How quickly can you add a new queen?

[thebhoy]

How quickly can you give a queen less hive a new mated queen after all brood has been capped?

One of my hives will be queenless for one week this Saturday, I will have knocked down all QC's from the existing brood and expect most if not all the brood will have been capped by then.

When will it be safe to add a bought in queen?

 

[Ben90]

Most things I've read suggest 24-48 hours after removing the queen before adding the new queen introduction cage.

I introduced a new queen I'd produced myself to a week long Q- hive a couple of weeks ago, they took the new queen quickly. The longer you leave it the more willing they are to accept a new queen's pheromones.

 

[REDWOOD]

Same day

 

[masterBK]

With bought in queens a safe way of introduction is to take a nucleus from the main colony and introduce her to that a day later in the travel cage with fondant release. Then when she is laying well and some of her brood emerging you then unite the nucleus to the main colony. All this requires planning and you don't have the time for all this. so I suggest suspending the cage in the colony with the cage Tab still in place for a few days and if you see the workers reacting favourably towards her through the small holes in the cage then remove the Tab so that they can eat their way in through the fondant and release her.