Can I put a standard nuc in a jumbo hive?
Roger
Last Update 3 years ago
Yes, you could get a standard nuc and put it into your jumbo hive. The frames are the same except for the depth so the bees will build wild comb underneath so you are best to get a jumbo nuc of bees if thats the size frame you are using. However, if we have sold out, there are a few ways around this:
you could transfer the 6 standard frames from the nuc into your jumbo brood box, fill out the rest of the box with proper jumbo frames. then put something underneath the standard frames to fill in the void. You could use some red house bricks, or a piece of wood. Just put it on the floor underneath the frames. It doesn't have to be perfect measurements but this would limit the space available for the bees to build wild comb. Once they have established themselves on the jumbo frames that you also have in there, you can start to remove the standard frames, replacing them with more jumbo frames. This method works but will get messy.
Or you could purchase a jumbo extension box for the nuc (that the bees come in) so you can put 6 jumbo frames on top of the nuc of bees. The bees will then natural work their way up onto the jumbo frames. Again, once they have established themselves on the jumbo frames, you can remove the standard frames and transfer the 6 jumbo frames into your hive. This method is far less messy but it will cost you more as you'll need to buy the jumbo extension box which would be around £40 (although a standard nuc of bees is cheaper than a jumbo nuc of bees so you would save money there).