How to make tame apiary

[Finman]

.
- Get tame mother queens, from which you take daughters.

- Rear a number of extra queens/ spare queens.

- Keep the new queen so long in the mating nuc, that you see, are they agressive. When you open the nuc cover, and they say hellow to you stings towards sky, they will be bad *** bees. If they do not mind about opening, perhaps they are ok.

Squeeze those queens, which show to you warning sign: Stings up! Smell of poison is not meant for you, but it is for other bees. It means: alarm, alarm. Enemy is here!

Then, when you meet an angry colony, replace the queen with your spare queen or buy a laying queen.
.

 

[Eyeman]

Keep the new queen so long in the mating nuc, that you see, are they agressive.

I keep them in the mating nuc until I see capped worker brood then move them into a 3 frame full size nuc to assess their performance. I don't think you can reliably make a judgement on the queens performance including aggression from a mating nuc. What do others think?
As my outfit is small scale I can afford to move all mated queens into a 3 frame full size nuc and after a couple of weeks when she has filled the nuc I then make a call on her performance and decide whether to keep her or not.

Then, when you meet an angry colony, replace the queen with your spare queen or buy a laying queen.
.

Keep a record of colony behavior and take into account weather condition etc. Average out that colonies behavior taking into account weather conditions before culling the queen?
I would choose to breed from colonies that were calm in all climatic conditions if that was possible.

 

[Obee1]

I keep them in the mating nuc until I see capped worker brood then move them into a 3 frame full size nuc to assess their performance. I don't think you can reliably make a judgement on the queens performance including aggression from a mating nuc. What do others think?
As my outfit is small scale I can afford to move all mated queens into a 3 frame full size nuc and after a couple of weeks when she has filled the nuc I then make a call on her performance and decide whether to keep her or not.


Keep a record of colony behavior and take into account weather condition etc. Average out that colonies behavior taking into account weather conditions before culling the queen?
I would choose to breed from colonies that were calm in all climatic conditions if that was possible.

How many frames are in your mating nuc? My first attempt at this - I have a little mating nuc with only three frames. Queen ran out of space to lay before the brood got capped over. Is a three frame nuc just too small - I moved my queen into a dummied down poly nuc and next inspection she was gone.
Btw the brood did turn out to be worker brood.

 

[B+.]

Queen ran out of space to lay before the brood got capped over. Is a three frame nuc just too small

This often happens in small areas such as that provided by Apidea, etc.
You could cut back some of the comb or add a supplementary box of frames. These are available from beekeeping suppliers (http://www.apidea.ch/media/archive1/Betriebsanleitung englisch_2013.pdf).
Full size frames are usually not a problem

 

[Eyeman]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Obee1
Queen ran out of space to lay before the brood got capped over. Is a three frame nuc just too small

I use Apideas & Mann Lake's copies. Your right about limited space. I usually move the queen when I'm sure Ive got worker brood and can normally tell at the mid-larvae stage by the shape of the cappings. I do see capped brood as I leave them 3 weeks from when the virgin was popped in and if she mates early youll get capped brood. I don't normally have a problem with them absconding unless Ive overfilled with bees or the mating nuc is in full sun.

 

[Finman]

How many frames are in your mating nuc? My first attempt at this - I have a little mating nuc with only three frames. Queen ran out of space to lay before the brood got capped over. Is a three frame nuc just too small - I moved my queen into a dummied down poly nuc and next inspection she was gone.
Btw the brood did turn out to be worker brood.

I have reared hundreds of 3 frames nucs.

The amount of brood depends on the amount of workers in the nuc. If the space runs out, then you give more space .

Mostly space runs out, when bees fill the nuc with honey. Then you take honey frames to the bigger hive, and hive an empty comb.

Don't hang yourself to the principles if you have such.
.

 

[Finman]

Full size frames are usually not a problem

Problem is then in beekeepers head. He does not know, what he is doing.

The queen cannot lay alone. Everything is under control of colony and what they are able to do.

 

[Obee1]

This often happens in small areas such as that provided by Apidea, etc.
You could cut back some of the comb or add a supplementary box of frames. These are available from beekeeping suppliers (http://www.apidea.ch/media/archive1/Betriebsanleitung englisch_2013.pdf).
Full size frames are usually not a problem

That pic you link to is not my mating nuc- mine is that size but the feeder compartment can't be removed not can an extra box fit on top. The bees used one frame for food and the other two for eggs. What if I put that tiny colony with newly mated queen into a dummied down nuc on national combs. Give them one food frame and one empty comb to lay in. Would there be enough bees? They would lose all their eggs and tiny larvae. When I did my attempt I just moved the mated queen but not the bees with her. Used a jz/bz cage. Or should I invest in a nuc like your pic that can be expanded?

 

[Finman]

.
Obee, everything is in your hands, what you do. Do it so that it is good and practical.

Propably you have so few cases that you have not learned what is worth to do and what is not.

 

[Finman]

.
i have splitted poly boxes with table saw to 3 pieces. So I have 2 or 3 frame nucs.

When I take a laying queen to a bigger hive, I join the nuc to another nuc. Now the nuc has 6 frames. And so on. Verh flexible system.

Size is langstroth, that I can move nucs' brood frames to the winter boxes of big colonies.

Medium size frames in nucs are not good for wintering reason.
.

 

[foghornleghorn]

.
i have splitted poly boxes with table saw to 3 pieces. So I have 2 or 3 frame nucs.

When I take a laying queen to a bigger hive, I join the nuc to another nuc. Now the nuc has 6 frames. And so on. Verh flexible system.

Size is langstroth, that I can move nucs' brood frames to the winter boxes of big colonies.

Medium size frames in nucs are not good for wintering reason.
.

What do you use as the other wall finman, just normal insulation?

 

[Finman]

What do you use as the other wall finman, just normal insulation?

3 cm polyurethane insulation board, as heavy as they have. Then glue it with polyurethane glue (PU). Water mist on surface, water hardends the glue.


The roof is piece if polyurethane board.

Floor is ply. Space height 20 mm.

Entrance 2x2 cm.

Absolutely not a mesh floor.

The nuc is very warm and brooding is good with minimum bee cluster.

.