Buying a Nuc?

As nucs no longer conform to a British standard it is very much ‘buyer beware’. This article highlights some key things, to help you end up with a nuc which is both healthy and adds value to your existing stocks.

As there is no standard, the make up of a nuc varies; be clear on what you are expecting to buy and what is being sold.

If you are a beginner take along a more experienced beekeeper to give it the once over!

What should a nuc contain?

Ideally a seller should show you several nucs from which to make your choice.

It is usually made up of -

• 5 or 6 British Standard National frames or 4 frames of other larger frames, such as Langstroth, 14 x 12 National etc.
• At least 3 frames should be covered well with bees; one or two frames full of stores – pollen and honey
• A fertile queen; age should be known
• The queen should be laying well. Brood should cover not less than half the total comb area; eggs and worker brood in all stages should make up approx. 95 – 100% of the brood, with drone making up the remaining 5%
• The brood should be well covered by nurse bees
• Comb should be clean; frames in good condition

Guidance from: Study Guide 1 2 & 3, Yates & Yates

What else should you look for?

Disease: Know what ‘normal’ looks like – avoid buying anything which does match this. Check the appearance of brood and adult bees for abnormalities and the comb and nuc entrance for defaecation marks. Avoid buying a nuc where adult bees show signs of shrivelled wings – a sign of Deformed Wing Virus; this is linked to high varroa counts and possibility the presence of other less obvious viral diseases.

Spotty pattern of brood: hygienic bees will remove larvae which are dead, diseased or genetically abnormal leaving a gap in the brood pattern. Avoid nucs where this spotty pattern is evident. Ideally brood should have no more than 5% of gaps in it and should cover a wide area

Temperament: judge both eagerness to sting or willingness to explode from the box and calmness on the comb, taking into consideration factors such as weather; the temperament is unlikely to improve.

General Apiary Hygiene: buying from a beekeeper who appears to pay attention to such things is more likely to give you confidence.

Queen: there is a link between size of a queen and its fertility; large queens were well fed as larvae and usually have mated well. Make sure you see your queen.

When was the nuc set up? If only several weeks, then the bees you are looking at may not be the offspring of the current queen; judgements about temperament, disease etc may not be accurate.

How old is the queen? Where did she come from?

Is it a swarm? newly collected swarms are an unknown quantity and may be harbouring disease.

Has it been treated for varroa or the levels checked? If so when?

Cost of a nuc & where to buy? Buy local, not nucs made up from imported queens and/or worker bees. Currently many commercial beekeepers are charging well in excess of £250 for a 5 or 6 frame nuc and some use imported queens rather than ones bred locally.

Does it matter if the queen is imported? There is recently published research to link imported queens with clusters of Chronic Bee Paralysis virus, a growing problem in this country; through travelling they have also been subjected to more stressful conditions. Imported queens are also less likely to be suited to local climatic and foraging conditions. They are also more likely to have been produced using mass breeding programmes, involving instrumental insemination and use of queen incubators. A buyer must draw their own opinion of whether exemplifies best practice.

Nucs bought locally, bred through more traditional methods by hobby beekeepers, overcome many of these shortcomings, but when compared their queens are unlikely to show the consistency in temperament, honey storing ability, size of brood nest that larger breeding programmes can deliver. However locally bred queens will be more suited to local conditions and may last longer. These nuc prices vary considerably, with £50 – 100 commonly charged and are often obtainable through membership of a beekeepers’ association.

It is worth noting that BBKA discourage the importation of queens and colonies and remind purchasers that they should ‘satisfy themselves of the origin of bees offered for sale’.

BIBBA (Bee Improvement and Bee Breeders Association), promote the local breeding of queens by hobbyists as a skill all beekeepers should master and have a wealth of supportive materials on-line to help. They have also launched Sept’20 their Bee Improvement Plan (BIP) aimed to encourage the breeding and sharing of locally bred queens and nucs by individuals and small, groups of beekeepers. On their website there is a page for beekeepers to advertise surplus queens and nucs for sale another place to look for that nuc!

For more info: www.nationalbeeunit.com www.BBKA.org.uk