Author Topic: First grafts ever done. It's a rush... (Read 20646 times)

Dunkel · « **Reply #20 on:** April 05, 2014, 10:55:44 am »

Yankee, you have pushed me over the edge to try grafting. Going to order up some stuff this week and try to rig up the rest. Supposed to have a few mated queens coming this week. So I will pick the unlucky victim hive when I get them made up.

Yankee11 · « **Reply #21 on:** April 05, 2014, 11:43:46 pm »

Good deal Dunkel,

I'll tell ya, I tried once last summer and failed awful, zero takes. This time 8 out of 16. Still not good but, far better than 0. I'm telling
you this so you won't get discouraged. Hope you do better than I did.

I am hooked now. Good luck..

Dunkel · « **Reply #22 on:** April 06, 2014, 10:06:57 pm »

Any idea what you did differently this time?

Yankee11 · « **Reply #23 on:** April 06, 2014, 11:35:38 pm »

Yea, several things different this time.

1st time I used wax cups I had made. This time I bought cell cups.

1st time I did not put cups in cell starter 24hrs before grafting into them. (need to be polished by the bees before grafting)

I used a regular queenless hive instead of a cell starter. (queenless hive had been queenless a while and probably didn't have a lot of nurse bees)

I don't remember grafting such small larva last year. The ones I grafted this time were not much bigger than the eggs and I picked larva that were right next an egg. I also didn't know about not letting them flip over. You have to keep the larva the same orientation as it is laying in the comb.

Now, one thing I want to do different this next time is prime the cells with royal jelly before grafting into them.

tecumseh · « **Reply #24 on:** April 07, 2014, 07:02:43 am »

thanks for the report and update Yankee. as you can see such reports by 'first timers' like yourself can inspire folks to give queen rearing a try.

at the end of the day just giving this a try will MAKE YOU A BETTER BEEKEEPER!

blueblood · « **Reply #25 on:** April 07, 2014, 07:31:36 am »

I appreciate this thread. It's been a good one to read from beginning to current. I must have missed it before. The concept of grafting and such is on my list of skills to accomplish.

G3farms · « **Reply #26 on:** April 07, 2014, 07:48:38 am »

You and me both Dave!
Just got 100 push in cups and a couple of different grafting tools.
Cell bar frames with cups are in the hive being polished out now.
Just waiting for the rain to stop

Yankee11 · « **Reply #27 on:** April 08, 2014, 10:38:52 pm »

Capped and in the incubator.

LazyBkpr · « **Reply #28 on:** April 08, 2014, 10:45:20 pm »

dang that is so cool! I have an incubator, but I think my wife will have a litter of kittens if I modify it for queen cells.....

jb63 · « **Reply #29 on:** April 09, 2014, 12:38:16 am »

Good thread Yankee,I'm looking forward to seeing some hatches.

minz · « **Reply #30 on:** April 09, 2014, 05:27:33 pm »

Good advice on the QC going to the hive to be polished. Your ‘lessons learned’ from last time made the entire forum worthwhile for me. I had purchased the equipment to graft at least a year ago, if not 2 and never opened the bag.
Guy here at work went out and spent real money on some hygienic queens last year. I doubt he would let me have full frame of brood but would not think twice about 10 cells to a graft bar.
How to I transport from his place to mine (only about 2 miles apart) or maybe I just take a couple of my nucs up to his place and get some good genetics?

G3farms · « **Reply #31 on:** April 12, 2014, 10:26:49 am »

Maybe ask your buddy if he wants to raise a few queens and both of you work on it.

G3farms · « **Reply #32 on:** April 12, 2014, 10:36:23 am »

I did my first ever grafts yesterday and put them in a queen less cell starter, will have to see what happens. I am using a queen right cell finisher.

Hardest part for me was getting the larva off of the grafting tool. Not too difficult to scoop up once I played around for a bit and took some sandpaper to the stainless tool. Could not get the hang of the chinese tool, might take a little modifying also.

LazyBkpr · « **Reply #33 on:** April 12, 2014, 02:03:21 pm »

Quote from: minz on April 09, 2014, 05:27:33 pm

How to I transport from his place to mine (only about 2 miles apart) or maybe I just take a couple of my nucs up to his place and get some good genetics?

I don't need to transport, but in watching vids I see a lot of those who have to go very far at all use a cooler and a hot wet towel in the cooler for both warmth and humidity. I just wrap my frame in a towel and walk to where I will be punching the cells.

Yankee11 · « **Reply #34 on:** April 15, 2014, 07:52:20 pm »

Had my computer out of commission getting Windows 7 installed.

Latest update.

All 8 capped cells hatched. I put four cells in nucs and let the other 4 hatch on incubator and then added the virgin queens to nucs.

Pictures in a few, Dinner time right now :-)

Perry · « **Reply #35 on:** April 15, 2014, 08:13:41 pm »

Quote from: Yankee11 on April 15, 2014, 07:52:20 pm

Had my computer out of commission getting Windows 7 installed.

Latest update.

All 8 capped cells hatched. I put four cells in nucs and let the other 4 hatch on incubator and then added the virgin queens to nucs.

Pictures in a few, Dinner time right now :-)

Well done!

PS - let me know how you like that Windows 7, may have to do the same thing soon.

Yankee11 · « **Reply #36 on:** April 15, 2014, 08:49:01 pm »

Pictures

G3farms · « **Reply #37 on:** April 15, 2014, 09:13:01 pm »

Looking good!!

I think I got 13 out of 34, not too bad for the very first time. We will see what this freezing weather is going to do to them tonight.

Did you have a thread on your incubator? if so I must have missed it.

Yankee11 · « **Reply #38 on:** April 15, 2014, 09:20:42 pm »

No thread on incubator.

I made it to hatch chicken eggs at 98 degrees. So 93 is easy. It really comes in handy.

I just found a hive that was thinking of swarming. I cut out
about 8 swarm cells. I put them in incubator and the first one hatched tonight.

So now these queens will go into queen castles to get mated.

It was 35 here last night, but 93 in the bator

jb63 · « **Reply #39 on:** April 15, 2014, 09:59:58 pm »

Very cool pictures Yankee.Keep on taking pics.