Clipping and marking queens

[keith pierce]

it wont be long now till we are doing our first spring inspections and finding our queens to clip and mark them

 

[Millet]

That should be White.. lol or Blue for last year..

 

[keith pierce]

i have a beekeeping buddy that continually argues with me that this color is blue

 

[Millet]

Please don't listen to me i'm new to be keeping. sorry for derailing your post.

 

[Quis Custodiet]

That should be White.. lol or Blue for last year..

Will you rear good bees?

 

[oliver90owner]

our first spring inspections and finding our queens to clip and mark them

Clipping and marking, for the hobbyist with only a couple of hives should not even be contemplated early in the season, particularly if not experienced.

Utter stupidity, if you were to ask me, to risk losing a queen early in the season before replacements are readily available. KISS principle works. Different story for those with several hives and experience, but they would likely have already got marked and clipped queens, if that is part of their beekeeping.

There may be many who would not even think clipping and marking is a necessity, which it is not of course. Personal choice. My first inspections will be limited to checking on fecundity of queens, stores levels and general health of the colony. Nothing more, apart from spring cleaning for those colonies on solid floors, is necessary that early in the season.

Apart from that, it could be over 3 months before most colonies need to be pulled apart. Or do you know something about the weather, that nobody else does? Yes, I have inspected soon after Valentine's Day before now, but equally not before mid March - and that might have been the rudimentary checks, not hunting for queens.

 

[Finman]

J

i have a beekeeping buddy that continually argues with me that this color is blue

IT is same, what you use. i do not use at all.
.
Weathers are so cold in spring, that I am not in hurry to draw brood frames off from nest.
.
Wont be long to clip... Only 4,5 months.


.
.

 

[Plenty of honey]

Queen hunting is dangerous before May, unless you've got spare queens and most with a few hives dont. i would say that this practice is a bad one to follow.
I can understand ( and know) the feeling that we must just make visual contact with her, but early in the season, just how risky is that?
An experienced beekeeper will pull frame 2 or 3 knowing she's most likely on frames between 4 to 7, but even then its risky.
I like to work from the outside in, As soon as i see eggs early in the year, i retract and work back. Ive seen what i set out to see, eggs. Lots would argue you can't tell of she's laying properly by looking at the first few frames, but i would argue it gives you a pretty good idea.
Queen clipping, Not me. Takes a while to do. and what do you achieve, the chance you find a messy ball of bees, that takes even longer to sort out.

I would argue that if you requeen regularly, give your queens plenty of room, carry out regular inspections as the season progresses and swarm prevention methods and put up a few swarm traps around your apiary you won't have a problem. If you miss one, it a clean thing. Mostly nearby and quick to deal with. I agree its personal choice To me its the most unnatural thing one can do!!

 

[B+.]

its personal choice To me its the most unnatural thing one can do!!

If you are breeding (especially if you are using instrumentally inseminated queens) it is necessary to clip a wing so the queen can't fly. Otherwise, you can't be sure of the mating

 

[Plenty of honey]

If you are breeding (especially if you are using instrumentally inseminated queens) it is necessary to clip a wing so the queen can't fly. Otherwise, you can't be sure of the mating

Very good point!!

 

[For want of a better word]

If you are breeding (especially if you are using instrumentally inseminated queens) it is necessary to clip a wing so the queen can't fly. Otherwise, you can't be sure of the mating

And that will be in May June if we are lucky!

Unclipped overwintered queens that have been open mated will be checked for fecundity etc in late April and marked with the appropriate year of mating colour or disc.
Tip...
For most who are not interested in line breeding and bee improvement a simple dot of white Tippex is enough to help spot the queen if you do not have the skill to find her. .... and all of that four months away here in the
GreatgreygreengreasyTamarrivervalleyallsetaboutwithsecondhomes

Mid Winter here!

Yeghes da

 

[Arfermo]

That should be White.. lol or Blue for last year..

For a single hive owner, as you are, it doesn't matter and anybody can use whatever colour suits them as there is no strict rule anyway.

 

[alldigging]

For a single hive owner, as you are, it doesn't matter and anybody can use whatever colour suits them as there is no strict rule anyway.

Some people suggest using two colours to make a unique combination. Although there's lots of colours of the posca pens if you wanted to be really different.

 

[Arfermo]

Some people suggest using two colours to make a unique combination. Although there's lots of colours of the posca pens if you wanted to be really different.

Technicolour paint looks really lovely too!!! Surprised that knowledgeable beekeepers such as those on this forum need to taught how to suck eggs on this topic anyway.

 

[For want of a better word]

Some people suggest using two colours to make a unique combination. Although there's lots of colours of the posca pens if you wanted to be really different.

Very good tip!
I use pink for queens that I do not want to select for breeding... plus the colour of the year sporned.
Also if unclipped will be evident in a swarm!

Yeghes da

 

[keith pierce]

Utter stupidity, is a little bit on the strong side.Fortunately or unfortunately I have about 100 stocks to inspect and any time I come across a queen that is not marked, then record's are checked and then she gets clipped and marked. I don't see the big issue and the procedure takes about 30 seconds.90% of my queens are already clipped from last year and alot done in the last inspections when they could not replace her.If I ever see the slightest sign of aggression towards her then she gets popped into a cage with the smallest amount of fondant. I haven't lost a queen in years.As for colour, I only use 3(green, blue, yellow) as I find these are the most suitable for my eye's. I once had a beginner ring me in a panic saying that the queen he got in his nuc was 5 year's old till I explained that they get marked with whatever is in my pocket on the day. Good beekeeping is all about record keeping, confidence, experience and then having the ability to see and fix.

 

[oliver90owner]

Utter stupidity, is a little bit on the strong side.

Not at all. At least not in the context of the reply. Read it all properly and you will see there is differentiation between inexerienced beeks with just a couple of colonies and yourself, with a hundred.

Perhaps you need to dfferentiate between the little 'we' and the bigger 'we' when posting, to make it clear you were just reminding yourself of what you would be doing shortly?

No doubt you are now caiming it was only yourself you were referring to?

The second paragraph of the reply said it all.

 

[Finman]

Technicolour paint looks really lovely .

Oh dear... I would mark some hundred workers too

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Oh dear... I would mark some hundred workers too

make sure you do each one in a different colour - it would get confusing otherwise

 

[keith pierce]

Utter stupidity, is a little bit on the strong side.

Not at all. At least not in the context of the reply. Read it all properly and you will see there is differentiation between inexerienced beeks with just a couple of colonies and yourself, with a hundred.

Perhaps you need to dfferentiate between the little 'we' and the bigger 'we' when posting, to make it clear you were just reminding yourself of what you would be doing shortly?

No doubt you are now caiming it was only yourself you were referring to?

The second paragraph of the reply said it all.

sorry Oliver, you were right and I was wrong. In future I need to analysis my posts more.