Whether you're starting beekeeping fresh this spring, or you're an established beekeeper who wants to grow your apiary, you may soon be ordering bees. It is best to order them between December and mid-February, to make sure you've reserved these seasonal and sometimes limited livestock. The bees will be ready for pickup in the spring, and when ordering bees you’ll typically be deciding whether you want a "package" or a "nuc."
What are nucs and packages?
Stacks of packages waiting to be picked up by our customers.
Betterbee staff placing nucs in a customer's truck.
A package is 3 pounds of bees (or so), a small can of sugar syrup to keep them fed, and a queen bee in her own tiny cage, all together inside a larger screen and wood cage. (That cage is "the package.") A package of bees is essentially a simulated swarm: A colony of well-fed workers clustered around a queen, just waiting to find a home.
A nuc (pronounced "nuke") usually consists of 5 deep frames of comb, about 3 pounds of bees, young bee brood developing inside the cells on 2 to 3 of the frames, and honey and pollen in the frames as well. The queen is clinging to the frames with the rest of the bees inside the temporary nuc box that will house them until you get them home and install them in a full-sized hive. A nuc is the core (or "nucleus," hence the name) of a fully functional colony - they just need space, time, and resources to grow.
Each option gets you set up with bees and a queen who are waiting to grow into your hive. Both options have pros and cons, so read on to help you make the right choice for your needs!
Why are you getting bees?
Your answer may affect your choice.
If your intent is to learn a new hobby and care for the bees for enjoyment, either choice is fine, but a package will give you more time to get used to the growth of a colony. A nuc grows very fast and may swarm before you realize anything is going on, which can give a new beekeeper a sense of frustration and powerlessness.
If you need honey bees to pollinate spring plants and produce fruits and vegetables, nucs will do better. They have a rapidly growing bee population, and are second best to a full-sized overwintered colony for spring pollination. The worker population of a package decreases for the first 3 weeks until the queen’s first new eggs mature into adult bees.
What if your goal is making honey ASAP? Or splitting your new colony of bees in half, buying a second queen, and trying to grow both of them into big healthy colonies by the end of the season? In those cases the nuc also has the advantage because it is so primed for rapid growth.
If you have wax combs from bees that died and want to restock your hive equipment, either option will work, and the bees will appreciate the old comb to grow into.
What do packages and nucs of bees cost?
Consider the cost of packages and nucs of bees when comparing your options.
Packages are cheaper, running about 60-75% the cost of nucs. Nucs cost more because they already contain frames of comb, brood, food, and other resources.
For a beginner who just had to buy a bunch of new equipment, saving money on the bees may be attractive, and packages are the way to save.
How easy is it to install a package or nuc of bees?
You must install your package or nuc into your hive equipment within a day of pickup, and installation takes about 10 minutes for either option. Installation isusually done in the early evening while wearing a veil. The procedures are very different though.
Package installation starts with prying up the cover and pulling the syrup can and queen cage out of the package. You’ll secure the queen cage against a frame in the hive (often with a rubber band) so that she’s held securely until the bees (or you) release her from her cage. Getting the three pounds of bees from the package cage into the hive to join her may involve tipping, tapping, pouring, and shaking. This is a departure from the normal calm, slow, and gentle handling of bees and frames you will use for the rest of the season.
Nuc installation is more straightforward and involves picking up each bee-covered frame and putting it into the waiting hive. This is an unfamiliar technique to a beginner, but an essential skill that will improve with practice.
Our beekeepers transfer bees into pro nucs to get them ready to be picked up!
Speed of colony growth in a package vs. a nuc
The spring growth period lasts until early July, and the care you provide to your growing colony will be different for a package and a nuc.
With a package, the queen cage must be checked and removed within a week. Feeding is crucial for a package unless you can give the bees combs of wax and honey from a previous year. If all they have are new frames of foundation they'll need a lot of help, since they must build wax comb on that foundation. This means constant feeding of sugar syrup to supplement nectar, their normal food. Their syrup must be checked and replenished weekly (at least) and this activity may last 10-12 weeks.Packages are ideal for the new beekeeper who wants to observe details in a lower-pressure environment. The colony will be more manageable to start and will grow at about the same pace as your beekeeping knowledge and bravery.
For a nuc, if they're starting with foundation, feeding may last 6 weeks. If you install a nuc into a hive full of combs made by previous bees, they will probably need just one feeding of 2 gallons.Nucs start with various ages of brood, and a queen that's constantly laying eggs. Nucs are usually going gangbusters when you get them, and they don't slow down if they can help it. Perhaps our most common issue with nucs is that they grow so fast they will swarm before their new owner has added a honey super.
A package and a nuc, both installed on empty combs on the same day in the same place, will likely be of equal population 3 months later - as long as you feed them sugar syrup to fuel their growth!
Frames and comb in a nuc colony
The nuc buyer gets frames and comb as part of the deal. In one sense this is quite a growth booster for the new colony, but in another sense, the buyer may not want someone else's frames. Most large nuc-making operations use plastic frames, or plastic foundation in wood frames, because those frames are efficient and economical for them. Plastic is fine, but if you love the classic wood and wax you will want to choose a package and select your favorite style of equipment.
Frames and comb in a nuc also may be a few years old, and could contain small amounts of miticide residues, or fungi and bacteria. Quality nuc producers always try to include quality comb since it's in their best interest to make happy customers, but there's always some amount of risk when materials move from someone else's apiary into your own.
What are the pest risks for packages vs. nucs?
Whether it's a package or a nuc, chances are you will get a few small hive beetles and varroa mites included with the bees. These pests not only use comb but will also cling to bees in packages and nucs. All bees will have recently gotten a mite treatment, but we suggest you count mites within 4 to 6 weeks for any new bees you get.
Will I get honey this year?
A full frame of honey with bees.
Perhaps! It's pretty likely with a nuc, installed on full wax combs. It's unlikely with a package installed on foundation. It relates to the workforce and the work that needs to be done. Making new comb on foundation takes time and calories, which means bees making lots of comb won't have much extra sugar to store as honey. (This is also why feeding new bees as they grow in the spring is critical!) A package installed on full wax combs would be similar to a nuc installed on foundation: each might produce some excess honey for harvest, but you certainly can't bank on it.
Conclusion
Whether you choose to buy a package or a nuc next spring, by mid-July your hive will probably look the same. You'll want to feed your new bees sugar syrup, you'll need to monitor and manage their pest populations, and you'll get the thrill of working with bees every time you go out to the apiary. Whatever you choose, your goal is always the same: Keep these bees healthy and happy, and make sure they have enough honey (or syrup) stored in their brood chamber to get them through next winter.
Consider carefully if packages, nucs, or a mix of the two is right for you, and then be sure to reserve them from us (or your local bee supplier) while bees are still available. Click here to shop for bees!
