Nucs, Packages & Queens

5 Frame Nucs and Bee Packages

Logistics:

• Pickups will be scheduled in April or May, dependent upon weather and availability.
• Bee packages and nucs are available for PICKUP ONLY at our location in Upstate NY. Betterbee does not ship packages or nucs.
• For more details about this year's pickup schedule, please visit this page.

Nucleus Colony

A nuc (or nucleus) colony is an already thriving colony of bees with a mated, marked queen and five deep frames of honey, pollen, and brood. Choose from spring nucs made by our trusted producer in early spring, or overwintered nucs. Our overwintered nucs are made in Upstate New York the summer prior to when we sell them and have a proven track record of surviving winter. 

• Watch this video to learn how to install a 5 frame nuc of bees.

Package

Betterbee packages contain three pounds of loose bees with feed, and a mated queen in a separate queen cage.

• Watch this video to learn how to install a package of bees.

Queens

Looking to requeen a hive, make a split, or prepare your own nucs? We offer mated queens, available mid-April through August, for shipment or pickup. If you plan to start a new bee colony, you need a nuc or package. A queen cannot establish a new colony by herself.

• About Northern Queens: Our locally-raised northern queens are available starting in June. We provide young, vigorous, locally adapted queens that are well-acclimated to our northern weather conditions. In our breeding programs, we focus on desirable traits as opposed to striving for a pure, specific breed of bee. We select bees for winter hardiness, disease resistance, temperament, and honey production. These queens are excellent for re-queening a hive or preparing nucs.