zealand) fortunately i also brought megabee pattys as well from the same place and they were perfect. I use the vitahive pattys in a recombine mix that i blend with honey over a low heat and thats my fix but i think they might have been stored incorrectly at the store i brought them from. I use hive alive fondant in my hives and its fantastic 😃 really easy to feed and great results but i don't think we have the Patty's here from them in New Zealand, which is a blasted shame because id really like to try them, ive had such great results with thier fondant. Glad hive alive reached out to you to resolve it in the comments 👍

[@BugFarmerBees]

I have never used fondant but have heard of people having great overwintering results with it. Until Hive-alive hit the scene I generally make my own pollen patties with dry pollen sub mixed with some 1:1 sugar syrup. The bees seem to get everything they need from them and I usually get a huge brood bump in a few weeks after placing them.

[@brianpalmer3939]

Did you already find queen cells in this hive? I'm very surprised based off there only being 4 frames of brood. The Demaree method is swarm control after finding queen cells, not a method of splitting.

[@BugFarmerBees]

No queen cells but a lot of tea cups. The medium box that I pulled off was packed with bees and 8 full frames of brood. One week after the split I pulled about 60 queen cells from the hives. Bees swarm early in my area especially when the flow starts. I just picked a swarm from a tree yesterday in the home bee yard. Anyway, the hives at the farm are doing great. I have a follow up video coming out on Friday.

[@dougstucki8253]

I think I might try the Randy Oliver method, which is to just do the split like normal. Let the other colony build out, and then recombine right before the nectar flow. Now you have n extra queen you can either sell or just put into a mini nuc as a backup.

[@BugFarmerBees]

I may give that a try next season. I am always up for trying new methods. I will be splitting my Demaree boxes after harvest.

[@bamabilly7816]

I see you are switching to white boxs im in alabama and love bugs are bad here and they love white and dont seem to like the stained ones im useing as much.just a heads up if your around this area

[@BugFarmerBees]

Honestly I just use what I have. I didn't have any spar varnish on hand but had a whole gallon of exterior white paint. :-). As for love bugs, we are fortunate. They seemed to have traveled the pan handle from Florida to Alabama and skipped us here in Ga. At least the metro Atlanta area. :-)

[@Lsmith-ly2cm]

What State are you in ? Thank you for the video

[@BugFarmerBees]

Georgia. :-)

[@WildwoodsBeekeeping]

First, Great Video!

[@BugFarmerBees]

Thanks a ton. I appreciate it.

[@reddivrbob]

Hi there Bug, Just watched this for the 2nd time, and noticed that your hive stands are different from your video on building them. Fewer cross bars. Did you find them not necessary, or was that because of rushing to complete before setting up the new yard? I only ask because I just built 4 per the original video and need to build more. Less wood, less expense.😊

[@BugFarmerBees]

A little of both I guess. I was in a rush and they are holding up so far. I will say the original design is much stronger than what I have in the new yard. If I had more wood available when I needed to build the 20 stands for the new bee yard I would have built them by the original design. I appreciate the two views :-) Thanks for being out there.

[@reddivrbob]

Thanks for the quick reply as I'm in need of building more for out yards using double deep brood boxes and deep supers. Hoping they will need the support (very heavy supers?🤞🤑) Thanks for the videos, as always informative and entertaining.@@BugFarmerBees P.S. Glad to see HiveAlive was willing to step up.

[@chuckroast7053]

I wanted to try this method, but it seems the hives will end up taller than normal. That is a lot of lifting when inspecting or honey extracting. Everyone is different, so I just want to let people know how I felt about this method. I did try the Pagden method on one of my hives, and so far, its working pretty good. I love your videos, so please keep us updated on it goes for you.

[@BugFarmerBees]

I was warned that it is a lot of work but If I can manage to get a record harvest from this bee yard this year it will be worth all the trouble. I like to try new things :-)

[@meloneycrews]

We have done the true Demaree method for the last 2 years and its tall boxes for sure but we couldn’t have done it without our hive lifter! That was our saving grace!!

