Bee farmer / Commercial queen rearing

[Swarm]

If I can sneak away from painting, I'll get a photo of the three frame mating nucs I've made out of left over ship lap and some old top and bottom rails.

 

[Bazzer]

I used 2 x 3 frame nucs, Apidea and Keilers for mating last year. An advantage of the mini-mating nucs is clearly the reduced numbers of bees needed but they do require a lot more attention to detail in preparing and siting them. Last year I had very poor mating results until I moved the mini-nucs to a dedicated apiary which provided much better orientation cues (large trees, long walls etc).
With the 2 x 3 frame nucs I set them up with a shared super separated from the brood box by the feeder. Then if one if the queens does not get mated it is a simple matter of removing the divider board.
This year I plan to use the mini-nucs for an early round of mating and then switch over to the 2 x3 nucs later when I have sufficient stock bees.

 

[Curly green finger's]

I used 2 x 3 frame nucs, Apidea and Keilers for mating last year. An advantage of the mini-mating nucs is clearly the reduced numbers of bees needed but they do require a lot more attention to detail in preparing and siting them. Last year I had very poor mating results until I moved the mini-nucs to a dedicated apiary which provided much better orientation cues (large trees, long walls etc).
With the 2 x 3 frame nucs I set them up with a shared super separated from the brood box by the feeder. Then if one if the queens does not get mated it is a simple matter of removing the divider board.
This year I plan to use the mini-nucs for an early round of mating and then switch over to the 2 x3 nucs later when I have sufficient stock bees.

Now theres a beek with a plan

 

[elainemary]

Been re-reading 'Interviews with Beekeepers' to pull out all the lessons from the good & great commercial beekeepers on queen rearing, that Steve interviewed. Has helped a lot with my studies & really clear now on the differences in methods between Bee farmer / commercial and mere hobbyists like myself.

Finding all the bee breeding, genetics and use of AI fascinating - got in touch with B+ and he's sent me some great stuff to read. If only I'd started 10 years ago...so having to cram now to the point of obsession. Need more than one life, to learn and it put into practise and achieve all the other things I want to do.

 

[maddydog]

Certainly something very satisfying in rearing your own queens. The economics of it against importing are another thread entirely which would (imho) be pretty interesting to discuss.
I've imported queens in the past and actually had an order for 50 last year that I had to cancel because the systems/forms between myself and the exporter no longer matched
Now that my colony numbers have settled after rapid expansion I'm hoping to become self-sufficient except for the odd breeder.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Murray and Jolanta are going over their queen rearing at the webinar on at the moment

 

[Swarm]

OK, this is an idea of the three frame jobs.

 

[Curly green finger's]

Youb

I use both kielers and apideas , also apidea sized cheap poly boxes.
Don't have any issues with keeping any box going but prefer apideas as fewer bees needed to stock them. I only produce about 20-30 odd queens so very hobby orientated.
Never have enough bees in May for all I want to do, so apideas are better. Three frame nucs require far too many bees/resources.
Like Maddydog, getting quuens mated is an issue.. the weather here is very variable in June/July.

I expect overall to end with losing half my queens - unmated, missing (rare), and wasps (August).

Overwinter three to four queens in small mating nucs. Usually doubled up and heavily insulated.

You can add robing bees to your list.
Maybe I'll find out the above in time thanks for your insight though!

 

[Antipodes]

I use both kielers and apideas , also apidea sized cheap poly boxes.
Don't have any issues with keeping any box going but prefer apideas as fewer bees needed to stock them. I only produce about 20-30 odd queens so very hobby orientated.
Never have enough bees in May for all I want to do, so apideas are better. Three frame nucs require far too many bees/resources.
Like Maddydog, getting quuens mated is an issue.. the weather here is very variable in June/July.

I expect overall to end with losing half my queens - unmated, missing (rare), and wasps (August).

Overwinter three to four queens in small mating nucs. Usually doubled up and heavily insulated.

Have you tried much to raise queens a little later...say autumn? Brilliant to have ready in spring.

It's rotten here trying to get queens mated in spring....I did have some mate in 14 degrees this year, which was lucky...

I'm soon to have a go at raising some autumn queens, which worked well last year. Such a settled time with the weather and lots of drones still around.

 

[madasafish]

Have you tried much to raise queens a little later...say autumn? Brilliant to have ready in spring.

It's rotten here trying to get queens mated in spring....I did have some mate in 14 degrees this year, which was lucky...

I'm soon to have a go at raising some autumn queens, which worked well last year. Such a settled time with the weather and lots of drones still around.

