How to make queens

**rast** · Apr 19th 2011, 05:09 PM

Here is an interactive queen raising calender. If you drop a frame of eggs and larva into a queenless hive/nuc, consider that your grafting day.
http://www.thebeeyard.org/queencalendar ... &year=2011

**G3farms** · Apr 19th 2011, 08:32 PM

Good tool for sure, thanks for posting that I can use it.

**Iddee** · Apr 19th 2011, 08:44 PM

This brings up a question. Do we need a queen rearing forum for links like this and other info? If so, we can get all the queen rearing together in one area?

Let's here some opinions on this........

**tecumseh** · Apr 20th 2011, 04:14 AM

I do like to promote queen rearing amongst folks that think the honey bee is important. I think this basic skill (it definitely ain't alchemy) is the lynch pen to any number of quality issues associated with rearing honey bees and as I first told Flyman a couple of years back 'rearing queens will make you a better bee keeper'.

**G3farms** · Apr 20th 2011, 05:15 AM

Tec I strongly agree with you....'rearing queens will make you a better bee keeper'. You really have to pay more attention to what is going on inside of the hive and have that watchful eye.

**Omie** · Apr 20th 2011, 09:50 AM

Originally Posted by Barry Tolson

G3,
I just checked and have capped queen cells from this method. All "I" did was make one of my colonies queenless and broodless...selected a full frame of brood from another colony...identified larva of the correct age...cut the bottom of those particular cells down to the midrib...and placed that frame into the queenless colony. It worked. Those cells that I altered all had queen cells drawn from them.
Give it a try!
Barry

That's what i'll be doing in a few weeks. Can't wait!

Apparently you can do this to several frames at once in a queenless hive and then start multiple nucs from the resultant Qcells. You just have to select larvae of the right age and make sure you leave 2 or 3 cells spacing between any cells you do the cut on, so there's enough room between queen cells.

**tecumseh** · Apr 21st 2011, 05:48 AM

Take an existing modestly strong hive and remove a strong split with the queen plus most of the sealed brood. Leave lots of bees and unsealed brood. Return after 10 days to split the various frames with cells into as many nucs as possible.

you can some what drive this process by liberally (<there's that ugly word again) feeding in front of this process. this not only stimulates but crowds the brood nest somewhat.

**Flyman** · Apr 30th 2011, 07:02 AM

The sage, well read and handsome Tecumseh is correct, raising queens will make (force) you to be a better beekeeper. You have to pay attention to timelines and quickly find out that you can't do something tomorrow that should have been done today. I just recently lost a batch of queen cells (26 really nice ones) because I took a chance they would not begin to hatch on the day I thought. I was wrong. First one out killed almost 20 others in less than 30 minutes.

**PerryBee** · Apr 30th 2011, 07:06 AM

Ouch!

**tecumseh** · May 1st 2011, 05:50 AM

The ouch'y thingee has happened to many more folks than just Flyman (who according to authorities much larger than myself make a petty mean bottle of mead).

**G3farms** · May 1st 2011, 06:20 AM

Sorry to hear of the bad luck there flyman, hope the next round goes better for you.

**Flyman** · May 1st 2011, 07:11 AM

Next batch was great. 26 out of 30 as a take and all have new homes. Usually, I learn pretty quickly....until next time.

**rast** · May 1st 2011, 02:19 PM

The worst part of rearing to me is between making sure she emerged and when she starts laying. Did she or didn't she?

**Beeboy** · Jul 7th 2012, 10:03 PM

What time of the year is best to do this, or does it matter?

**tecumseh** · Jul 9th 2012, 04:22 AM

the 'easiest' time of the year to produce queens (I am speaking here of the entire process from grafting till you have a mated queen in the box) is in the early spring as the flow is peaking. earlier a lot of folks have problems with fluctuation in temperature (primarily low night time temperatures) and availability of good numbers of drones. later in the season lack of flow doesn't motivate the girls to produce many cells and extremely high temperatures limits the virgin queens ability to mate.