TOP BAR HIVE NUCS
FOR SPRING 2025 SEASON
Most spring nucs are "overwintered” nucs with a locally raised, summer 2020, VSH Italian Queen; each nuc has five (5) top bar combs consisting of: 3 plus frames with brood, all stages, eggs, larvae, capped brood; 2 more frames with honey, pollen, and empty space for the queen to lay eggs in, provided in a cardboard nuc box ready to transport. OUR TBH FRAMES ARE 19" LONG. YOU MAY NEED TO CUT THE ENDS OF THE FRAME TO FIT YOUR TBH.
WHAT IS AN "OVERWINTERED" NUC?
1. These nucs were started during the spring and summer of the previous year.
2. They have stood the "Test of Time" by surviving their first winter.
3. Experienced beekeepers know that overwintered beehives outperform those that are newly
started.
ADVANTAGES TO USING OUR NUCS
1. Unlike package bees, our nucs are already a working beehive that is expanding quickly with the
spring season as the queen's brood is continuously emerging and providing more bees.
2. With package bees, there is a three week wait until the queen's first laid eggs grow into adult bees.
During that time, the package bees dwindle with no replacement bees.
3. Studies have shown that the queens supplied with package bees are often soon replaced after
installation. This causes a further setback for your new beehive. Furthermore, package bee
queens are not always accepted by the bees. This means that YOU get to buy another replacement
queen.
4. Our nucs have queens that have survived the previous winter and should be considered, "Tested."
This means no queen problems for you.
5. Our nucs are competitively priced when you add the shipping cost to the price of package bees.
6. THE BOTTOM LINE IS: NO ONE SUPPLIES NUCS WITH LOCALLY RAISED BEES AND QUEENS AS EARLY AS "MISSOURI BEES"!!!!!!!!
PRICES
PRICING: $200.OO EA. (NO DISCOUNTS)
AVAILABILITY
MARCH - MAY
SATURDAY MORNINGS (8:00 AM - 12 NOON)
PICK UP AT FREDERICKTOWN, MO. AND FISK, MO. LOCATIONS
OUR TBH FRAMES ARE 19" LONG. YOU MAY NEED TO CUT THE ENDS OF THE FRAME TO FIT YOUR TBH.
HOW TO ORDER
1. Contact us by email: missouribees@gmail.com
2. Your name.
3. Please supply a contact phone number
4. State the number of nucs you want.
5. Send the email and I will reply confirming your order and date. UNLESS YOU RECEIVE AN EMAIL WITH A SUBJECT LINE THAT SAYS: “ORDER CONFIRMATION,” YOU DO NOT HAVE AN ORDER/DATE!!!!!
6. No money is needed for booking your order. Please pay with "green back dollars" at pick up time.
7. One week before your pick up date, I will send you Google directions and map for the location of your choice.
8. For more information, please use the “Contact” tab to submit your questions.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR NUC PICKUP
1. One week prior to your pick up date, you will receive an email containing a Google Link (for pick up location), a physical location address, order dollar amount, and hours for pick up.
2. Before you pick up your nuc(s), have one complete hive constructed, painted, and placed in a permanent location
3. Please bring full payment in greenback dollars. I give receipts with each transaction.
4. Bring your personal protection gear and a bee smoker in case of a mishap while moving the bees.
5. Provide a means to keep the nuc(s) from sliding around in the back of a pickup. If using a car, bring netting to enclose the nuc in case of bees getting loose. We try to exercise every precaution to make your journey home a positive “bee experience”
2. Before you pick up your nuc(s), have one complete hive constructed, painted, and placed in a permanent location
3. Please bring full payment in greenback dollars. I give receipts with each transaction.
4. Bring your personal protection gear and a bee smoker in case of a mishap while moving the bees.
5. Provide a means to keep the nuc(s) from sliding around in the back of a pickup. If using a car, bring netting to enclose the nuc in case of bees getting loose. We try to exercise every precaution to make your journey home a positive “bee experience”
ABOUT OUR TOP BARS:
1. All Top Bars are made from 3/4" lumber and measure 19" long. They are 1 3/8" wide.
NOTE: These top bars may be too long for your hive but can be adapted to narrower hives by cutting equal
amounts from each end of the top bar.
1. All Top Bars are made from 3/4" lumber and measure 19" long. They are 1 3/8" wide.
NOTE: These top bars may be too long for your hive but can be adapted to narrower hives by cutting equal
amounts from each end of the top bar.
2. The combs are approximately 13" wide and 9 1/2" long. This size will fit into most commonly built Top Bar
Hives.
Hives.
3. Our combs are very strong because we use a 2" X 12" piece of plastic foundation that the bees use as a
"starter strip" to build their combs on.
"starter strip" to build their combs on.
4. These pictures show the combs being "drawn" out by the bees. OUR COMBS ARE STRONG ENOUGH
THAT YOU CAN TURN A NEW COMB UPSIDE DOWN AND THEY DO NOT FALL OVER!!!
THAT YOU CAN TURN A NEW COMB UPSIDE DOWN AND THEY DO NOT FALL OVER!!!
5. Your nuc will contain straight combs like these pictured here. Using straight combs to begin your Top Bar Hive
with, you will be able to easily train your bees to build more straight combs. If you start with package bees,
you will need to train your bees to draw the combs straight until you have several straight combs to work with.
This can be very time consuming and frustrating. Some bees do not like to build straight combs.
with, you will be able to easily train your bees to build more straight combs. If you start with package bees,
you will need to train your bees to draw the combs straight until you have several straight combs to work with.
This can be very time consuming and frustrating. Some bees do not like to build straight combs.
6. Your Five Frame Nuc will be packaged in a cardboard nuc box (picture on left) that is specially made for transporting nucs. They are safe and secure enough to transport in your car. The picture on the right shows the nuc box with the lid removed
and the placement of five top bars. The spacer bar that is marked "TBH" is used to keep the top bars tightly together
during transport.
.
and the placement of five top bars. The spacer bar that is marked "TBH" is used to keep the top bars tightly together
during transport.
.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR NUC INSTALLATION
1. When you arrive at your location for the nuc installation, place the nuc next to the hive you will
be installing it into. Your hive location MUST be the permanent location for the hive.
2. Light your smoker and put on your bee veil.
3. Lightly smoke the bees at the screened entrance.
4. As you continue to smoke the entrance, remove the screen and tape so that the bees can fly.
5. Take a break and allow the bees to fly so that they can locate their new location. Your bees will
be calm and ready to transfer within an hour or two, if it is still daylight.
6. As you are waiting, remove the top cover of the beehive and remove the frames to a nearby
location.
7. After allowing the bees to calm down, slowly remove the lid of the nuc box as you smoke the bees.
8. Slowly remove an outside frame and place near the center of your open beehive.
9. As you smoke the bees lightly, remove and transfer the rest of your frames into your beehive. Be
sure to keep your frames in the same order when placing them into your beehive.
10. When you finish with transferring the frames of bees, fill the remaining empty space in the beehive
with the frames that were previously removed in Step 6.
11. SPECIAL NOTE: Be sure to look inside the empty nuc box for the queen. If you see her, turn the box upside down and shake her into your beehive, along with the rest of the bees, onto the top of the frames.
12. Put the cover back onto the beehive and fill your feeder with sugar syrup.
13. Your bees will require at least one (1) quart jar of syrup per day.
14. Feed your bees until the new frames are drawn out into combs.
15. ENJOY YOUR BEES!!! YOU ARE A BEEKEEPER NOW AND NO LONGER THE SAME PERSON YOU
ONCE WERE!!!