queenless hive

[buddy]

I have a small hive from a swarm earlier in the year. When I caught them they had a queen then something happened to her, they made another, same thing no queen, then I purchased a queen and she lasted about 10 days, this was 4 weeks ago. There has been no eggs that I could see, yesterday I looked and there is what appears to  be a queen cell. I did not see any eggs but my eyes arent the greatest anymore, any ideas?     Thanks  and hello from East Tx.

[BjornBee]

Combine with another hive.

The timeframe you describe, probably favors a laying worker colony if not already. And the chances of the queen cell being viable is small. And even if it were good, you have very old bees and the dynamics of the hive moving forward, with the capability to raise feed, care, and have healthy brood is minimal at best.

[FRAMEshift]

First swarms have the old queen from a hive.  She is often superceded after the swarm has found a new home.  But what worries me most about your situation is that your added queen only lasted 10 days.  A combine may be your best bet at this point.

[sterling]

Combine with another hive.

The timeframe you describe, probably favors a laying worker colony if not already. And the chances of the queen cell being viable is small. And even if it were good, you have very old bees and the dynamics of the hive moving forward, with the capability to raise feed, care, and have healthy brood is minimal at best.

Can you do a combine with a layingworker hive? If so how? Thanks