Welcome, Guest

Author Topic: Queen making ?  (Read 1337 times)

Offline jimmy

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 241
  • Gender: Male
Queen making ?
« on: July 15, 2008, 05:24:08 pm »
I have 4 hives, 1 exceptional strong ,2 not quite as strong and 1 weak hive .It was a new hive in the early spring but, so was the strongest hive. The weak hive has plenty of capped brood but very few new eggs.I am thinking of placing a frame of new fresh eggs from the strong hive into the weak hive to make a new queen.
1. Do I need to do anything special  such as wait for autumn honey flow?

2. Place a queen plastic cell cap on new brood? which I have none and would have to order from somewhere.

3. Do nothing and wait for the hive to make a new queen on it's own from old queen, who must have been a weak queen from the start?

4. Buy a new queen from somewhere .My regular bee supplier is in N.Dakota . He migrates with his bees every year.

Offline randydrivesabus

  • Queen Bee
  • ****
  • Posts: 1072
Re: Queen making ?
« Reply #1 on: July 15, 2008, 05:49:27 pm »
it is best to use a very strong highly populated hive to start a queen. it may be best for you to pinch the queen and combine your weak hive with one of the mediocre hives.
your apiary is the classic 25-50-25. 25% of your hives are strong. 50% are ok. and 25% are weak.

Offline derrick1p1

  • House Bee
  • **
  • Posts: 203
  • Gender: Male
Re: Queen making ?
« Reply #2 on: July 15, 2008, 05:54:34 pm »
Hmmm.  Not heard of the 25-50-25 before, but seems to work for me.  Been that way all year, but seems to fluctuate between hives (hives go from super to good, some weak to strong etc). 
I won't let grass grow under my feet, there will be plenty of time to push up daisies.