. I do think that the super early queens might get you by in a pinch but aren't bred as well as later queens & will not have longevity or will be superceded. a local club was doing a large club buy from a no. ca. breeder every spring. they were getting 2 batches. one in the 1st week of april & one in the 3rd week. MY experience was that the 3rd weeks queens were better. a supplier is offering packages that should be available on april 8th to be picked up near Keokuk ia. i'm hesitant because of the early date & that pkgs. are in screened containers. hauling them without knowing what the weather might be like is kinda' scary as it's a 3 hour drive for me.
Agree with rober on early queens vs later queens. The late queens seem to be bred a little better. The weather has an influence in California too, just like here.
I don't want to hijack this thread, but...
Rober, put those packages of bees in the cab with you. If it's cold or raining during the drive back, the cluster around the queen could fall and she could chill. Last year I put packages of bees in the cab with me and turned on the A/C. It was that warm! There shouldn't be any escapees. A light weight blanket over the packages will keep them calm. There may be a few bees clinging to the outside of the package. A bee brush will eliminate them before you put them in your vehicle.
I have installed packages in all kinds of weather. If the weather is really chilly or rainy, you can remove a few frames from the hive body and place your entire package in the brood box. Remove the can of food first, of course. Leave the queen cage in place. Place the inner cover and lid on top. Feed, Feed, Feed 1:1 sugar water. Install your packaged bees ASAP. They are stressed, the queen is stressed, and you don't know for sure how many days they have been in that package. Hopefully not many. Come back in a day or two when the weather is more favorable to remove the wooden package, place frames in place, hang the queen cage so they can take care of her. Feed, feed,feed.