Dear B-listers'
   My two hives were started from nucs of Russo-hybrids this spring -
they're doing very well recently 'cause I left them alone (vacation) the
last 3 weeks.  Still I wonder about many things:
   Hive #1 (in city) superceded the marked queen right away and for the
life of me I cannot locate her replacement!  Do I have to wait till next
spring - when I assume the population will be much lower?  [good hive, but
I want to requeen because the bees are too touchy for the neighborhood]
   Hive #2 (country, lots of forage) swarmed a month ago-bottom of two
brood boxes shows a nice laying pattern but the top brood box continues to
show swarm cells???  Should I care?
   Hive #1 sits atop a slotted-rack - the bees don't build in that space,
yet they keep filling the excluder with wax - how come?  BTW - that hive is
much more populous than the hive that swarmed FWIW.
   Hive #1 - everyday we see a few bees crawling on the ground away from
the hive- mostly drones but occasionally a stunted-looking worker - trouble?
   I saw AFB scale for the first time at the Puget Sound association 'BEE-
TOPIA' and it occurs to me I may have been wrong in choosing black plastic
foundation for the brood boxes - Opinions?
   Hive #1 - here in Renton (Seattle) I am told that the main flow is over -
 so what is it that the bees are bringing in?  My Bee-landlady wants to
know what kind of forage she could plant for the bees to use after the main
Blackberry/clover flow.
   I like my plastic frames except I find that almost a 3rd of them have
spots of deep comb built on one frame with a shallow or empty spot on the
adjacent frame.  Can I just scrape the high side and let them try again?
   I have lots of problems with burr & bridge comb - do I understand that
this goes away if you use boxes and frames from one manufacturer?
   Almost harvest-time, so-what's a good fall/winter medication schedule?
   Last Question - I have a good spot for expansion - how can you tell when
you have ALMOST too many hives before you find that they are costing too
much time and energy?

Thanks for listening!