To all on the list..(with special attention to Medhat Nasir at Guelph)
 
This spring i was given a hive of bees that haven't been worked or treated
for 8 years....And the main reason I want them is because they are still
alive!.....with no treatment...
 
They were active very early..and built up very quickly...so i am hoping to
use them as breeding stock because of their apparent tolerance of all
diseases and mites.....
 
Now..the question is this....The hives themselves  look like they were
never painted or protected in any way..the wood is warped and
weather-beaten.  So i am afraid to move them as they are.  Plus..the
frames are completely propolized and there is burr comb
everywhere....impossible to remove the frames.   So..i tried putting a box
of dark comb ontop...plus a box of foundation...but nothing has
happened...  The queen refuses to come up into my equipment and lay....
How do i get her ..and the colony..up into my sturdy equipment to i can
move them to my apiary.   I think it would be a shame to not take
advantage of this queens obvious characteristics..
 
Any ideas would be appreciated
 
 
                          Ian Watson
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