beeboybee
Field Bee
- Joined
- May 5, 2009
- Messages
- 752
- Reaction score
- 15
- Location
- QUANTOCKS - SOMERSET
- Hive Type
- 14x12
- Number of Hives
- 6 >12 - 14x12 + Nucs
First go a Grafting eggs - so some thoughts - Queen breeders TAKE MY MONEY!
A bit of a end of season experiment - if it fails then will be combining colonies - if you don'' try you don't learn!
I Have two queen-less colonies one through choice / one through??? both no confirmed Queenless - No Eggs / No Virgin
I used a rubbish fake Cupkit type kit that I had in the back dusty drawer - I only used the frame holders x 16 and mounted them on a frame with the small cups - then placed in hive after dribbling a little syrup on the cell holders.
3 days later these where looking clean and bees all over them.
So today with a break in the weather - I selected a frame of eggs from my favourite colony.
with the Voice of Richard Noel You Tube beekeeper in my head I choose the area on the Fram where the eggs had hatched into small larva.
then with my rubbish Chinese grafting tool I ventured in to the depth of a cell ---- ok I now I understand why its not easy.... I struggled to scoop a larva / probably sliced a few / and certainly rub a few up the side of the cell.
after dropping 6 into the waiting cups I decided - 1 to put my glasses on - Que running to the house / and getting recently purchased glasses as new to needing them!
then I used another Chinese grafting tool to sacrifice a cell to allow easier access to the hero cell. - worked I bit better - and eventually filled my 16 cups.
gently placing the frame back into the queen less colony and the mutilated Fram back into original hive.
So what did I learn so far --
its certainly harder than it looks.
my process for getting Cell cup frame ready and into hive - needs work!
I need to try some different Grafting Tools.
the Amazon Special Chinese tools - are they all the same Quality? I would it difficult to bend the end into a scoop rather that a point - are there differing nib parts as I found the retractable part used to drop larva into cell in a couple of cases rolled to larva until it was trapped under it -
What am I hoping to get out of this - Well its a challenge - and doing is the best way of learning.
if if if if any of the cells are excepted then would be amazing to get Two new Queens.
if they are excepted - my plan was to wait until they are capped
then remove one cell and try and push the plastic part into a frame from my other queen less hive so that the virgin hatches in that hive.
the other cells perhaps cage them all apart from one that can be part of that colony
I dont want to make any splits or Mating Hives this time of year.
A bit of a end of season experiment - if it fails then will be combining colonies - if you don'' try you don't learn!
I Have two queen-less colonies one through choice / one through??? both no confirmed Queenless - No Eggs / No Virgin
I used a rubbish fake Cupkit type kit that I had in the back dusty drawer - I only used the frame holders x 16 and mounted them on a frame with the small cups - then placed in hive after dribbling a little syrup on the cell holders.
3 days later these where looking clean and bees all over them.
So today with a break in the weather - I selected a frame of eggs from my favourite colony.
with the Voice of Richard Noel You Tube beekeeper in my head I choose the area on the Fram where the eggs had hatched into small larva.
then with my rubbish Chinese grafting tool I ventured in to the depth of a cell ---- ok I now I understand why its not easy.... I struggled to scoop a larva / probably sliced a few / and certainly rub a few up the side of the cell.
after dropping 6 into the waiting cups I decided - 1 to put my glasses on - Que running to the house / and getting recently purchased glasses as new to needing them!
then I used another Chinese grafting tool to sacrifice a cell to allow easier access to the hero cell. - worked I bit better - and eventually filled my 16 cups.
gently placing the frame back into the queen less colony and the mutilated Fram back into original hive.
So what did I learn so far --
its certainly harder than it looks.
my process for getting Cell cup frame ready and into hive - needs work!
I need to try some different Grafting Tools.
the Amazon Special Chinese tools - are they all the same Quality? I would it difficult to bend the end into a scoop rather that a point - are there differing nib parts as I found the retractable part used to drop larva into cell in a couple of cases rolled to larva until it was trapped under it -
What am I hoping to get out of this - Well its a challenge - and doing is the best way of learning.
if if if if any of the cells are excepted then would be amazing to get Two new Queens.
if they are excepted - my plan was to wait until they are capped
then remove one cell and try and push the plastic part into a frame from my other queen less hive so that the virgin hatches in that hive.
the other cells perhaps cage them all apart from one that can be part of that colony
I dont want to make any splits or Mating Hives this time of year.
