Nucs & Starter Colonies
Winter-proven queens and locally adapted bees, ready to build fast come spring.
An overwintered nuc is a five-frame colony that survived the winter together under the care of its original queen. Unlike a package these bees come with a proven queen, drawn comb, and multi-stage brood already in motion — so they build quickly the moment spring weather breaks. Raised and wintered here in Southeastern North Carolina.
Pre-Order Yours Today
A complete, ready-to-grow hive.
Mated, winter-proven queen
8 frames fully drawn with comb and internal feeder
4–6 frames of active brood in all stages
Several frames of stored food and pollen
Includes bottom board, 10-frame deep brood box, and outer cover
Best for beginners who want a full setup ready to go.
A strong, economical start to the season.
Spring mated queen
2–3 frames of active brood in all stages
5 frames in a corrugated plastic nuc box, ready to transfer
Several frames of stored food and pollen
Best for budget-minded beekeepers building up over the summer.
A winter-tested colony ready to transfer into your equipment.
Mated, winter-proven queen
3–4 frames of active brood in all stages
5 frames fully drawn with comb
Corrugated plastic nuc box, ready to transfer
Several frames of stored food and pollen
Best for established beekeepers expanding with proven stock.
Why Choose an Overwintered Nuc
✓ Proven Queen — a survivor who already steered her colony through a winter
✓ Drawn Comb & Active Brood — no lag time building from scratch
✓ First-Year Honey — likely to catch the main spring nectar flow
✓ No Shipping Stress — picked up locally, never boxed on a cross-country truck
How It Works
STEP 1
Pre-Order Now
Contact us to reserve your nuc's or starter colony. Payment holds your spot for the season.For orders over 10 please contact to for discount pricing and deposit.
STEP 2
Pickup Notification
We will be in contact with you when your bees are ready. Overwintered stock is typically available in early spring, weather depending.
STEP 3
Transfer & Grow
Pick up locally and move your bees into full-sized equipment right away, giving them room to expand and thrive.
Why Beekeepers Pay the Premium
A proven queen, drawn comb, and a colony already in full swing add up to a head start that's hard to match. Here's what makes the difference.
-
Instead of a brand-new, untested queen, you get a survivor. She has already steered a colony through winter, proving her resilience and genetics. Because she is mature and established on drawn comb, she begins laying at a strong pace as soon as spring weather breaks.
-
Packages have a lag time — they build comb from scratch or were assembled just before sale. An overwintered nuc comes out of winter with a tightly clustered, synchronized team and multi-stage brood: eggs, larvae, and capped pupae. With no shipping stress, they grow into a production colony weeks faster.
-
Packages usually spend their first summer just building numbers and drawing comb, so a first-year harvest is rare. Overwintered nucs start with a head start and are highly likely to catch the main spring nectar flow — potentially giving you honey in their very first season.
Be ready for a fast start
Overwintered colonies build up quickly — that's the whole advantage. It also means they can feel crowded early and may look to swarm if they run out of room. Have your equipment ready and plan to move them into a full 8- or 10-frame hive body soon after pickup, so all that momentum goes into growth instead of swarming.