Mating Nuclei : 11 W
ithout doubt I consider the hardest part
of rearing queens in the UK is getting the virgin queens mated and laying. Assuming that the grafting
procedure and the building of the queen cells have all gone well, there will be a number of sealed queen cells in the swarm box. If nothing is done, eventually one of the young virgin queens will emerge and proceed to kill off all her sisters. This is not what is wanted. Before this can happen, the cells must be harvested and given to separate small units of bees from which each virgin can fl y and mate.
Timing
When the grafts were placed in the swarm box (see April, page 13) no mention was made about removing the queen cells after the trapped bees were released. According to the textbooks, the cells should be removed ten days after the graft is inserted. Provided that the larvae grafted were not too old, there should be no problem with a virgin coming out and committing sororicide. The job must be done come hell fi re, high water or the children’s birthday
GETTING QUEENS MATED AND LAYING Mating Nuclei Clive de Bruyn, BSc (Hons), AIM, AMInstF, CEng, NDB
treat. Any delay and all will be lost (well, all but one). Strictly speaking, the actual time of grafting during the day should be taken into account, not just the day. The removal of the cells would then be carried out so many hours after grafting. Despite what the books say, I tell students they can distribute the sealed cells after nine days. To make it simple, I tell them they can open the swarm box and remove the cells on a day of the week two days ahead of the day the graft was made. This enables the beekeeper to plan ahead and make sure that the job can be done without other issues impinging. If, for some reason, the weather is exceptionally bad or there is a heart attack or other emergency, there is always tomorrow, ie, the tenth day.
Careful Handling
The cells must be handled carefully and not shocked physically or
chilled. If the original cups were made with a good substantial base of wax, they can be cut from the cell bar and handled much more easily. Although a hive tool can be used, I recommend a sharp knife for the operation. The dummy bar with the cells is removed from the swarm box using smoke to drive the bees off the comb. The remaining adhering bees are gently brushed off and the cells cut off one at a time for distribution. An extra pair of hands is useful for this operation. If there are still cells on the bar, it can be returned to the swarm box for the bees to look after until further cells are required.
In my workshops, I normally cut off all the available cells and transfer them to a carrying box. Sealed cells can travel many miles in such a box. In the 1980s, I used to raise queens routinely with Harry Wickens in Wallingford and carry them down to Clapper Hill where John Furzey had prepared nuclei to accept them, a distance of around 35 miles. I would contend that acceptance is not improved by such a journey but we got away with it.
Nuclei May 2015 Vol 97 No 5
A modifi ed Warnholz mini-nuc with a wooden rim for top bee space, the food compartment removed and sugar made available in a cut-down plastic carton
What do we put the queen cells into? There is much to be said for nuclei made up with frames of bees
and brood2, especially if small colonies are being produced for sale. Such nuclei come in many varieties and there are many excellent publications devoted to their formation and use. What I would say is that, as with many things relating to bees, there is no substitute for experience. The bigger the frame size the more diffi cult it is to balance the bees and brood into viable units. John Furzey used fi ve-frame Modifi ed Dadant nuclei. I remember the fi rst occasion. I took him 40 sealed queen cells to introduce. Thirty-nine were accepted and John was quite miffed and blamed my cell raising as he anticipated 100% acceptance. I know from past experience that beginners are confused with too many alternatives. It is like asking someone to give directions. One path only please, not a and b followed by c. I am only going to explain how I use the ‘so called’ mini-nuc, of which there are several varieties. I fi nd them convenient when raising queens for re- queening or for sale and to start beekeepers turning out their own queens. In my own queen raising, I use both mini-nucs and full-frame nuclei.
Mini-nucs
The mini-nuc is not a new concept. There is an article in the February 1923 edition of Bee World describing a wooden queen rearing mating box devised by a Mr R Whyte, of Pinwherry, Scotland1.
www.bee-craft.com
All photos by Clive de Bruyn
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