Trapped Drones?

[birdsandbees]

Hi all,

Just thinking things over as you do, after a good number of you lot saying your preferred swarm prevention was the Demaree method I did some reading up about it and also viewed a couple of quite informative YouTube videos, it was after watching one of the videos and mulling over the comment the Beek made that had me thinking...
He made comment on the high number of Drone and Drone brood present in his multi storey hive and said that this was good as he had mating Nucs nearby with Virgin Queens, he then proceeded to split up the colony placing All the Drone top side of the queen excluder? Erm... Unless they have a special secret door they won't be mating with his queens will they?

 

[Swarm]

One of the considerations of this procedure is not trapping drones, you provide an entrance for them.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

to prevent that (and to stop drones getting into the supers)you can put a QX above the supers (under the top Brood box) and put in a narrow eke with an entrance in so the drones can fly out. You can also utilise a snelgrove board leaving one of the entrances open.

 

[Fatbee]

JBM - do they ever build comb in the eke when you do that?

 

[Millet]

to prevent that (and to stop drones getting into the supers)you can put a QX above the supers (under the top Brood box) and put in a narrow eke with an entrance in so the drones can fly out. You can also utilise a snelgrove board leaving one of the entrances open.

Say top entrance backside down please ..some Members, me included may not understand.

 

[birdsandbees]

So basically as per usual it's the self proclaimed experts on YouTube demonstrating how not to do it to thousands of people who haven't yet worked it out?
Thanks for that, I was thinking maybe a high level access could be useful both for this reason and maybe to avoid bees travelling so far up through the colony to reach the upper levels.
I will continue to ponder whether to give it a go

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

JBM - do they ever build comb in the eke when you do that?

yes - that's why I prefer to use a snelgrove, horsley board or similar - just gives you one extra bee space below the frames which seems to stop them building the comb downwards

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Say top entrance backside down please ..some Members, me included may not understand.

If i knew what you were trying to say I might have commented.

So basically as per usual it's the self proclaimed experts on YouTube demonstrating how not to do it to thousands of people who haven't yet worked it out?

Yep, that's yootoob for you only good for watching professionally made stuff like Heathland beekeeping (a must) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2IjNBbLESY

And old Laurel and Hardy filums

 

[Millet]

If i knew what you were trying to say I might have commented.


Yep, that's yootoob for you only good for watching professionally made stuff like Heathland beekeeping (a must) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2IjNBbLESY

And old Laurel and Hardy filums

Its nothing to do with bees not to worry.. lol

 

[Fatbee]

yes - that's why I prefer to use a snelgrove, horsley board or similar - just gives you one extra bee space below the frames which seems to stop them building the comb downwards

Sorry this is probably a dense question but do you put Snelgrove board on top of the top brood box, because otherwise if it's below that box the brood will be seperated and therefore not a Demaree?

 

[Millet]

Sorry this is probably a dense question but do you put Snelgrove board on top of the top brood box, because otherwise if it's below that box the brood will be seperated and therefore not a Demaree?

Below the top brood box above the modified queen excluder i'm led to belive.

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

I need to get my lazy behind into the workshop and make some of these...

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Sorry this is probably a dense question but do you put Snelgrove board on top of the top brood box, because otherwise if it's below that box the brood will be seperated and therefore not a Demaree?

Oops!I forgot one important point - I've modified my Snelgrove boards, there's a four inch hole cut in the middle with a QX insert, so it's more of a horsley board - or call it a Demarree board so ignore my last.

QX with a 10mm eke on top with a gap for an entrance then the top brood box or Horsley board BB or 'modified' Snelbrove board BB .

 

[B+.]

He made comment on the high number of Drone and Drone brood present in his multi storey hive and said that this was good as he had mating Nucs nearby with Virgin Queens, he then proceeded to split up the colony placing All the Drone top side of the queen excluder? Erm... Unless they have a special secret door they won't be mating with his queens will they?

If the sealed drone brood was placed above a queen excluder, he was probably trapping them for instrumental insemination. They have to be trapped for a couple of weeks to mature, however, they need to defecate before using them for II. They are usually allowed to fly in a cage with a light above it to do this.
Of course, the virgin queens would have to be sealed in too otherwise they would mate naturally.

 

[birdsandbees]

The guy was referring to his mating Nucs about three miles away and definitely meant open air mating in DCA rather than AI.
There was a lot of adult Drone aswell as capped Drone brood which was all in the top, only drawn comb capped worker and a frame of stores was in the bottom brood box.

 

[B+.]

The guy was referring to his mating Nucs about three miles away and definitely meant open air mating in DCA rather than AI.

I can't explain this. The adult drone above the excluder is a too (unless it was marked with a posca pen to show lineage.

 

[Fatbee]

Oops!I forgot one important point - I've modified my Snelgrove boards, there's a four inch hole cut in the middle with a QX insert, so it's more of a horsley board - or call it a Demarree board so ignore my last.

QX with a 10mm eke on top with a gap for an entrance then the top brood box or Horsley board BB or 'modified' Snelbrove board BB .

Ah, now I see. Thanks