[@jack00scarecrow]

great video, the patties look old.

[@BugFarmerBees]

After soaking them in water an placing them in a plastic bag they softened up okay. I have since been back and the bees seem to be enjoying them.

[@karenpruitt6833]

I thought that too. Wondered if he could call manufacturer w/ batch number, and see what year they were made.

[@fabiandiaz8342]

Make sure you make a drone scape from the top boxes

[@BugFarmerBees]

I went back the next day and added an upper entrance shim. :-)

[@saintjohncoleman8602]

My hive alive pollen patties arrived soft and squishy..

[@BugFarmerBees]

I wish mine did. Were yours wrapped or just open in a box?

[@heavymechanic2]

Hey BUG, I just ordered in a 40# box of BeePro and it was wrapped in plastic. It works well to store patties in a cool location wrapped in plastic.. I think its too early to split the nest unless the hive is packed out. Placing a super on top would have been my preferred option until the bees start to draw comb. Two supers in the Demaree is my suggestion because you have a lot of foundation to draw out. There is a Fake Queen product to place pheromone in the top to prevent pulling queen cells, its worth checking into to prevent a rouge queen.. Those supers were a healthy investment.

[@BugFarmerBees]

I have heard from several people the Hive Alive was sent to me via a reseller. I don't know if the reseller received them in bulk and in plastic then removed, split, and tossed them in a box without plastic. Either way, They had the Hive Alive name on them so the issue lies with them in my opinion. As far as the demaree being early, well, maybe. The problem I have each year is the bees go from not ready to split --to swarming everywhere overnight. I really needed to make it happen before my bees flew away. So far it has worked out well. The hives are packed with bees and they are drawing comb and bringing in the nectar. The supers and frames were a big investment but I need to start building my equipment inventory. That isn't all I purchased either. There are more surprises to come :-)

[@BlanchardsBees]

Can't say I've heard of this method before. Hope it works out well 🐝🐝

[@BugFarmerBees]

The girls are already filling the boxes! woot woot. The whole purpose if to set up a massive hive to take full advantage of the flow.

[@BlanchardsBees]

@BugFarmerBees my luck the queen would somehow end up in my supers 😆

[@patrickmcauley151]

All the way from Ireland 10 years ago

[@BugFarmerBees]

Nice to have you aboard. Thank you for stopping in to have a look. :-)

[@bamabilly7816]

I bought a vac like you looks like it will work good

[@BugFarmerBees]

I use it much more than I thought I would. It really is a game changer for us in the beetle belt :-)

[@johnmitchell8170]

Doubt there is much pollen left in those patties. They have a limited shelf life before the protein levels will start to drop. Drying out doesn't help. They are probably just consuming for the sugar content.

[@BugFarmerBees]

:-(. That makes me sad. The good news is the trees are the farm are in bloom and the girls are bringing in tons of the real thing :-)

[@DialedN_07]

I hear the phrase split a lot. Not sure how it got started. It's the Demere method for swarm control. Not a split. I really don't want to sound too harsh but holy smokes doing a Demaree on EVERY hive is not a good idea. In order for this method to be successful, you hive must be boiling over, making queen cells or about to start. These methods often fail due to a lack of bees. I really really hope this works out for you, but I really doubt 100% of those hives were large enough for a Demaree. None that I saw in the video appeared to be ready.

[@BugFarmerBees]

My fingers are crossed and we will know soon. My goal was to get them split before the flow ramped up and in my area the flow has ramped up. I went back last week and the hives were packed with bees. I hope they keep it up. Thanks for stopping in and I appreciate the information. Take care.

