Nucleus colonies

Nucleus Colonies

We are happy to be offering 5 frame deep nucleus colonies again this year. Nucs will be at least 3 frames of brood, one frame of food, and another frame with a mix. They will be sold in 5 frame cardboard or plastic transport boxes that are yours to keep. (they make great swarm catching boxes) No frame exchange, box deposit/return necessary. 

These nucs will be made in Central Ohio from our own colonies overwintered in Ohio. They are not being made from bees recently returned from California Almonds or other distant locations. All of the queens in the nucs we sell are the raised in-house and are the same exact bees we run in our own operation. We are inspected and certified by Ohio Department of Agriculture. 

 Pick up location will be near Lancaster,OH. Deposits are non-refundable unless we are  unable to provide your nuc for any reason. This year we are offering two nucleus options.

Overwintered Nucs-sold out

We are happy to be offering a limited number of overwintered nucs this season. They were made in the summer of 2023, with our queen stock, and overwintered here in Ohio as a complete unit. Pick up in Late April or Early May. Exact dates TBD. $225 w/ $100 deposit

Spring Nucs

These nuc's will be made with a fresh 2024 Ohio raised and bred queen. Pick up in early June. Exact dates dependent on weather.  $200 w/ $100 deposit.

Contact chris@creesbees.com to place your order, or with any questions.

Queens 

Our bees are a mix of genetics from around Ohio, and other northern states. 

We breed from our most productive hives, that overwinter well in our cold, damp winters, and build up quickly through our often challenging rollercoaster springs. Our bees are mostly carniolan stock but we do not run a pure line, and instead select for desired traits. We like to work bees without gloves and will not tolerate aggressive bees in the operation.  Potential queen mother candidates are evaluated for an entire season through the following winter before being used for breeding the next year.

We never forget about the drones. They're 50% of the equation. Mating yards are flooded with drones, and we'll never try to raise queens before an abundance of drones are in the air to thoroughly mate the queens. We are our own biggest queen customer, and would never sell a queen we wouldn't want in our own hives.

 Queens are given 3 weeks (versus the standard 2) to lay in their mating nucs, on full depth frames; we are able to evaluate every queen’s capped brood pattern, and ensure the queen is laying well before she is sold.

Queens are shipped USPS express.  We are inspected and certified by the Ohio Department of Agriculture. 

Queens available June-Sept.