buying bees for warre hive

can i introduce a nuc to a warre hive? if not, what kind of colony package should i be looking for?

Al Senner wrote:can i introduce a nuc to a warre hive?

you could, but it wouldn't be a whole lot of fun. involves cutting up comb, generally while bees are still occupying it.

alternatives, in my personal order of preference:
bait a swarm directly into the hive
collect a swarm
manage Lang equipment you've already got lying around as though it were a Warre and hive a nuc
purchase package bees

the first two options have a whole lot of advantages that the second two don't. most obviously, they're roughly free and you're much more likely to end up with bees adapted both to local conditions and to surviving without much attention.

We purchased packages. We fed lots of sugar syrup in the beginning to help them build comb fast. We put the syrup in a big chicken waterer (filled with rocks to limit drowning) away from the hives a little ways. Not the best, but better than starving. I would much rather they used sugar to make wax than they try to live on it through the winter. So far we are 4 out of 4, but the winter isn't over...

Baiting or catching a wild swarm is definitely better, although a big step for a newbie like me. I am just glad I haven't killed them already.