[@meloneycrews]

Absolutely! A true Demaree you shouldn’t be moving eggs and larva up from my understanding🤷‍♀️

[@DialedN_07]

@@meloneycrews no exactly the opposite in fact. Capped brood should be left down below with the queen as it will emerge almost immediately and provide the queen with attendants and nurse bees. All eggs and larve should be moved up. The brood odor will draw the nurse bees up to the top box. Creating even more room for the queen down below and breaks the feeling of the hive being packed. The queen will sense empty space and feel the urge to repopulate.

[@jenniferdeghuee7590]

Exactly

[@jenniferdeghuee7590]

@@meloneycrews It is my understanding you move every frame from the original brood box except the frame the Queen is on. Need to check that frame for queen cells and remove if present. A week after doing the maneuver you go into the top deep and cut out any queen cells they make. Another option is to add an upper entrance and let the top box make a new Queen. kzbin.info/www/bejne/o4KZdHhuo6iVfrM&ab_channel=NHBKATraining

[@johnmorris3941]

You could eliminate walking with the boxes by using a hand truck...moving 5-6 boxes at a time from the truck to the hive.

[@BugFarmerBees]

There is an idea. :-)

[@fabiandiaz8342]

The patties should be inside a plastic bag to keep the moisture in

[@BugFarmerBees]

I agree 100%

[@chanceneal4899]

You have done it correctly with that said you did it way to early 😢 I hope you would post an update id like to see how they fair out

[@BugFarmerBees]

The update will be released next Friday :-).

[@andrewklahold2880]

The stiffer and drier the paddies are less chance of having hive Beatles laying beatle larve in them, yes i think the bees can eat them they have mandibles that can break rock candy

[@BugFarmerBees]

Fortunately I was able to soften the patties for the girls while the BS-5K kept the beetles away :-)

[@andrewklahold2880]

@@BugFarmerBees what is a beetle sucker

[@chanceneal4899]

I believe this is extremely early to do one I hope the hive fairs out need

[@BugFarmerBees]

The update will be posted next week. I am also going out there today to have a look. I think they are doing fine because my flow if happening in a big way around here.

[@matthunt4512]

They are to be sealed inside of a plastic bag and then placed inside a cardboard box prior to shipping.

[@BugFarmerBees]

Not in my case. I showed them exactly how I received them. Dried out.

[@GLuft3]

George Demaree. Kentucky 1890s. Dema-REE.

[@BugFarmerBees]

Good thing his name wasn't Tiberius like Captain Kirk's middle name :-)

[@wstepnout7215]

Looks like you bought Hive Alive OLD STOCK! I would guess Hive Alive can tell you how old that product is. I'll guess the Amazon seller is only a reseller and not sanctioned by Hive Alive.

[@BugFarmerBees]

All of that my be true but I was purchasing Hive Alive. Their resellers need to be held to quality standards or not be allowed to sell their product. if the patties were wrapped this wouldn't have happened, even through a reseller.

[@CastleHives]

Hive Alive is located in Kentucky. The person selling on Amazon is a third party. I can email Dara and my other contacts though.

[@BugFarmerBees]

It all worked out. I soaked them in water and bagged them and they softened up. After a week in the hives they are about half gone. All that said, they should really wrap the patties and not just toss them in a box. If it is a third party selling their product Hive Alive should enforce product quality control with their vendor or not use resellers. After all, I bought Hive Alive patties not "unknown reseller" pollen patties. Anyway, it's no big deal, in the next video I show the bees have eaten them and all is good. It looks like they do have a good product.

[@andrewklahold2880]

I carry a pare of tweezers for them dm Beatles

[@BugFarmerBees]

I carry the BS-5K. The Beetle Sucker 5000 :-)

[@jimhughes6794]

The good news is you won’t have to worry about hive beetles getting into the pollen patties. Try one without water and see what happens to it.

[@BugFarmerBees]

All of the patties have been place in the hives and the girls are eating them up. I guess water was the key :-)

[@framcesmoore]

Ha dont forget to go back in 7 days and remove any q cells they made up top. or you will have a mess.. Have a great day good luck

[@BugFarmerBees]

Already done :-).. Next weeks video :-)