New Zealand calling

[ladaok]

Hello everyone. my last message was on how the corrupt MANUKA honey scam has destroyed our honey $ take. I can't even get $1.80 / kilo for my multi flora. Anyway, that pales into insignificance with the pandemic the world nows confronts,
We here in NZ have been so lucky, whether luck has any part to play? Pretty sure we are down to 3 > 4 confirmed cases in iso and 21 deaths.

So, while the NZ CV19 battle is V close to being won, ..my hive dead outs are not. I have always been on the back end of a 50% loss / annum. have always used the walk away splits., and I'm not going to do that this coming season.
Is it bad genetics transfering year by year, climate in spring bad 4 mating ?.... it is NOT varroa nor AFB or other diseases.
I need about 70 Q's ...luckily, not all at once, in batches of 10 >15 ....I want to use the Cloake board method, but without grafting !!! So, I'm looking for ideas. Two that spring to mind are, the Issac Hopkins and cell punch methods. How would YOU do it ? .....ta

 

[jeff33]

So you need to raise 70 queens throughout the season to change the poor genetics in your current stock? How do you propose to choose your breeder queen(s) and ensure their daughters don't mate with any of your current stock? I think grafting is the easiest way.

 

[Ian123]

Personally I graft but punched cells and grafting achieve the same thing a cell in your desired spot, just not in the same volume. As to the method to raise the cells I prefer large q-less stock. The various methods of raising above a q-right colony works at certain times of the year but results drop off later in the season I personally find. As to walk away splits I dislike them your not raising from your best stock if you are doing it in any kind of volume, also queens raised from emergency cells are not the best it’s a fact! Many do it. If you search for info on the subject there are reports/research out there showing lighter queen weights and increased autumn supercedures in emergency queens.

 

[enrico]

My first question is why are you losing 50% of your stock each year. That needs correcting first!
E

 

[jeff33]

I have used the queen right method for the last 2 years, it works well for me as I only put in 12 grafts at the time and do 3 batches throughout the season. The hive can still produce a crop of honey at the same time. I use a similar board as the one designed by JBM.

 

[mbc]

If for whatever reason you won't or can't graft then maybe one of the cupkit things might be appropriate.
I'd just learn to graft though, much less fuss.

 

[ericbeaumont]

My first question is why are you losing 50% of your stock each year. That needs correcting first!

I agree.

Unless you buy in queen stock it'll take new strategies to correct the losses and improve the survivors, and it won't be done in one season. This link will get you started.

 

[Ian123]

If for whatever reason you won't or can't graft then maybe one of the cupkit things might be appropriate.
I'd just learn to graft though, much less fuss.

The op mentions punches they are far less hassle than cupkit if you only want a few. Your just limited to the number of punches you have.

 

[mbc]

My first question is why are you losing 50% of your stock each year. That needs correcting first!
E

He answers that in the original post, "walk away splits", it's rough and ready and bound to produce a high level of casualties.

 

[enrico]

He answers that in the original post, "walk away splits", it's rough and ready and bound to produce a high level of casualties.

I understand those produce losses during the season but not overwinter losses generally, if they are strong going into winter he shouldn't be losing 50%
E

 

[ladaok]

Ta everyone, all good answers .... & yes w/a splits don't do well not nowadays. and w/a/s probably promote bad genetics. what I will do is hunt down what I believe to be the best hives with the characteristics I'm looking for & one has to keep in mind 1/2 of those inputs come from DRONES....the whole queen thing gets bloody tricky ...yes ?

Is my loss due to bad queen / drone genetics, varroa chemical, seasonal influence, or just BAD beekeeping

I'm looking for a system that is NON graft, which takes grub damage out of the equation ...I have only grafted once, and the results was disappointing. Don't want to be flailing around for weeks with NO results

 

[papa_sierra]

I didn't get on to well with grafting, so this year going to try the cell punch method. Easy enough to make and gets around the ham handedness.

 

[Stiffy]

Ta everyone, all good answers .... & yes w/a splits don't do well not nowadays. and w/a/s probably promote bad genetics. what I will do is hunt down what I believe to be the best hives with the characteristics I'm looking for & one has to keep in mind 1/2 of those inputs come from DRONES....the whole queen thing gets bloody tricky ...yes ?

Is my loss due to bad queen / drone genetics, varroa chemical, seasonal influence, or just BAD beekeeping

I'm looking for a system that is NON graft, which takes grub damage out of the equation ...I have only grafted once, and the results was disappointing. Don't want to be flailing around for weeks with NO results

Best method I have found is patience and persistence, might take some time to discover the one that suits but eventually well worth the effort.

Plenty of videos for Nicot, cell punch and a myriad of other reasonably easy methods of queen rearing on the T'internet.
S

 

[Ian123]

Papa s who’s the supplier of those punches I think bb wear have them and did have some in the past but most stopped selling them many years ago. Ladoak with your q-rearing whilst selecting from your own queens is fine the problems often random drones and a good percentage of mongrel or f1 queens not breeding true. You’ve got some good breeder queen suppliers in NZ and some offering varroa tolerance, have you considered purchasing a breeder queen. Ian

 

[papa_sierra]

Ian, made them up myself. Stainless tube cut to size and sharp edged, ringed with a bit of poly tubing, dowel for pushing cell through with a piece of turned down brush handle on the end. (Sized so that it doesn't fall through the frames of the mini nuc). Mounted on cross frames with terry clips. Couple more weeks before I try it out.

 

[Ian123]

Next time your making some drop me a message looks a good job.

 

[Hebeegeebee]

Rather than a walk away split which could result in weak queens if the split colony is not strong, the Miller Method could be used with a strong colony that has had the queen removed a week before and the queencells from that hive destroyed before the miller frame from a selected colony goes in. By this time, there will a week's worth of young bees emerging and if fed each day the queencells are open, the colony should be in good shape to produce decent queencells. A second batch/miller frame could go in a week after the first. It won't give 70 queencells, but could be done with more than one hive. Cupkits are quite easy to use though.

But why the high losses? Wrong apiary site? Food (pollen) shortage due to competition from other beekeepers?