REGARDING           RE> Rearranging query
 
Regarding the following unsigned post:
"This is my second year with one hive(I'll be setting up one more in a few
weeks) and I was a little worried about them because we'd had such a poor
spring here(Pacific Northwest, rain, cool, rain, cool, etc).
 
Last Sunday a more experienced neighbor came over to give me a hand and
started to take my boxes apart. He scolded me for my error of wintering them
with 2 deeps and one shallow with the excluder on top(I'd left one more
half-filled shallow on TOP of the excluder and added another shallow a few
weeks ago) and, after setting aside the two top shallow supers began to
disassemble the shallow frames below the excluder(all this in cloudy 50
degree weather---the bees were SOME upset!)
 
After removing 5 frames (full of honey and covered with bees) and exposing a
bunch of hatching full growth larvae wich appeared to have been built onto
the bottom of the frames, I finally prevailed on him to let well enough
alone and he replaced one frame of honey(leaving a large hole in that
shallow super)and we put it all back together.
 
He brushed the bees off the 4 combs of honey(mostly capped but quite a bit
uncapped) onto the hive entrance(where they quickly reentered the hive) and
I took those into the house. I noticed, while the hive was open, several
large cells along the bottom of 2 of the frames we removed and one that we
did not(so there may've been even more in the 3 frames we couldn't see(not
to mention the 20 deep BC frames below it).
 
I assume these to've been Q-cells(how does one differentiate from
Drones?)and am wondering at their production. Why there? Why now?
 
So my questions are:
1)Since the bees have had a week to settle down now, should I just leave
well enough alone until my new Queen arrives(2-3 wks)?...or shall I open 'er
up and replace those removed frames with fresh foundation?...or should I
remove a top super or two in hopes they'll force the Queen down so I can
remove this badly placed shallow  or?
 
2)My girls(Buckfast)seem to be healthy and numerous but I wouldn't like to
loose them. The last few days have been sunny but STILL cool(about 58)BUT
they seem to be working on a flow(there are blossoms EVERYWHERE hereabouts).
Does the fact that I saw SOME brood bode well for their continuing stability?
 
3)Its been an unusually cool spring here and I've been hesitant to disturb
them for inspection. Should I continue this cautious approach or do I NEED
to find out if I have brood in the deeps?
 
4)I've purchased a pollen trap but there are no directions and the fellow I
purchased it from couldn't remember how to install it. My concern is that,
no matter how I place it, it is going to be somewhat open at the back(to the
north)which doesn't seem right to me.
 
5)I'd like to have the hive inspected by someone who knows what they're
doing(Whatcom County, WA.) and would appreciate it if someone can supply an
e-mail address for the powers that be.<g>"
 
 
I think that it would be very important for you to be sure whether you have
queen cells or not.  The developing brood opened between the shallow and deep
chamber is very likely drone brood.   This is a common placement for such
brood, and I always inspect these opened cells for varroa - it is easy to see
the mites here and you don't need any specialized equipment or procedure.
 
Now, queen cells differ from even the largest drone cells in that they are
vertical, not horizontal, and stand out very obviously from the rest of the
comb.  I didn't read that you mentioned the orientation of the large cells.
If they are queen cells, you need to immediately go through the entire hive,
not missing a frame, to find every such cell.  Then you have a decision to
make - whether to split the hive into two or more splits (my recommendation)
each with a frame containing one or two queen cells, or to cut every one of
them out to delay the inevitable swarming for a while so that you can give
room to the hive until your new queen arrives.  Then you can split the hive
and provide the queenless half with the new queen and most of the sealed
brood.  The part with the original queen will likely not swarm after that if
you give them plenty of room.
 
So much for the unsolicited advice.  Now as to your questions:
1) If the queen is in the shallow super, and you want to use that one for
honey storage, you need to find the queen if she's in the super, pick her off
and put her back downstairs, replace the excluder and put the emerging brood
on top.  If there is drone brood, you need to put an entrance above the
excluder for the drones to get out.  Otherwise they will try to get through
the excluder, get stuck and die.
2) Yes, if you saw brood in the third chamber,  you have a healthy family of
bees coming along.  My only concern, as mentioned above, is that your hive
might be on the road to swarming.
3) It is absolutely necessary to do a spring inspection of the brood, again
for the reasons mentioned above as well as to check for healthy brood, good
brood patterns, etc.  Any time the temperature gets into the 50's or above you
can do this.  Be careful not to expose sealed brood to chilly air for more
that a half minute or so, but when put back in the chamber the bees will cover
and protect it.
4) Although it is inconvenient (for you) to have bees entering the hive at
different places, this doesn't bother the bees a bit.
 
Hope this helps.  Good luck.
 
Ted Fischer