What to do with a queen cell

[Newtobees]

Hi all just inspected my colony today and found an open queen cell with half grown larva should i destroy it or leave it could they still swarm this late or will they superseed the old queen i brought as a nuc at the begining of July i was told she was a 2012 queen she is still laying eggs but the brood nest is now alot smaller which i presume is because it is now september i havn't got spare nuc box to split and re unite later .

 

[Finman]

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Bees are going to change the queen. Theyare not going to swarm.

If you brake the cell, bees make new and in Spring you have a drone layer.

So only way is to bye a laying queen.

 

[Poly Hive]

If it were me I'd leave them to it.

Nor do I do much with the brood box from now on apart from feed and treat.

PH

 

[Hebeegeebee]

1 queencell would indicate supercedure rather than swarming. There are still drones about so she SHOULD mate.

 

[beesleybees]

plenty of drones up here in the northwest.

you can either leave them to it as at the end of the day.

if it dont work out, you could combine with another colony after killing new queen and split again next year

 

[Finman]

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But weather at theend of September.
Perhaps they are better than in July.


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[alanf]

Hi all just inspected my colony today and found an open queen cell with half grown larva should i destroy it or leave it could they still swarm this late or will they superseed the old queen i brought as a nuc at the begining of July i was told she was a 2012 queen she is still laying eggs but the brood nest is now alot smaller which i presume is because it is now september i havn't got spare nuc box to split and re unite later .

I've had at least two 2012 early mated queens be superseded. I'd let them get on with it. I see the worry if it's your only colony, and you're depending on the weather in a couple of weeks time. If you do leave them to supersede, disturb them as little as possible for at least 3 weeks. If it doesn't work out, anybody locally expecting to combine colonies who might have a spare queen?

 

[Newtobees]

Thanks for advice i think i'm going to leave them to get on with it two chances.

 

[drstitson]

supercedure. if she doesn't get mated theyve still got the old queen.

 

[Finman]

supercedure. if she doesn't get mated theyve still got the old queen.

WHAT! They make a new queen and with 98% security they kill the old queen.

What is the idea that hive is full of drone brood after winter.

I have seen those enough. No doubt.

You know what happens in summer when queen is not properly mated. It is not better if virgin tryes mating flights at Christmas.

 

[oliver90owner]

We are in the UK, not Finland.

If the old queen is still laying there is a good chance of that continuing until the new queen has mated and starts laying. The old queen may remain with the new queen into the winter, but is unlikely to be there in the spring if the new queen is satisfactory. Perfect supercedure is the ideal way to replace a queen within the colony, although the new queen may have traits that are not ideal.

If the queen has gone before the virgin emerges, time and risk can be reduced by introducing a laying queen.

Just one of those extra problems for one hive owners. Options are severely reduced.

Re drone laying queens in spring - if they are diagnosed early and the colony is very strong they can be removed (immediately, along with any drone brood) and perhaps requeened later, but that is a very high risk strategy indeed.

With a little good fortune your colony will supercede easily. Depends on the weather to a large extent.

 

[Finman]

During my 50 beekeeping years I have never met after winter that old queen lays with drone layer .

Of course in UK EVERYTHING is different. Your national inbreeding has its results.
Your queens mate in 10C and they forage in rain.

"good change that new queen has mated"

How good change you have in Uk that mating is succesfull in October?


too many risk word in your writing.

.
What is the matter if he byes a new laying queen?

.

 

[Nic Rhodes]

leave the cell, superceedure is a routine part of british beekeeping at this time of year, the bees have been doing this for ages. I have had queens mate fine in october before now and some superceedure queens I find in the spring that I have no idea when they turned up!

 

[Poly Hive]

I certainly have met with drone layers in spring and with a modicum of search on here I rather think I am not the only one in the UK to have this experience.

Seems out of the UK is utopia?

PH

 

[Nic Rhodes]

I have seen the same also

 

[Finman]

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I wonder what game you are playing with your queens and why it is so difficult to bye better queen?.

I need not much reason when I change the queen.

" to take risk" I keep so much spare queens that I need not stand any risk.

 

[Finman]

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My friend 600 m away from me had a hive which wintered 3 years with douple queen and they continued through summer. Last spring a bear spoiled the hive and killed a queen.

But if my friend or I have a hive with douple queen, I do not count on that happening when I nurse my hives.


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[Nic Rhodes]

Many of us overwinter spare queens, simple basic operation any competent beekeeper can do if they want to, to be used if needed in an emergency. If you don't need to use them, why not keep them until you do (or other members in your association do) rather than use them up when you don't? No need to use at the moment unless you hit a major problem rather than routine beekeeping we are talking about here. If things don't work out in the future by all means use the spares but they are just a back up / insurance policy. One I haven't needed to use in years on my bees but others have needed 'late help' due to in-experience.

 

[Hebeegeebee]

"Perfect Supercedure" is when the old queen remains until the new one is laying. I've not seen it myself. But one day my son. One day......

If the queencell is removed there's a good chance that the bees will try to produce another one and it's getting late in the year. They might give up producing queencells and then there's a chance that the hive will be devoid of queen next year. Or the queen could be removed now but that could also create problems.

My view is to let nature take it's course. The bees know what they are doing more than us!

 

[Walrus]

Whilst I was on holiday one of my queens (2012) was superceded and I'm not sure if the new queen has mated yet. probably has, but I'm leaving alone for a while. I think she probably emerged around 27th August.

I can see Finman's point. If a mated queen is available it saves valuable time and gives the bees a better chance of building up numbers to go into Winter as strong as possible. Also most likely the bought queen will be properly mated & not a drone layer.

I'm not in such a risky position if it doesn't work out as I can combine with another colony.

I think if I found a charged QC today I'd either unite with another colony or introduce a bought queen. I'm already a bit anxious about my late August queen, and now 10 days later, for me I'd lose too much sleep.