A pair of hive nucs.
Photo: Hebert Honey Farm, DeRidder, LA.
A three-pound package of bees.
Photo: Dadant.com
One style of a swarm trap.
Photo: beekeepingfornewbies.com.
Terri is an aspiring beekeeper and recently joined the “beemail” list. She had seen an “beemail” asking beekeepers for a referral to a source of “nucs” and asked, “What is a nuc?”
The term “nuc” is pronounced “nuke” or “nook”, and it is short version for a “hive nucleus”, and it includes five frames of brood and honey, a queen, and some worker bees. This method is a quick, turn-key way to start with bees. New worker bees emerge quickly, and these bees can gather nectar to start the honey making process.
Another method of acquiring bees is to order a queen and two or three pounds of bees from an apiary. This is called a “bee package”. The bees have “empty pockets” when they arrive by mail, and these bees must start in a new hive with everything: making wax comb and making baby bees. As soon as the bees make brood comb, then the queen can start laying eggs. The soonest the new worker bees hatch would be 21 days. Honey production comes later with package bees than with nuc bees.
Another quick way to start with bees is to use a “swarm trap” or a “bait hive”. This trap is set up to catch honey bees swarms during the swarm season.
Swarm traps come in different designs. However, the best traps have at least 1.4 cubic feet = 2441 cubic inches = 13.5 inches X 13.5 inches X 13.5 or some combination of dimensions for adequate space. There are different swarm traps available from bee suppliers, and some beekeepers experiment with their own trap inventions. Swarm trapping could be its own topic in a future “Beehive Buzz”.
New beekeepers have options to starting a new hive and can start with a nuc or with package bees or with trapped swarms.
Please send your beekeeping questions and pictures to Keith Hawkins, Area Horticulture Agent (AHA), 337.284.5188 or khawkins@agcenter.lsu.edu . Also, you can be on the “beemail” email list by emailing your request to the address above.
“This work has been supported, in part, by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Renewable Resources Extension Act Award, Accession Number 1011417.”
“Mention of trade names or commercial products and services in this article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute endorsement by Louisiana State University AgCenter.”
The LSU AgCenter and the LSU College of Agriculture