Worldwide Beekeeping
Beekeeping => Raising Queens => Topic started by: LazyBkpr on December 07, 2013, 10:43:31 pm
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OK!!! what method do you use? OR are you planning to use?
Hopkins? Doolittle? Alley? Smith? How many "Methods are there really? LOL
I will probably try Miller and the Cell punch if I only need a Queen or three, and the Hopkins if I need quite a few... With my eyes and BUSTED UP old hands I have my doubts about being able to graft....
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I just need a few every now and then and just make a split, they will give several good cells.
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When I use to raise a fair amount of queens, I double wet grafted. Grafting becomes an art, and the more you do the better you are at it. If you are only raising a few queens, the Nicot system works well. Here is a page a put together for using the Nicot system (with a Cloake board).
http://robo.bushkillfarms.com/beekeeping/queen-rearing/ (http://robo.bushkillfarms.com/beekeeping/queen-rearing/)
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ROBO!!!! Good to see you here!!
Thank you for the Link! I have considered that... and may give it a go as time progresses.. need to make a cloak board while the snow is whirling about so I can give it a go.. seems a little more technical than the more simpler methods I mentioned.. but Imagine.. like Grafting.. that it gets easy after you have done it a time or two?
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The Nicot system is not hard as long as you follow a few critical steps (miss these steps and you end up with nothing) and a strict calendar. The Cloake Board method gets you maximum return from minimal resources, so also good for backyard beekeepers.
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Good to know!! Thanks!!!
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I think I'm settled on grafting in wax cups. When capped transfer to 93 degree incubator. Then another round of grafts in the same cell builder. Then transfer to incubator when capped. Then use said cell builder to bank virgins temporarily as they hatch out of incubator.
I've experimented with hatching queens in cages in the cell builder but it seems they have a hard time incubating the cells when they have air space between them and the wax so. The incubator is where I ended up the tail end of this year.
Just a cheap $40 adjustable thermostat one from tractor supply with a dc computer fan rigged up inside to make it a 'circulated air' one.
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Need pics of the incubator.
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Indeed! A chicken egg incubator?
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A nuc sized box works good for a queen cell incubator. You want to make it deeper if you are using a light bulb as the heater. If you make it well insulated, you can even use it to transport.
I have had mixed results with temperature controllers. The worst thing to happen is for it to fail with the heat on. I burnt 2 5 gallon pails of honey in a honey heater cabinet when the controller failed to shut the heater off. I have recently put together and Arduino controller from parts off of eBay for like $25 with 3 sensors to hopefully prevent reliving my overheating incident. A lot of the cheap controllers have poor regulation as well.
Oh, and just like incubating chicken eggs, don't forget to add a wet sponge for humidity.
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Aight peopleses.
Here's some pics of my extremely high tech queen stuffs. :)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/811/kp3l.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/811/kp3l.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/824/0yim.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/824/0yim.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/5/0g9p.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/5/0g9p.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/138/qmmz.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/138/qmmz.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/689/60pw.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/689/60pw.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/203/dn8h.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/203/dn8h.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/844/ml0i.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/844/ml0i.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/809/3jh7.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/809/3jh7.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/5/yvml.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/5/yvml.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/41/ovhz.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/41/ovhz.jpg/)
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and part two...
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/11/xodc.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/11/xodc.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/14/u845.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/14/u845.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/69/wfju.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/69/wfju.jpg/)
(http://imageshack.us/scaled/thumb/826/ybt5.jpg) (http://http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/826/ybt5.jpg/)
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Well aint that just slick! Well thought! and Well assembled! you put the queens in introduction cages when they hatch? I like the setup.. but not so sure how successful I would be at grafting.. I shake like a dog... errr... a lot..
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you put the queens in introduction cages when they hatch?
The queens are already in the intro cages. I direct release virgins to 24 hour old queenless splits who have mostly nurse bees. They are instantly accepted.
Usually any queenless hive will accept a virgin. Sometimes they will kill her in favor of cells they have already got started/capped. Just depends on their ideas.
I'm generaly trembly too. I brace the palm of my hand against the bottom bar on the frame and hold the tool with both hands at times.
more than one way to skin the kitty.
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cell punch tool already made fifteen bucks includes price of shipping..
http://www.carriagehousebeeproducts.com ... ow/2870477 (http://www.carriagehousebeeproducts.com/apps/webstore/products/show/2870477)
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I've attached plans for a nuc style incubator (http://http://www.worldwidebeekeeping.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=132) in the DIY section. With this, you can directly move the cell bar frame from the cell builder to the incubator. I'll try to get some pics of my homebuilt arduino controller if anyone is interested in building one.
