Beginners Queen rearing.

[JC47]

This is my wife and I's second year of keeping Bees. Next year we intend to raise our own Queens. Which method would the Forum members suggest bearing in mind that I am over 70 ?

 

[Poly Hive]

This may help?

https://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7767

PH

 

[JC47]

Thank you PH for your prompt reply.

 

[For want of a better word]

This is my wife and I's second year of keeping Bees. Next year we intend to raise our own Queens. Which method would the Forum members suggest bearing in mind that I am over 70 ?

Millar method is by far the easiest... and bees decide how many queen cells they can manage
Cell punching allows beekeeper to select the larvae
The Nicot system can produce a lot of larvae at the "right" age
Grafting larvae can be difficult for the poor sighted.
queenless starter colonies seem to work well for some
Queenright systems are less work
See Dave Cushman's web page

Experiment
Good luck

Yeghes da

 

[madasafish]

Having now reached 70,nicot and Cloake Board system worked v well last year for me. Shaky fingers and poor eyesight made no impact.

 

[Finman]

.
You have 4 hives and you do not need much queens.

I do it so that when first hive starts to swarm, I change the larvae in swarm cells. I get splended fat queens.

Problem with your 4 hives is, that how good are your parent colonies, from where you get grapfting larvae?

Hives rear usually 15-20 swarm cells.

If you continue with original swarming cells, your hives will be swarmy next year.

 

[Finman]

Like Icanhopit says, Miller method is easy. And it is good. Look from Dave Cushman pages.

http://www.dave-cushman.net/bee/gif/millerfound.gif

 

[For want of a better word]

.
You have 4 hives and you do not need much queens.

I do it so that when first hive starts to swarm, I change the larvae in swarm cells. I get splended fat queens.

Problem with your 4 hives is, that how good are your parent colonies, from where you get grapfting larvae?

Hives rear usually 15-20 swarm cells.

If you continue with original swarming cells, your hives will be swarmy next year.

As would be rearing from "colonies of a swarmy nature"

Agree using uncapped swarm cells and removing the small larvae is as good or even better as grafting into a cell cup primed with royal jelly... but needs grafting skills and a colony with a queen to graft from with the trait you are seeking.
Also destroying unneeded queen cells or ones already capped can increase the vigor of the ones remaining.... good record keeping, with any queen rearing method, is absolutely essential!!

Join a local bee improvement and queen rearing group ( See BIBBA web pages)

Yeghes da

 

[JC47]

Thank you all for the advice.

 

[eltalia]

This is my wife and I's second year of keeping Bees. Next year we intend to raise
our own Queens. Which method would the Forum members suggest bearing in
mind that I am over 70 ?

Assuming the colonies (?) intended are just into their third season next
year it may prove prudent to wait until 2019 using 2018 to build a larger
colony which can be used to either take 3frame breeder nucs off in 2019 or
apply pheromone tight dividers for 3X2frames in the broodnest.
The former being preferable in light of a need to lift boxes using the latter method.
The latter though does not require the infrastructure nor close attention other
systems do demand.
Of course where resale is intended the systems others have mentioned
are the only efficient option for production by numbers.

Bill

 

[Finman]

With your 2 hives it is better to buy laying queens.

 

[For want of a better word]

With your 2 hives it is better to buy laying queens.

Preferably bred locally and NOT IMPORTED!!!

But raising a few queens from your own stock is not difficult and extends the satisfaction of beekeeping tremendously.

Good luck

Yeghes da

 

[B+.]

Preferably bred locally and NOT IMPORTED!!!

There is nothing wrong with imported queens. This is just propaganda.

 

[madasafish]

Preferably bred locally and NOT IMPORTED!!!

But raising a few queens from your own stock is not difficult and extends the satisfaction of beekeeping tremendously.

Good luck

Yeghes da

The UK imported 15,000 queens in 2016 : in 2010 it was just over 7,000.
There must be a reason for imports.. there is: it's called the British weather .. Early Spring availability of UK mated queens (not overwintered) is negligible prior to May and even then it is highly weather dependent.

No doubt local queen rearers have invested money in expanding capacity - but even they cannot make bees rear queens and get them mated in bad weather.

If we all followed the mantra of no imports, then there would likely be fewer new beekeepers, fewer hives and fewer bees.. As for commercial beekeeping - which is very low compared to France or Germany, no doubt it would be lower still - for the above reasons.

As a hobbyist, I am trying to overwinter queens in mini nucs (I can,have, and am overwintering in 5 frame nucs) and if successful will expand my output - but it will be miniscule . But I hope to learn how to do it and pass it on to others..

 

[B+.]

As a hobbyist, I am trying to overwinter queens in mini nucs (I can,have, and am overwintering in 5 frame nucs) and if successful will expand my output - but it will be miniscule . But I hope to learn how to do it and pass it on to others..

Michael Palmers videos cover it pretty well

 

[For want of a better word]

My thoughts were for the OP... a typical English hobby beekeeper with 2 colonies of bees... the backbone of beekeepers in this country, who wants to expand his experience of the craft in an environmentally sensitive manner.

NOT the single sub species fanatics or the 1000+ colony honey farmer who needs to requeen every second season for whatever reason......

Beekeepers... start raising your own queens or buy good local stock.

Yeghes da

 

[Finman]

Preferably bred locally and NOT IMPORTED!!!

But raising a few queens from your own stock is not difficult and extends the satisfaction of beekeeping tremendously.

Good luck

Yeghes da

Own stock = two hives.... Wellllll....

To rear own mongrels and you never know what is nice colony to nurse.

 

[Finman]

.
What is local stock? How many hundred miles away?

 

[For want of a better word]

.
What is local stock? How many hundred miles away?

Finnie my sweet little Reindeer herder... there are as may beekeepers with 2 hives in these septered lands than you lot have reindeerses!

Go to Lidls and get some more Rom!!

Nos da

 

[B+.]

NOT the single sub species fanatics or the 1000+ colony honey farmer who needs to requeen every second season for whatever reason......

He asked about queen rearing methods. He didn't ask about anything else. These are your views and have nothing to do with the question asked.