# abandoned hive



## ChickenMom (Sep 27, 2005)

Good morning, ChickenMom's DH here... got a question for y'all.

I just inherited an abandoned hive, one brood box and one shallow super, full of bees... I'm very new to bees, but have been curious about them for a long time and was going to get some this spring anyway. 
My questions are, the bees in this hive are fairly timid and appear healthy, should I medicate them and keep them? What about honey? should I rob some or leave it? I took the top off yesterday and pulled 1 frame out, it was dripping with honey.
Any suggestions or comments are deeply appreciated.


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## james dilley (Mar 21, 2004)

First off what part of the country are you in?? 2nd If you pull the honey you will need to feed them Sugar water. Don't forget to put the comb back in if you rob them.. They may make it real well.You never know. You said the frame was dripping?? that could be nectar that has not dried down, Or you may have Wax moths.Did you see any cocoons? or larva?? Or moths flying out when opened?? But the main thing is Not to open the hive very much in cold weather. And they will need there stores for winter feeding..


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## Iddee (Sep 25, 2005)

Just leave the bees be.  
Seriously, it would be best to just leave them as they are for the winter. Use the time to read and talk to people about beekeeping. Most bee menuevering will be done in spring and early fall. They need the honey they have for the winter. You can get another super ready to go on next april 1st. That will be for your honey. The deep box and one super will be for the bees. By the time you harvest yours about the last of april or sometime in may, you will have learned what you need to know."I hope"

Check out this site and spend at least 500 hours on it before spring.
http://www.beesource.com/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/Ultimatebb.cgi?action=intro
Best of luck to you and welcome to the fascinating world of the honeybee.


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## jeffreyc256 (Sep 25, 2005)

I agree, leave it alone till spring, read up. Maybe feed sugar water to keep it going. The hive can have other problems, I would keep it seperated from new stock you buy until you get where you can evaluate it.


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## ChickenMom (Sep 27, 2005)

OK We're just leaving it alone. The hive is in pretty bad shape. We are going to get new ones, it has some rotten wood on it. Don't know how old it is or how long it was left.


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## mountainman_bc (Nov 7, 2005)

Yes- if it is light, and it should be quite heavy, and if if is still above freezing- then definately feed the bees emmediately (not next week). They need 2 parts sugar to 1 part water. You'll need a frame feeder or much better yet is a feeding pail.
They'll starve if they aren't heavy.


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