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I know cross posting is frowned upon on most forums, but would you put this under the do-it-yourself forum, also? Thanks.
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i graft into purchased beewax cell cups with a wood dowel base. I almost always use a swarm box and lot of young queenless brood bees for starting cells. Some times I use a finisher for the final step although at some point the starter may also become the finisher. I use two sizes of swarm boxes depending primarily on how many cells I need to produce.
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I have several videos up on utube about queens and I think just cutting them out is about the best. for a few or a lot it works fine.
Don
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I have several videos up on utube about queens and I think just cutting them out is about the best. for a few or a lot it works fine.
Don
Don, I like your one about cutting cell strips and waxing them onto a bar. With those big old hands of yours it shows that it doesnt have to be delicate work.
Good stuff
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a ralph snip...
I think I'm settled on grafting in wax cups. When capped transfer to 93 degree incubator. Then another round of grafts in the same cell builder. Then transfer to incubator when capped.
tecumseh....
well first off I would suggest that when you use wax cups these need to be polished ahead of grafting (generally requires at least 2 days in a very populated hive). failure to polish natural wax cup will almost insure you a 100% failure rate.
secondly if I understand what you above snip means ????? I would not expect too much success in the second round of grafts. generally when folks reuse 'cell builders' they also use 'finishers' so there is not so much a time lag between grafts.... even then you generally expect 'the take' to be less on the second round of grafts. in your method there will be very few young bees in the box when you do the second round of grafts.
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I have several videos up on utube about queens and I think just cutting them out is about the best. for a few or a lot it works fine.
Don
Don, you need to compile all your videos onto a DVD and sell it. I have watched a few of your vids, and they were well done.
I do in fact use foundation-less frames for the benefits. One of which was watching you cut queen cells out.
When you get that DVD done let us know here so I can order one! Watching HOURS of the FatBeeMan in weather like this would be enjoyable!
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well first off I would suggest that when you use wax cups these need to be polished ahead of grafting (generally requires at least 2 days in a very populated hive). failure to polish natural wax cup will almost insure you a 100% failure rate.
I do. See the little clip I took back in June at the bottom of the post...
It's hard to think to mention every single little tidbit in a post.
secondly if I understand what you above snip means ????? I would not expect too much success in the second round of grafts. generally when folks reuse 'cell builders' they also use 'finishers' so there is not so much a time lag between grafts.... even then you generally expect 'the take' to be less on the second round of grafts. in your method there will be very few young bees in the box when you do the second round of grafts.
You're only looking at using them for 10-12 days for building cells. The last round of worker brood will still be in the process of hatching by then.
When I've taken the queen and a frame or two to make another hive with them. What remains is let alone for five days. then every cell is torn down that they've started. So they have then what 6-7 day old larvae all the way up to emerging ages in the hive. Figure like 7 days a piece on each round of grafts to be safe. Those 6-7 day old worker larvae will be almost hatching when the last/second round of grafts are capped.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXLwY1P2spw
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thanks for the clarification Ralph.
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a snip...
I like your one about cutting cell strips and waxing them onto a bar.
tecumseh...
likely not the inventor of this process but certainly for myself the first person I read that described this method was Jay Smith in one of his little books. He at least though that this method produced higher quality queens than any of the other methods he utilized.
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I've attached plans for a nuc style incubator (http://www.worldwidebeekeeping.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=132) in the DIY section. With this, you can directly move the cell bar frame from the cell builder to the incubator. I'll try to get some pics of my homebuilt arduino controller if anyone is interested in building one.
I would be interested , just started messing with arduino stuff
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Put together a couple of bars with jzbz cups.. Not sure yet if I will try to graft into them or simply do cell punch;
(https://worldwidebeekeeping.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fs15.postimg.cc%2F8xziyoz9z%2FDSCF0039.jpg&hash=b917cfe3e40af08083cee6cf5e465c2f855c344d) (http://postimg.cc/image/8xziyoz9z/)
I have about 8 queens going into their third year. Depending on how well the VSH queens I have coming do, I may try to make a few replacements. I have 8 cups on each bar atm but could squeeze ten in if needed.
With my eyes and BEAT UP hands I have my doubts about grafting. Won't know for sure until I try it.