Rearing Drone Brood

[Millet]

I see this mentioned on many occasions to make sacrificial drone brood in a queen right colony for Varroa control .
However i was thinking earlier (can you smell the wood burning) why not keep a couple of hives Q - so we produce a laying worker which will obviously lay drone brood that can be past around your colonies and thus leaving the Queen to keep laying workers, not for the one hive owner by the way it is just a thought so be easy on me..

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I get where you're coming from Millet but......
The LASI work on varroa control found that drone culling was pretty pointless on the whole - my view is, why fiddle around with the balance of the colony for some holistic ideal of mite control. They will aim for their comfortable 20% of the population so why throw them a curve ball all the time.

 

[Millet]

I get where you're coming from Millet but......
The LASI work on varroa control found that drone culling was pretty pointless on the whole - my view is, why fiddle around with the balance of the colony for some holistic ideal of mite control. They will aim for their comfortable 20% of the population so why throw them a curve ball all the time.

I would never dream of doing it or even contemplate doing it, it was just a mere mad thought that hurt my grey matter so i had to ask the question

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Needed to be asked - no point keeping all ideas to yourself, one day an absolute gem will come out .
Another question for people - there's been a lot of talk over the last few years of queens mating poorly/not at all, do you think it helps if we keep killing loads of drones?

 

[Millet]

Needed to be asked - no point keeping all ideas to yourself, one day an absolute gem will come out .
Another question for people - there's been a lot of talk over the last few years of queens mating poorly/not at all, do you think it helps if we keep killing loads of drones?[/QUOTE]

:

 

[Zante]

Needed to be asked - no point keeping all ideas to yourself, one day an absolute gem will come out .
Another question for people - there's been a lot of talk over the last few years of queens mating poorly/not at all, do you think it helps if we keep killing loads of drones?

What about drone breeding? If you have a good queen, half of her genes will be coming from the drones her mother mated with. Wouldn't it be a good idea to let the colony raise drones with those good genetics? They might not mate with their sister, but who knows if those good genes won't come back to you a few years down the line?

 

[B+.]

What about drone breeding? If you have a good queen, half of her genes will be coming from the drones her mother mated with. Wouldn't it be a good idea to let the colony raise drones with those good genetics? They might not mate with their sister, but who knows if those good genes won't come back to you a few years down the line?

You can accomplish the same thing by raising daughters.

 

[REDWOOD]

What about drone breeding? If you have a good queen, half of her genes will be coming from the drones her mother mated with. Wouldn't it be a good idea to let the colony raise drones with those good genetics? They might not mate with their sister, but who knows if those good genes won't come back to you a few years down the line?

 

[Poly Hive]

Have a look at the German system where you can send virgins to a specific location to mate with specific drones. They run the equivalent of stud books.

We are still in the dark ages here.

PH

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

What about drone breeding? If you have a good queen, half of her genes will be coming from the drones her mother mated with. Wouldn't it be a good idea to let the colony raise drones with those good genetics? They might not mate with their sister, but who knows if those good genes won't come back to you a few years down the line?

Millet was talking of drone culling not breeding though - nothing at all wrong with having a healthy population of drones - that's why it's a daftness to cull them all the time.

 

[B+.]

Have a look at the German system where you can send virgins to a specific location to mate with specific drones. They run the equivalent of stud books.

We are still in the dark ages here.

PH

You can see this here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_vcpRnYhHg

With respect to Millets post about drone culling, I think its a bad idea as the drones are needed for mating with virgin queens.

 

[beeno]

You can see this here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_vcpRnYhHg

With respect to Millets post about drone culling, I think its a bad idea as the drones are needed for mating with virgin queens.

Are retarded laying worker drones up to the job though? Someone else tried to tell me they serve a purpose as they are good for the gene pool. Fact or fiction?

Same thoughts about the first batch of early spring drone brood which has a heavy varroa load usually.

 

[B+.]

Are retarded laying worker drones up to the job though? Someone else tried to tell me they serve a purpose as they are good for the gene pool. Fact or fiction?

Same thoughts about the first batch of early spring drone brood which has a heavy varroa load usually.

If you think it through logically, you can see that workers only lay eggs when they have lost their queen. Therefore, the colony is already in trouble and this is its last chance to get its genes into as many other colonies as possible (by its drones mating with virgin queens from more successful colonies). Drones are quite an investment in the colonies future (taking 24 days to emerge instead of 16 for a queen and needing much the same special treatment as queens do) so, I doubt they are "retarded". I believe they are fully functional though (so long as they are mature enough and have had adequeate nourishment) although whether this is good for the gene pool is debateable. Would you want drones from a failing colony contributing to your next generation of bees? I wouldn't.

 

[Tremyfro]

When I did several training courses...we were told about drone culling as a method of controlling varroa...it was considered part of an intergrated pest control. Along with shaking icing sugar over the bees to make them groom themselves...hence dislodging varroa. Plus squirting them in the winter.
When you are learning about bees ...you just take what is said as gospel.
Since then.....I've listened to lots of people discussing pest control for bees.
I've learnt
All bees have varroa in the uk.
Varroa carry disease and spread disease.
Some bees can live with varroa.
Everyone has favourite varroa control methods
When you see varroa on your bees...you already have a lot in your colony.
When you see deformed wings...it is long past the time you should have treated the bees.
There is nothing as satisfying as looking at a varroa tray and discovering no varroa.
There is nothing as satisfying at looking at a varroa tray and seeing it is full of dead varroa!.....but only after a treatment.
And finally....
Vaping is my favourite treatment.
Even more finally...I don't like killing baby drones...varroa notwithstanding.

 

[Hivemaker.]

I've learnt
All bees have varroa in the uk.

No, not all bees in the UK have varroa..

 

[Tremyfro]

No, not all bees in the UK have varroa..

Well..perhaps should have said.....most bees...

 

[Zante]

You can accomplish the same thing by raising daughters.

Not really. If you let your good queen raise drones you're spreading those good genes in the environment. If you only raise the daughters they will still have half unknown genetics due to open mating with unknown drones, but if everyone was to spread "good drones" in the environment the average quality of the drones your virgin queen will mate with will be higher.

I'm not saying having a brood box churning out drones, I'm saying letting the good ones make as many drones as they feel they need, rather than culling them.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I looked into Ron Hoskins bees and he said he asks anybody that has his queens to put in a frame of drone foundation into the brood box

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Not really. If you let your good queen raise drones you're spreading those good genes in the environment. If you only raise the daughters

....................... They will produce good drones to flood the area

 

[Millet]

....................... They will produce good drones to flood the area

And i thought breeding Ferrerts was hard..