Windy Gap Apiary | Frequently Asked Questions

NO SHIPPING - PICKUP ONLY

We have a very limited supply of high-quality nucs packed with bees, brood of all ages, pollen, honey, and drawn comb with a new properly laying queen ready for transfer into your equipment. All of our comb is rotated out within a 5-year cycle to minimize the associated issues that come with utilizing old comb.

Nucs are small honey bee colonies created from larger colonies. The term "nucleus", or "nuc", as defined by Merriam Webster is: "a central point, group, or mass about which gathering, concentration, or accretion takes place". With honeybees, a nucleus or "nuc" refers to the smaller size colony, generally 5 frames, with a rapidly expanding colony of honeybees within it. Once the beekeeper acquires their nuc and has it properly transferred, the colony will start building immediately. It is quite literally an amazing process to behold! Here at Windy Gap Apiary, our nucs consist of 5 frames with a choice of Deep or Medium depending upon your equipment needs. We also offer queen marking for an additional fee of $5.00 per colony.

Our bees started as an Italian Hygenic strain and have been raised here locally in our own apiary. Our queens are "field/wild" mated and perform exceptionally well in our area. Customer feedback indicates excellent overwintering rates when properly prepared. Our apiary is state inspected annually, and you will be provided a Certificate of Inspection from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS).

Payment in full is expected at time of pickup - NO CHECKS

Our nucs are distributed on a first-come-first-serve basis and have varied dates for pickup. We will reach out to you via phone or email to schedule accordingly. Bees will be scheduled for pickup as close to dark as possible to ensure the maximum number of field bees remain in your colony. Typically our nucs are available starting mid-May. Beekeeping is subject to Mother Nature, so delivery dates can be affected. As with any type of "farming", many variables exist that are often out of the realm of control of the "farmer", therefore, we cannot guarantee colony distribution, though we do make every effort to provide all of our customers with bees, and have been successful doing so in past seasons.

To control diseases, we do not allow outside equipment to stay in our apiary. You will receive your nuc in a temporary box for transport. Make sure to plan ahead and purchase all necessary equipment and have it ready for transfer prior to pick up, as your nuc should be transferred into its hive immediately in your apiary. For newer beekeepers, suppliers often face challenges in the spring and often run out of equipment, so we recommend new beekeepers secure their equipment far in advance of the season.

Nucs, and the risk of loss of the colony, become the responsibility of the customer at the time of pickup. Windy Gap Apiary guarantees nucs will be healthy, queen-right with a properly mated/laying queen, with plenty of bees upon pickup, however, because of different apicultural techniques, we cannot guarantee the survival or productivity of the hive that you establish from the nuc. We make every effort to ensure you receive a quality colony, as we will not release sub-par colonies to our customers.

NUCLEUS HIVES ARE $200 EACH with the option of $5 ADDITIONAL FOR MARKED QUEEN