I am a new beekeeper - all I know I read in books (am looking for local mentor) I have 2 hives - been set up for 3 weeks. One is picture perfect (I'm so proud of the girls!). The other looks funny - sort of like the queen is gone and they are building a new queen to move out. Everything I read says that's probably not it, but what else might cause the "growths" on the frames - they are kind of brownish/tan, but not clean, organized cells - sort of sprawling?? Any help will be appreciated......I am down in South Texas - chilly temps not a problem here! Thank you!
If they look like a peanut still in the shell, they are queen cells. You will have a new queen shortly and all will be well if she successfully mates and begins laying. If they look like the ends of bullets, IE: round, raised caps, they are drone cells. If they are the only cells you have, your hive is queenless and a replacement queen or otherwise is needed to save the hive. If they are only a portion of the cells and you have many normal worker cells, the hive is fine.
I recommend getting involved with a local beekeeping club. Clubs are great places to find mentors and get connected with nearby beeks, plus they often have classes on different aspects of beekeeping. Additionally, much of beekeeping is "location specific", and clubs are good places to tap into the local knowledge. http://www.texasbeekeepers.org/clubs/
Unfortunately, we don't have a local beekeeping club. I have heard of a couple of people around who raise bees and am trying to track them down....
Not only am I having trouble with my bees, I evidently don't know how to work this forum either!! What a day! I think your response really helped me - maybe my hive isn't in as critical a state as I thought. The growths don't really look like a peanut, so maybe it's just drones. Either way, I am leaving them alone for a few days to see what happens. It is just troublesome to me that one hive looks so different from the other. Do they always look different? Thanks again for your help...
That is exactly why I always recommend starting with two hives. It teaches so much more and gives you so much more flexibility in dealing with any problem that may arise.I think you are good to go for now. Just keep checking and asking questions. As for the forum, practice makes perfect. Post, post, post.
