Two ideas from “Mating in Miniature” by Berhard Mobus

[masterBK]

In the absence of brood (often the situation when initially setting up mini-nucs) the lack of work for nurse bees results in many of them starting to forage earlier in life. I rear about 40 to 50 queens a year with about half of them getting mated from Apidea mini-nucs and the rest from Demaree tops and 5 standard frame nuclei. Not noticed much difference apart from the fact that the queens in mini nucs come into lay a few days earlier and more chance of absconding from mini-nucs (hence the use of excluder over the entrance once Q starts laying)

 

[Finman]

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What figures you have about success rate and who has measured them?

I had ordinary Queen rearing method, which is recommend in the books. IT is meant to professional beekeepers, who sells hundreds of queens. Success rate was about 50%. That must be a disaster in business.

Then I change the whole system and now success rate is over 90%.

There are many things which can spoil queen rearing and the process is long lasting. Smallest problem is surely how to feed the nuc.

I cannot understand how problem "small nuc - even smaller nuc" can arise? You can change it if it is not proper.

I use 3-langstroth frame mating nucs. The end is when I join those mating nuc brood frames to some colonies. When I take a laying queen off, I can join the queeless nuc to another nuc.

If you have 10 hives, why you should use 100 hive owner's system?... Yes I did 20 years and the system was miserable.

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[Finman]

Not noticed much difference apart from the fact that the queens in mini nucs come into lay a few days earlier and more chance of absconding from mini-nucs (hence the use of excluder over the entrance once Q starts laying)

That is why I do not use mini nucs.

One thing is that I test most of my queens in the nuc, are brood pattern healthy or are new bees angry.

One thing, what I should do better is, that I clean mites off from the nuc when it starts to lay.
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