Queen rearing help

[RicDuck]

Ok-started with three booming hives and made multiple splits (installed new queens) out of two of these hives June 2. Left these two hives with two deeps and my plan was/is to try first grafts. However one hive I accidentally moved original queen into one of the splits. New queen dead in cage - I now know why. Today (ten days later) found two frames with queen cells so they were used to start two more nucs. The other hive may have been queenless before I made the splits because there is only drone brood in it. A lot of bees in both hives with heavy bearding going on. I selected these queenless hives to be my cell starters for 18 first time grafts in each hive. Will this work? And can I leave them in the same hives to be finished? I prepared the third hive (FWOF)with open brood above queen excluder just in case. Any suggestions? Thanks

[Michael Bush]

>A lot of bees in both hives with heavy bearding going on.

That can be good if they don't swarm.

> I selected these queenless hives to be my cell starters for 18 first time grafts in each hive. Will this work?

That depends on how long they've been queenless. They lose morale after a while and don't do as well as some bees that have only been queenless 12 to 24 hours.

> And can I leave them in the same hives to be finished?

Sure.

> I prepared the third hive (FWOF)with open brood above queen excluder just in case. Any suggestions? Thanks

Just make sure the starter is:

1) Queenless (preferably for about 12 hours if it's a hive or 2 hours if it's a swarm box)

2) Packed with bees. (Density is more important than numbers)

3) Has nectar and pollen.

Make sure the finisher has:

1) NO queen cells of it's own.

2) No access to the queen cells by the queen.

3) Lots of bees, pollen and nectar.

[RicDuck]

Thanks MB! Will check to see if cells are started and re-graft if requried; and use FWOF for second batch.

[RicDuck]

It appears 15 of 18 cells are started in one hive and several started in the other (too many bees to tell for sure). The first hive is being fed. Will see if this makes a difference. This is going to be a loooooong ten days!

[RicDuck]

Took a peek today. Of the 15 cells that appeared to be started only seven took. I will try another batch next week. The hives in my bee yard with the breeder queens have been split too many times. Is it better to move a frame ready to graft larvae or all ready grafted cells to a bee yard 30 minutes away?

[Michael Bush]

I'd get them and graft them at the beeyard. You could put the frame with the nurse bees in a two frame nuc and take them to the beeyard. Or make a one frame nuc.

[RicDuck]

OK Thanks