MHBC Annual Installation Day

The COOP held it's last annual installation day in April 2007. These pictures show some of the steps involved with starting a new colony from package bees. Packages must be ordered well in advance (several months) of installation and arrive by mail shortly before they are installed. A package usually contains around 3 to 4 pounds of bees including a single mated queen. The queen is shipped along with the other bees in a small cage so that the other bees can become accustomed to her. They release her from the cage after a few days by devouring a small plug made of sugar fondant.