Installation Day

I was an excited mess the two weeks before my bees were ready for pick-up. Having purchased a nucleus colony (aka nuc) from one of the BANV members, I was fairly certain they would be well maintained and cared for until handed over to me. Until that time, the GF and I busied ourselves with getting everything ready for their arrival. We built/painted the hive and assembling the frames (by the way, I recommend using a frame jig and nail gun. It speeds up construction). Then I cleared a space in the drain field at the family homestead, set the hive out, and planted several bee-friendly plants. After that, it was a long waiting period with a lot of reading and pacing.

About two weeks before they were ready to come home, the reality of what I'd done suddenly set in. No longer was my dabbling in beekeeping an interesting icebreaker at parties, but a no-kidding, actual event. There was more than one night where I stared at the ceiling wondering what in the world I'd gotten myself in to.

The call that the bees were ready for pick-up came on a warm Friday in mid-May. I was at work when our Education Guru phoned me, so I jumped in the truck and zipped out to her house. It was quite the eye-opener to arrive at her home and see several cardboard boxed sitting in her carport, all zooming with honeybees. Since I'd just come from the office, I was still in my business suit and realized that I had been so excited, I'd completely forgotten the keeper outfit at the house. The EG smiled as I stood frozen in her driveway and said not to worry; the bees were extremely gentle. Her words fell on deaf ears because it suddenly dawned on me that there was no going back. These bees were going home with me with or without a keeper suit.

The EG sealed the girls up and then handed over the cardboard box. It was about four times the size of a shoebox and you could hear all 15,000 some-odd girls buzzing inside. There was a ventilation screen on both ends and it was fascinating to watch their proboscis (tongues) sticking out, feeling around for food and water. We loaded them into the back of the truck and then Pat told me to drive straight home and put them in a cool place. It was warm outside and with the box sealed, there was the threat of them overheating. The best thing to do, she said, was to put them in a cool, dry place as soon as possible.

The drive home was slow for fear of disturbing the girls, but eventually all 15,001 of us made it without incident. I left them in the truck bed, but kept the truck in the garage (which was easily 15 degrees cooler than outside), and went in to change. P and the GF arrived shortly behind us and we collected all our gear/tools while the girls cooled down. P sprayed some water on the vents and then we loaded the ladies into the wheelbarrow suited up. Once set, we all headed to the apiary.

Funny anecdote: the tape on the bottom of the nuc came loose so when we started moving the wheelbarrow, the box got bent just enough to allow a couple bees to escape. We closed/taped the hole immediately, but had a few followers the whole way. What's interesting is that after a few laps of the three keepers, all of them landed on the nuc and held on for dear life. Must have been the queen pheromone. Or the raw terror of realizing who their new keeper was.

The Actual Installation was. . . . .

. . . . pretty easy. Having helped P install packaged bees, the nuc truly was a walk in the park. Once we got to the hive, we popped the top off and removed all the frames out of the bottom super. Then we removed the top of the nuc and slowly extracted each of the five frames, installing them one at a time in the empty super. I'll admit to being tentative and slow, more out of fear than anything, but between the three of us, we got all frames into the hive quickly. Then we added three more frames (8-frame gear) and buttoned everything up. Start to finish, it took us maybe 30 minutes which included some whimpering on my part.

Soon after the installation, the air in front of the hive was swarming with bees. P claims this was due to orientation flights and it was an impressive sight to see. By evening things had settled down, but for a while there, things were pretty active.

A good lesson learned from this experience is that for a new beekeeper, nucs are a very good way to go. Packages are fun to install and usually a little cheaper, but for the money I think a nuc is easier to install and a lot safer for someone ignorant of the sport. Packages can run the risk of not accepting a queen and there are debates about the speed it takes for them to build up foundation and populations, so starting off it can be a lot for a newbie. That's not to say it isn't worth it and those that choose packages can certainly be successful, but nucs are basically ready to go. That being said, below is a bulleted pro/con for each and you can decide which you prefer.

Summary: Packages vs Nucs for a new beekeeper

Packages Pros:
- Usually less expensive.
- Very fun to install. You get to spray and shake bees as well as see up close what the queen looks like (markings and all).
- Can be mailed through the postal office. I'm not sure how the workers feel about a shoebox full of buzzing bees sitting in their offices, but some companies will mail them.
- Very educational. Proof positive how gentle "installed" bees can be.
- Considered by some to be a "rights of passages" for a new beekeeper.
- Normally inspected for health. A reputable dealer will do this, but just make sure to ask.

Packages Cons:
- Bees sometimes do not accept the queen. This is often because the queen and bees are from different hives, so it takes a while for them to accept her as "mom".
- Can take a while for the bees to adjust to the new home. This includes drawing foundation and building brood which can slow production down initially. Queen is not laying yet.
- Packages tend to come from southern states because they get a jump on warm weather. This can be an issue for cold weather states since they are not adapted to the temperatures. Some experts encourage buying local bees and there are companies/individuals all over the place, but as mentioned above, make sure they are inspected by the state for health. (Disclaimer: warm-state bees can be just as successful as local ones. I only mention this as a con since there are debates about cold vs warm weather and honeybee adaptability).

Nuc Pros:
- Bees are ready to go. You usually get 5 frames of them with a laying queen they have accepted. It's basically a mini hive with drawn comb and bees ready to forage.
- Extremely easy to install.
- Inspected for health. The box should have a sticker from the state.
- Great for a new beekeeper (my opinion).

Nuc Cons:
- Usually have to buy and pick up locally. Beekeepers are all over the place, but finding one that sells nucs made be difficult depending on where you are.
- Run the risk of killing the queen if you're sloppy (i.e. slamming a frame, etc). This can happen with packages, but I note it since it is a con.
- Risk of unhealthy/infected bees. Again, ensure your wrangler is inspected by the state.
- Tend to be more expensive.
- Tend to be in high demand and limited supply. If you want to go this route, let your seller know early.


In the end, the choice is personal and both can be very effective/successful. The best thing you can do is educate yourself and decide which fits you best. But no matter what, either one is very enjoyable.