Using queen excluders

[Into the lions den]

sigh.....................................................

Why sigh?

Have a bee blower we use from time to time, though only form clearing supers in a remote area that would thus entail an unneccesary long journey as a special trip to go back for board cleared honey. Its no big deal, not overly disruptive though its noise can annoy A.m.m. type colonies in the CLOSE vicinity a bit, but all settles down quickly.

If it was aimed at the 'abandonment' style of box clearing, well it works a treat and I have rarely seen a LESS disruptive method of honey removal. You have to know what your are doing though, as you can cause major problems doing it at the wrong time (like when there is no flow on). Its just an 'out in the open' version of clearing using boards, but you only go into the hive once.

Done all the ways, and shaking/brushing the bees off the honey is the most disruptive of all and leaves the hive on edge for longest. Counter intuitive I know, but the blower seems to totally confuse the blown bees for a short while, and by the time they adjust to what has happened to them they just crawl back home and resume duties. (Bad idea on OMFs though, the crawling bees can cluster under the mesh, and some can stay there for a few days.)

If aimed at the package bees remark, then you should try a package some day, stick it in a box of foundation and give it a feed. They are a miracle to behold, as good as any other form of swarm, which, albeit artificially created, is what they are. Its a shook swarm really.

 

[Erichalfbee]

A 14 x 12 and two supers up is not unusual.

eeek!
Well I had to super a 14 x 12 yesterday and I did put on an excluder.

 

[FreeFall]

Blowing them out must be 'kinder' than taking a load of them back to the extracting plant...

 

[Bates]

Put a nuc on the roof with a queen and a frame of brood, you'l get another colony from that lol

This is a photo from November 2010 drifting bees and blowing.

 

[GoEnviro]

I thought the queen moved down thru the hive leaving the layers above for honey storage; being that the case what is the point of a queen excluder unless its to retain the queen after hiving a swarm and its only useful if the queen is as thin as the rest at that point

 

[FreeFall]

Put a nuc on the roof with a queen and a frame of brood, you'l get another colony from that lol

That's what I said at the time! This was in NZ actually, so I suspect you might know of them (or even work there).

Nick

 

[Into the lions den]

Put a nuc on the roof with a queen and a frame of brood, you'l get another colony from that lol

We do that with the odd queen that we find at extracting time in the combs in the hot room. Poly nucs placed outside, and all loose bees shaken out there where they tend to just join up with the queens in the nucs. Its works a treat, and only on Friday Jolka was out in the back yard promoting them to full boxes as they were stuffed with bees brood and pollen wall to wall in the nucs. Scavenged colony, but they go on to do very well.

 

[Gardenbees]

We do that with the odd queen that we find at extracting time in the combs in the hot room. Poly nucs placed outside, and all loose bees shaken out there where they tend to just join up with the queens in the nucs. Its works a treat, and only on Friday Jolka was out in the back yard promoting them to full boxes as they were stuffed with bees brood and pollen wall to wall in the nucs. Scavenged colony, but they go on to do very well.

Like a DIY package, I guess!

It's very interesting to hear the views of such a wide range of beekeepers: some of us with just one or two hives, some with hundreds. It's a real strength of the Forum, as there isn't a "one size fits all" solution when it comes to beekeeping.

 

[Lancygirl]

Rusty beekeeper

I used to keep bees many years ago and restarted last year. I have one wbc hive and one polystyrene national hive (which my husband who is a complete beginner wanted). I have always used QEs and have never come across anyone not using them. I would be worried about the queen laying across the supers and not being able to seperate them out. As a newcomer to this forum I am finding it fascinating!

 

[jdee]

I over wintered on brood and a half this year(national) and had to put a super on top of that two weeks ago (no QE) - checked it yesterday and the queen is laying in the top super as well. Loads of sealed brood in all three boxes and lots of bees - just looking for a warm spell to split it

 

[sugarbush]

20 something years and I have never used a queen excluder... I have collected a few here and there, but I always give them away or throw them out.

They are just not needed... The queen almost never lays in a honey super, it goes against natures design of the brood nest.

 

[Bates]

They are just not needed... The queen almost never lays in a honey super, it goes against natures design of the brood nest.

Try saying that when you find a box with 3 brood boxes full. They do lay in the supers all the time so I dont know where you have heard that.

 

[sugarbush]

Try saying that when you find a box with 3 brood boxes full. They do lay in the supers all the time so I dont know where you have heard that.

It is all in management:

Occasionally I will get a queen who wanders into a super, but not very often... They build a honey band on top of the brood nest early in the spring... after the band is capped add your supers and most queens will not cross the honey band. If you need to expand the brood nest you split it and add the new box between the old ones.

I am talking about double brood of course as that is all anybody in the US uses... Like I said; I haven't had to use an excluder in over 20 years. If you follow any of the US bloggers you would note that many here do not use excluders for their intended purpose.