Superseding new queen bee

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Joined
Jun 17, 2013
Messages
51
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6
Location
Essex
Hive Type
14x12
Number of Hives
From 4 last year to 11 this year
Quick question which I am sure I know the answer to.

I had a hive swarm and the new queen took over 4 weeks to start laying from when she hatched, I was on the verge of doing the hive tool test to replace her with a spare laying queen I have. I inspected Friday the 15th June and she had her bum in a cell and looked to be laying so I closed them up and gave her the benefit of the doubt for a week. I inspected last Sunday and she has laid up at least 2 frames of capped cells and BIAS on another. However at the top of the BIAS frame was a charged queen cell which was nearly capped.

I left them to it but wondered should I have knocked the cell down cause the queen was only just getting into her stride or have I done right by leaving it and letting them get on with it. The cell looked fully charge with lots of royal jelly and was at top of the frame and looked to be from a cup, not an emergency cell. She is a F4 buckfast and I am worried that the new queen will be a F5 so am I getting down the line to when they may turn nasty.

Any thoughts welcome

Thanks
 
I don't know the state of your apiary, but if it were me and I had enough bees I would make up a nuc with that QC provided you are happy so far with the line. If they swarm every year though I would not want to get more of the same.
 
I do have enough hives at the moment, good point though I suppose I could always recombine later if the first queen is doing well.

Cheers
 
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Buy a good new queen. The swarm has lost already half of its bees in 4 weeks. When superseded Queen gets new bees, the colony is almost finish.
 
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Thanks Finman, I did think I might do that I have doubled the number of hives I had since last year so can combine with one of my queens that is already in full swing and yes I am sure that the workers must be on the older side now. Might be better than wasting time wondering what is happening
 
I had a hive swarm and the new queen took over 4 weeks to start laying from when she hatched, I was on the verge of doing the hive tool test to replace her with a spare laying queen

You're obviously either reading the wrong books or listening to the wrong people, Four weeks after emergence is no reason give up if she hasn't started laying.
 
I agree I would normally wait about 6 weeks before I would do anything but I have too many hives and this was an excuse to combine to reduce numbers. But when she started laying I went soft and gave her a chance to see what see can do. But then the following inspection they are superseding her. Just wondered would bees do this if a queen was taking her time to start laying or her rate of laying wasn’t up to their standards
 
Just to make it clear when I said give them a laying queen I was meant combining with a nuc I have as I have too many from splits and buying new queens to get rid of some nasty hives and then not combining to keep number of hives down.
 
I put a supersedure cell in a nuc the other week. She is on mating flights this week. The queen in the original hive is laying very well and there were no new QCs. Due to inspect them again tomorrow. Interesting to see what happens!
 
I put a supersedure cell in a nuc the other week. She is on mating flights this week. The queen in the original hive is laying very well and there were no new QCs. Due to inspect them again tomorrow. Interesting to see what happens!

Laying Queen brakes the Queen cell. IT cut the cell with its jaws like with scissors.
 
I agree I would normally wait about 6 weeks before I would do anything but I have too many hives and this was an excuse to combine to reduce numbers. But when she started laying I went soft and gave her a chance to see what see can do. But then the following inspection they are superseding her. Just wondered would bees do this if a queen was taking her time to start laying or her rate of laying wasn’t up to their standards

I've had more than an expected number of nucs ending up Q- this year. If no signs of eggs then a Test frame always goes in when all brood has emerged. That way you can forget about laying workers and the extra brood will strengthen the nucs.
 
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