The week is up for checking the first hive that I removed the queen from a week ago - the hive next to the WBC. Out of that hive I made up two nuc boxes and left a queen cell in the brood box too. I took out a frame of capped drone brood that on inspection with an uncapping fork didn't seem to be full of mites.
I put supers on both of Bills hives and marked the queen in the hive at the end that is next to Norman's hive.
I took the queen out of the hive next the first hive I opened -- the bees didn't like that - and took out a frame of drone brood. Found the queen and put her in a new box but as yet haven't marked as she dropped to the hive floor.
I took the queen out of the swarm hive next to the path near the small apple tree. I was about to take that nuc box of bees to Thorpe when the call came through that there was a swarm to pick up. The swarm had just moved into a compost bin that was covered with a sheet. The sheet was easy to pick up and shake into a box. Bowthorpe Compost bees - the first swarm I have picked up this year. I will leave them for a few days before checking for eggs to see if they have a laying queen.
In the end I didn't take last year's swarm queen to Thorpe.
I am due to open Sticky's hive tomorrow and see how many queen cells are there - but must go to Postwick first and pick up the queenless bees there who would I think welcome a queen cell to look after.
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