lost my colony

[Alicia]

Went to check bees today and found they had died. I checked the whole hive and found plenty of honey but no brood. Found some mites...I don't think they were the problem but not sure?
So I cleaned it all it and saved all the honey I could. I have some questions on how the comb looked...the color was very dark on the frames in some places. I scraped it all off, the foundation is still a dark color. Can this be reused? What causes the comb to be dark?

 

[Alicia]

 

[Baymule]

Sorry you lost your bees. Bees are on my want list.

 

[GLENMAR]

Sorry. Yes the comb looks fine. It's darker where bees have hatched out.

 

[Alicia]

Okay. Thanks. Getting more bees this spring and will save what I can for them.

 

[GLENMAR]

Great idea. Good luck.

 

[Latestarter]

Sorry you lost your hive. It happens... The brood comb always gets dark as they use it. I've been told it's because they don't wipe their feet at the entrance... It's no big deal and perfectly fine to re-use. You should date the frames so when the comb gets to be 3-4 years old you can scrape it clean and let them draw out new/fresh comb.

Best thing to do with the frames is stick them in a freezer and leave them there till you need to set the hive up next year. If you start your package(s) with frames already drawn out and with stores (pollen/honey), the bees will be less tempted to leave (abscond) and will have an excellent start. The queen, once released, will be able to start laying immediately in the already drawn comb.

 

[Happy Chooks]

So sorry to hear you lost your hive. Did you treat for mites last fall? Mites can overwhelm a hive and this is about the time they crash. I learned this the hard way my first year.

The dark comb is normal from brood rearing.

I agree with latestarter, freeze the frames and in the spring thaw them out and use them to reinstall new bees.

 

[Maggiesdad]

@Alicia If I was you, I would catch up with this lady for my new bees... She's in Roy, WA, and she sure knows her stuff.

 

[babsbag]

Sorry your bees are gone. I know that feeling all too well. Were there dead bees in the hive or just gone? If they just disappeared this time of year I would have to hang my hat on mites. Really sorry.