Do you use Queen excluders

[Nannysbees]

Chatting to a seasoned Beekeeper recently and he told me that if the honey isn't being taken up into the supers to remove the queen excluder!!!! He has never used them, what happens if the queen lays amongst the honey. Do you wait for the brood to emerge then extract? Just wondering if anyone does this?

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Chatting to a seasoned Beekeeper recently and he told me that if the honey isn't being taken up into the supers to remove the queen excluder!!!! He has never used them, what happens if the queen lays amongst the honey. Do you wait for the brood to emerge then extract? Just wondering if anyone does this?

If the queen lays among the honey you have the problem of separation. I have seen reluctance to draw comb in the supers overcome by removing the Queen Excluder FOR A FEW DAYS which often overcomes the reluctance. Followed by replacement of the excluder and care to ensure the queen is in the brood box below it.
Leaving alone and hoping the bees move up in their own time doesn't always work and they get cramped, followed by swarming. It's a risk you take.

 

[user 819]

Generally if the queen lays in supers then in time the brood once emerged will eventually get back filled , one then has to deal with storage and wax moth. If the first super is solid with stores then it should create a natural barrier to keep her down below.
I have tried using no QE's but preferred knowing where she should be.

If one extracts supers and stores then wet each year then one will have no issue with bees wanting to go up in to them the following spring.

 

[jarmo henttu]

Chatting to a seasoned Beekeeper recently and he told me that if the honey isn't being taken up into the supers to remove the queen excluder!!!! He has never used them, what happens if the queen lays amongst the honey. Do you wait for the brood to emerge then extract? Just wondering if anyone does this?

I have kept 60 years beehives and never used excluders.

Bees have instict to keep brood area togethes as round ball. The queen does not run here and there dropping eggs every where

The the bees have instinct to situate things in order, from top to bottom:
TOP
- Capped honey
- not ready honey
- nectar
- brood
- pollen frames

When you take capped honey off from the hive, you must add empty frame box above the brood frame. ... if you do not mind, so bees' instincts will not work.

If you do not give enough space to pollen stores, bees will store pollen where they can. Honey and pollen will be at same frames.

 

[pargyle]

I run without queen excluders ... it's not a problem. Occasionally, early in the season, the queen might lay up a bit in the first super but the brood emerges and they back fill. I always take precautions against wax moth when I store drawn frames (sulphur burn followed by Dipel) so again - no problem.

 

[BillyBob]

I have two hives, a next to wild top bar, no eggs in the honey comb and a managed national for the wife with extruder mesh, as is the norm.

 

[ericbeaumont]

extruder mesh, as is the norm

Not sure there is a norm in beekeeping, but the use of a QX can be used variably through the season. For example, allowing the queen free rein of all boxes in the first half of the season will reduce swarming considerably, esp. if brood boxes only are used. On the main flow, she can be put into a lower BB below a QX, and all above will be used for honey, but in any case, this will happen naturally.

Bees have instict to keep brood area togethes as round ball

Do you wait for the brood to emerge then extract?

I found that nests would chimney in the first half of the year, and then descend into the lower boxes as the main flow filled emerged combs above.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

he told me that if the honey isn't being taken up into the supers to remove the queen excluder

ah, that old myth - they will take it up when they need to take it up, not before

what happens if the queen lays amongst the honey

she won't she'll lay beneath it, as the brood emerges they will replace it with honey

 

[Martimart]

This year is the first year I've not used QX on any hives. Not a noticeable difference, apart from I did have a swarm and found a solitary open QC in the second super above the BB. No other brood around it, so I think it was just one of those things Bee's do. Are the Bee's any happier who knows, would I do it again next year, probably.

 

[Ely]

I don't bother with them. They are annoying. They are good for keeping newspaper in place when doing a unite though.

 

[Parsonage Bees]

My one big hive this year which I demareed has rebuilt National brood box and has layed up the middle into 3 (maybe 4?) supers. Taken a couple of capped honey supers off the top already. I had one yellow queen the other year that did wander all over, putting brood in the top super.
I'll use QXs with entrances above (drone brood in the supers) along with some frame shuffling to get them down to brood and a half for treatment and to overwinter.