Spring Management of my Modified Warre Style Hive

I've mentioned before that my hives are sorta, kinda Warre-ish types of hives.

I use 5 frame Lang boxes and frames.  Custom built bottoms, tops and quilt boxes.  I nadir all the boxes according to Warre's method and I only harvest the boxes above the bottom two in the stack as they are the brood and winter stores boxes.  The entrances are about 3/8" high by 7 1/2" long at the bottom board.

I don't recall if I ever discussed this particular hive with you but I meant to (and I might have somewhere but I don't remember) and so I will recap it's beginning and then get to where things are now.

This hive started April 28th with a "Baby Nuc" or a 3 frame nuc with a queen which was "salvaged" from another colony that had been re-queened because the owner insisted on a new queen even though this queen was still doing just fine.

I started them in a single deep 5 frame box placing the 3 frames in the center of the hive in frame spaces 2, 3, and 4 with foundation-less frames on each side in spaces 1 and 5.

A second box was added to the stack underneath the first box (nadiring) one week later.  That box had 1 frame with black plastic foundation in the center at frame space 3 with foundation-less frames surrounding it in spaces 1,2, 4, and 5.  This is the "default" new box for every hive I run.

The two box stack was then moved to it's permanent location about three days after adding the second box and has been in place there, un-opened and un-inspected since then.  Based on recent bee yard visits/external inspections  I determined last week that the time was coming to add a third box to the stack based on activity at the entrance of the hive.

This week, today actually, the third box was added to the bottom of the stack with the same setup as described above.  No smoke was used and the bees were not aggressive  or feisty but did exhibit some defensive behavior which is to be expected.  Of the two of us there, no one was stung.

Next week there will be a full inspection of the hive.  Inspections are scheduled to occur at about every 4 weeks or once a month.  The hive is visited weekly with observation and environmental checks to ascertain that the hive is not in need of immediate inspection.

The goal is to minimize intrusion in the nest and disrupting the inner environment such as nest scent and heat.

I'l post again after the inspection and go over how I do inspections and what I look for.