Queen Banking

[daroco]

I was wondering how to go about banking mated queens? I've searched the threads - but it seems to go off topic very quickly with people discussing virgins and AI queens. This was not what I was looking to do, so was hoping someone could provide some clarity.

The key questions I had were -
a) Does the queen get banked alone? Or does she need attendants?
b) What spacing is needed if I am going to bank the queens in a super? I am planning to use individual cages pinned/tacked onto a super
c) How long can a mated queen be banked for? (I know there doesn't seem to be a definitive answer on this one - so more looking for opinions) Would 8 weeks be pushing it too far

 

[B+.]

I was wondering how to go about banking mated queens? I've searched the threads - but it seems to go off topic very quickly with people discussing virgins and AI queens. This was not what I was looking to do, so was hoping someone could provide some clarity.

The key questions I had were -
a) Does the queen get banked alone? Or does she need attendants?
b) What spacing is needed if I am going to bank the queens in a super? I am planning to use individual cages pinned/tacked onto a super
c) How long can a mated queen be banked for? (I know there doesn't seem to be a definitive answer on this one - so more looking for opinions) Would 8 weeks be pushing it too far

a) Yes.
b) Queens must be kept physically separate. They are sometimes kept in a frame with cages facing opposite directions next to each other, sometimes with glass/plastic on on side so that nurses believe they are only tending one queen.
c) Yes. Days not weeks.

Banking is a practice that is frowned upon by most because the workers become aggressive towards the queens in the cages.

 

[daroco]

Thanks! I wish I could always get an answer that covers everything I wanted to know that quickly!

 

[Michael Palmer]

I've banked queens in the past. Not an ideal way to hold queens, but sometimes necessary.

Choose a strong colony, with the plenty of bees in the top box.
Place an excluder on the hive.
Line up the caged queens, screen down, on the excluder. The cages should be on thin shims so the bees from below the excluder can come up to feed the queens.
Cover with a wool cloth to keep the heat in, and a rim, and then the roof.

The bees will take care of the caged queens. I always had attendants in the cages anyway, and it didn't seem to matter. Queen banks are for short term storage of queens. But, a couple years ago, I had some extra queens at the end of the season. I banked them. A month later, Jen Berry from U of Georgia called in desperation, needing some queens, asap. The queens were all alive, but the attendants were dead. I changed the cages, added new attendants. The queens arrived in good shape and went on to do a good job for her. She wrote about those queens in an article in Bee Culture...100% accepted.

 

[daroco]

Thanks for the practical advice - Good to hear the queens worked out after being banked longer, but I think I'll stick with both of your advice and use it as a short term solution. Do you have a link so I can read the article?

 

[Finman]

.
How to bank.... Keep in nucs.

 

[Queenman]

90 days. Pages 134 onwards in Taber, S. Breeding Super Bees.

 

[mazzamazda]

My experience of banking is the queens need to be banked in a very well fed colony on the top of a double brood very strong colony with qe. Pollen/honey and frames of emerging brood right next to the bank frame, I was banking around 20-30 queens for around 3 days. If I can though I try and put them in a nuc as Finman says, a 2 frame nuc, more natural and survive better.

 

[For want of a better word]

.
How to bank.... Keep in nucs.

3 full national brood frames with plenty of bees... and feed.
Overwinter well if placed in sheltered spot.... in a polly nuc with a fat dummy
Used old shed with roof and no front.. worked well.

Yeghes da