I have a 2 first year hives, 3 lb packages installed with new
foundation back in May. Hive #1 is currently 2 deeps and a medium. The
medium was being ignored so I moved a medium frame of honey from hive #2.
Now the foundation on either side of the frame is being drawn only on the
side toward the honey frame. The rest is still being ignore.
 
        It is not for a lack of flow. Hive #2 is 2 deep and 2 mediom
supers. They are already drawing their second medium and have filled one
medium super.
 
        The brood chambers of the two hives are in vastly different
states. Both hive are 10 frames in all boxes.
 
        Hive #2 has 8 frames of brood area in the lower box and 8+ frames
in the upper deep. Brood enen on the outside frame on the north side.
Thus not alot of honey in the brood area. This explains the honey supers
being drawn. Lots of capped brood to lost of bees to come yet.
 
        Hive #1 has brood only  in the bottom deep (6 frames) and lots of
honey in the upper brood chamber. The queen realy doesn't have very much
space for laying and there are not lots of bees set to emerge. This
explains I think why the honey supers are not being use.
 
        Anyway, 2 questions.
 
        If I harvest Hive #2's honey supers in early August will they
have time and space to store enough honey for the winter in the deeps?
Here in New England bee winter with 2 deeps.
 
        For hive #1 are there tactics that I could have used or can be
used to get the brood chamber back in the bee baby busines and out of the
honey storage business?
 
        One last point. Hive #1 has provided two frames of brood, one on
6/2 and one on 6/30 for a hopelessly queenless swarm hive that I've been
nursing along trying to get them to raise a queen. This tampering may go
along way toward explaining the current state of the hive #1.
 
        Thanks in advance,
 
 
        Jim Moore
        [log in to unmask]
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        PS. I'm compiling the results of the responses to be query:
"Survey of tools used when working hives" and will be posting summaries
as time permits. FYI: 51 responses/429 recipients = 12% response rate.