Lesson 27: Nucs

Buying a nuc, getting it home safely, and moving it into your hive

A nuc (short for nucleus colony) is a small, working colony in a small box. The standard nuc box is a narrow version of a full-size hive that holds five full-size frames, so "a nuc" usually means a five-frame nuc. It comes with:

• drawn comb, usually about 2 to 3 frames of brood and 1 to 2 frames of honey and pollen;
• a laying queen that the bees have already accepted, walking free on the comb;
• roughly 10,000 worker bees.

Because the colony is already up and running, a nuc builds up faster than a package and is usually stronger by winter (lesson 25).

Buying a nuc

• Deep or medium frames? Most nucs come on deep frames; some suppliers sell medium. Order the size that matches your brood boxes (lessons 17 and 23).
• Inspect before you buy if you can. Look for a laying queen, plenty of healthy brood in a solid pattern, and plenty of bees, with no signs of disease or pests (lessons 34 and 58–67).
• Ask about varroa mite levels and treatment history, and any history of disease.
• Nucs made the previous summer or fall (overwintered nucs) are generally stronger than ones put together in early spring.
• Arrange a pickup date with your supplier; buying locally lets you collect the bees yourself.

Getting it home: don't cook your bees

This is where nucs are lost. A nuc is sealed for travel, and the bees inside can't cool themselves. Crowded nucs can overheat and die quickly.

• Carry nucs inside a climate-controlled car or truck cab, at about room temperature (72°F) or cooler.
• Never leave nucs in a parked car without air conditioning, even for a few minutes.
• Don't drive long distances with nucs in an open truck bed in the sun.

When you get home

• Set the nuc where your hive will stand (right beside the hive, or on the hive stand) and open the entrance right away so the bees can fly and cool down.
• Move the frames into the full-size hive soon. Crowded nucs are stressed, and tend to swarm if left too long in the small box. Mississippi State recommends transferring within 1 to 2 days. (Alabama Extension instead suggests leaving the nuc beside the new hive for about 5 days so the bees learn the new location, then transferring on day 6. Both approaches are used; if your nuc is very crowded, don't wait.)

Moving the nuc into your hive, step by step

What you need: a bottom board, a brood box with the lid, frames of foundation or drawn comb to fill the empty spaces, a feeder (a division board feeder works well), 1:1 sugar syrup, and an entrance reducer.

1. Make room. Take the five middle frames out of your brood box.
2. Open the nuc and, if you like, lightly smoke the entrance.
3. Move the frames one at a time into the middle of your brood box, keeping them in the same order and facing the same direction as they were in the nuc. The brood nest stays intact.
4. Watch for the queen as you move frames, and handle the frame she's on gently.
5. Shake the remaining bees from the nuc box into the hive.
6. Fill the gaps: put frames of foundation or drawn comb on both sides of the nuc frames, so you have a full box.
7. Feed (a feeder inside the hive is best), reduce the entrance, and put the lid on.

After installation

• Keep feeding syrup until the bees have built out their foundation and have enough food, or until a strong nectar flow starts. Feeding helps them build comb and grow.
• If pollen is scarce, a small piece of pollen substitute (about a third of a patty for a small colony) supports brood rearing. Small pieces are eaten quickly, before small hive beetles can lay eggs in them.
• Check on the colony after about a week (lesson 30).
• Check for varroa mites about a month after installation (lesson 55).

What to remember

• A nuc = 5 frames, brood, food and an accepted, laying queen, a big head start.
• Match deep or medium to your brood boxes; inspect and ask about mites and disease.
• Keep nucs cool in transit; sealed nucs can overheat and die.
• Open the entrance on arrival and transfer soon, with frames in the same order.
• Feed until they're established; check mites a month later.

Quick check

1. Why are nucs more at risk than packages in a hot vehicle?
2. When you move nuc frames into your hive, how should you place them?
3. Why shouldn't you leave a crowded nuc in its box for weeks?

Adapted from: UF/IFAS Extension, Using Nucs in Beekeeping Operations (ENY153/IN869); Mississippi State University Extension, Beginning Beekeeping in Mississippi (P3594); Alabama Cooperative Extension System, Establishing a Honey Bee Colony (Shabel & Rowe, 2024).

Adapted from university Extension sources. Experienced Georgia beekeepers are reviewing these lessons. See something that doesn't match your experience? Tell us.