Tried autumn.
BUT:
WASPS
and wasps and wasps.
Overwhelm any weak colony.

And variable weather menas mating is even more of spin of dice.

I keep 3-4 of my last August Queens in small mini nucs and double up to overwinter. Require feeding every 3-4 weeks.

 

[Anthony Appleyard]

I use both kielers and apideas , also apidea sized cheap poly boxes.
Don't have any issues with keeping any box going but prefer apideas as fewer bees needed to stock them. I only produce about 20-30 odd queens so very hobby orientated.
Never have enough bees in May for all I want to do, so apideas are better. Three frame nucs require far too many bees/resources.
Like Maddydog, getting queens mated is an issue.. the weather here is very variable in June/July.

I expect overall to end with losing half my queens - unmated, missing (rare), and wasps (August).

Overwinter three to four queens in small mating nucs. Usually doubled up and heavily insulated.

Near open fresh water that has wildlife, how many losses are likely due to dragonflies and damselflies? How many losses due to birds (e.g. swallows and swifts and similar) that catch insects while flying?

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

how many losses are likely due to dragonflies and damselflies?

very few probably, although they will take bees and flies it's usually the smaller insects they hunt

 

[Ian123]

Have you tried much to raise queens a little later...say autumn? Brilliant to have ready in spring.

It's rotten here trying to get queens mated in spring....I did have some mate in 14 degrees this year, which was lucky...

I'm soon to have a go at raising some autumn queens, which worked well last year. Such a settled time with the weather and lots of drones still around.

I’ve had good success in the autumn, I’d suggest weather is more consistent than early season as well.

 

[Sanntos]

Tried autumn.
BUT:
WASPS
and wasps and wasps.
Overwhelm any weak colony.

Yes, there seem to always be a big colony of wasps near by in august. But since I learned to use several of these traps, plastic divided 1,5 liters soda bottles with e.g. concentrated blue berry juice, the problem got solved. Also, you can choose between trapping one queen in spring or 1000 workers in august

 

[madasafish]

Yes, there seem to always be a big colony of wasps near by in august. But since I learned to use several of these traps, plastic divided 1,5 liters soda bottles with e.g. concentrated blue berry juice, the problem got solved. Also, you can choose between trapping one queen in spring or 1000 workers in august

We have lots of woods and nearby houses with trees.
Trapping wasp queens is like micturating into the wind.

When I reinsulated our house roof, I found the remains of c 30 wasp nests. When I repainted the gutters/fascia boards about five years ago, I wore a veil at certain parts to avoid wasp stings..
( Old stone built house with high walls so nest eradication is not something to do on a whim!)

 

[Beesnaturally]

We have lots of woods and nearby houses with trees.
Trapping wasp queens is like micturating into the wind.

When I reinsulated our house roof, I found the remains of c 30 wasp nests. When I repainted the gutters/fascia boards about five years ago, I wore a veil at certain parts to avoid wasp stings..
( Old stone built house with high walls so nest eradication is not something to do on a whim!)

I go industrial, early, with traps. A crate of beer bottle traps is good, but plenty of jam jar and clear bottle traps good too. The 5 litre water bottles go on and on. A clear bottle with its top near the entrance will protect a small hive. A bit of gauze over the entrance too if necessary. I find wasps are a manageable problem, even when nesting nearby. War by attrition is the mindset.

 

[Boston Bees]

I go industrial, early, with traps. A crate of beer bottle traps is good, but plenty of jam jar and clear bottle traps good too. The 5 litre water bottles go on and on. A clear bottle with its top near the entrance will protect a small hive. A bit of gauze over the entrance too if necessary. I find wasps are a manageable problem, even when nesting nearby. War by attrition is the mindset.

So, "Beesnaturally", but "killasmanywaspsaspossible"?

Any inconsistency here?

 

[Sanntos]

We have lots of woods and nearby houses with trees.
Trapping wasp queens is like micturating into the wind.

In beekeeping, and even trapping wasps while protecting queen mating hives, the details are everything

 

[maddydog]

Near open fresh water that has wildlife, how many losses are likely due to dragonflies and damselflies? How many losses due to birds (e.g. swallows and swifts and similar) that catch insects while flying?

Once opened a hive up to change a floor and found the remains of a big dragonfly. Assume if flew in looking for an easy meal and never made it out? Not propolised though like the occasional mouse I see

 

[Swarm]

I did notice the Swallows at the farm flying happily over a patch of Balsam a couple of years ago.