One example of how long it can take to get a laying queen.

[Sutty]

15th May: multiple QCs, some sealed, nuced the queen and left 1QC.
21st May: emerged QC seen (should have looked earlier) EQCs being taken down by the bees, all EQCs destroyed. Assume a virgin present.
16th June: no eggs, no brood, grumpy. Given a test frame.
23rd June: no EQCs on test frame but nice fat queen seen. I didn't examine the last few frames in the bottom box after I saw & marked her but no brood up to that point.
They've been a bit defensive, I hope they settle down now!
So 5½ weeks from nucing the queen to seeing a (presumably) laying queen.

 

[Beth]

Same timing here, starting the same day. Mine started laying on June 18th or 19th. The weather kept them inside for quite a few days.

 

[jarmo henttu]

15th May: multiple QCs, some sealed, nuced the queen and left 1QC.
21st May: emerged QC seen (should have looked earlier) EQCs being taken down by the bees, all EQCs destroyed. Assume a virgin present.
16th June: no eggs, no brood, grumpy. Given a test frame.
23rd June: no EQCs on test frame but nice fat queen seen. I didn't examine the last few frames in the bottom box after I saw & marked her but no brood up to that point.
They've been a bit defensive, I hope they settle down now!
So 5½ weeks from nucing the queen to seeing a (presumably) laying queen.

Difficult to understand what is happening up there.

Basics:

A new queen is ready to mate at 7 days old. It needs 1- 3 good sunny calm days to mate. Temp must be over 20C .

Then the queen lays first eggs after 10 days from birth.

People love to tell about their record queens, but 2 days here or there means nothing.

 

[Mint Bee]

Not a laying queen yet. See how long she lasts, if indeed she comes into lay. I suspect she has had either had limited mating opportunities or was not mated in her prime, and will be superseded sooner rather than later in either eventuality. Please let us know of her outcome.

 

[jarmo henttu]

Not a laying queen yet. See how long she lasts, if indeed she comes into lay. I suspect she has had either had limited mating opportunities or was not mated in her prime, and will be superseded sooner rather than later in either eventuality. Please let us know of her outcome.

No one knows about weather, which orders mating flights.
It starts to lay 10 days after emerging if weathers are good for mating.

 

[Sutty]

Definitely a laying queen now - sealed brood.
I'm hoping the colony settles down now, they are distinctly defensive!

 

[Murox]

Definitely a laying queen now - sealed brood.
I'm hoping the colony settles down now, they are distinctly defensive!

Glad she is laying. Similar story to yours up here. Nuced the queen on 9th May after finding queen cells in main hive. colony remained calm all the time and I only finally found a plump queen on the 29th July. The weather has been a disaster up here with the odd slightly warmer calm day. Given the vagueries of the weather in my corner I think in future I will be moving any queen cells and brood into a nuc or simply use a snelgrovesque double screen board and vertical techniques.

 

[johnh]

Difficult to understand what is happening up there.

Basics:

A new queen is ready to mate at 7 days old. It needs 1- 3 good sunny calm days to mate. Temp must be over 20C .

Then the queen lays first eggs after 10 days from birth.

People love to tell about their record queens, but 2 days here or there means nothing.

A bit optimistic for here in the East Lancashire Pennines. Two of my successfully mated queens obviously didn't look at the temperature gauge before going out. The only days which touched past 20°C came after they started laying. They would have been lucky to see >15°C and find a patch where it wasn't raining

 

[The Poot]

A bit optimistic for here in the East Lancashire Pennines. Two of my successfully mated queens obviously didn't look at the temperature gauge before going out. The only days which touched past 20°C came after they started laying. They would have been lucky to see >15°C and find a patch where it wasn't raining

Yes, I thought the 20c would rule out mating, some Summers altogether!

 

[jarmo henttu]

Yes, I thought the 20c would rule out mating, some Summers altogether!

It is over 20C. Ypu xan hope of couse.
In 18C it gappens some succes, but it takes time.

Never met 15C.

 

[hemo]

If in the UK we relied on 20c then sure a lot of us would have multiple colony failures.

 

[Antipodes]

A bit optimistic for here in the East Lancashire Pennines. Two of my successfully mated queens obviously didn't look at the temperature gauge before going out. The only days which touched past 20°C came after they started laying. They would have been lucky to see >15°C and find a patch where it wasn't raining

Yes. Queens will successfully mate with daytime maximums as low as 14 degrees C.
I've witnessed it here myself and I have seen a study where it was confirmed.

 

[jarmo henttu]

Yes. Queens will successfully mate with daytime maximums as low as 14 degrees C.
I've witnessed it here myself and I have seen a study where it was confirmed.

WIth Tasnania and Finland there is a difference , how high the sun is shining. How sun heats the bee's body.

In Finland minimun temp is 18C.

The last month when I get mated queens is August.

 

[Antipodes]

WIth Tasnania and Finland there is a difference , how high the sun is shining. How sun heats the bee's body.

In Finland minimun temp is 18C.

The last month when I get mated queens is August.

Yes, my observations are in Tas., but the Heidinger et. al. study (showing with the flights at 14 degrees) was in Germany.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4592583/