when to expect drones

[J'smob]

Hi all.
This might be early but I have four hive that I would like to split each into four 5 frame nuc in the spring. I would like to do this as early as I can so they have time to build up to catch the spring flow which is April or May. I would like to try and raise my own Queens. Because I have a Queen I just love and this is going to be her third year. So if she makes it when would the
Sac valley beek start looking for droon to be flying, and when would you expect
to start raising Queens

[RayMarler]

I user the Pierco drone comb frames, puting a frame in the broodnest at the outside edge of the frames of eggs. Don't put the drone comb frames in the hive having the queen you want daughters from. You can put the frames in around the 1st of February and when the frames are filled with capped brood, start your queen rearing operation with your good queen. By the time the queens are hatched and ready to mate, the drones will be old enough to mate the queens. This will get you going early, you'll maybe get laying queens by the first of April or maybe a bit sooner.

[LtlWilli]

Oddly enough, I have a hive that is just oozing with drones...We have had two frosts, so I thought the girls would have given them the boot. Maybe they are just good dancers. LOL

[LBEE]

You might check to see if you have a queen, LtlWilli. Don't ask me how I know!
:doh:


Larry

[LtlWilli]

If I don't, then this big hive oughta have enoughto supercede with. I do hope she is there---she's a good ole gal for me. When one hive realizes that another one is about to throw a queen into the air, do they produce drones to accomodate?

[swabby]

Just a quick question about drones .Yesterday I was at the barn where my supers are stored. One of the supers had a giant drone/wasp not sure which as I have never seen anything similar. It had the markings of dark yellow and black stripes however the insect was approx. 1 1/2 in. long with a large wing span. I was trying to capture it but it flew on the ground next to my son and he smashed it with his foot . It was very narrow waisted with a very long abdomen. Wish I could have gotten a picture .

Any idea as to what this might have been? I have never seen a drone outside the hive but,that was my first impression. Your thoughts.

[RayMarler]

Sounds like a wasp to me. I just had to make a trap up today because they are trying to catch my healthy bees as they come and go on the entry board, and trying to enter the hives in the cold mornings before the bees are active. I took some ham fat and put inside a 1 pint water bottle and set the bottle upright on ground in front of hive without the lid on it. Them wasps would crawl into the bottle to get the fat, but not be able to crawl up the sides of the bottle and can't fly out the small opening of the bottle either. Nice cheap trap!

[swabby]

Thanks PUTZ~~~ I thought I saw something out around the actives hives several days ago that looked simular. Now you got me wondering if I should bait them like you have done.

I searched the puter under insects and found an unuaual wasp that I have never seen in my part of the country. It was called a Sand wasp and is quite large.

[LBEE]

Sorry to take so long to get back!

Here in Oregon, the queen has stopped laying eggs and most of the brood has hatched. The drones have been "kicked out" of all but the queenless hives. It is just about impossible to raise a queen and raise drones and have a queen mated this time of year. This, of course, would apply to supercedure as well. I do not know how things are in Texas.

Our recourse, up here, is to combine with another hive.

As far as other hives, as far as I know, do not raise drones to mate with the queen, on the basis of some "understanding" that the colony in question will be sending up a queen to mate. I believe that other hives can detect when a hive is queenless and tend to rob the queenless hive more than a queenright hive.

If there is a local beekeeping club in your area, you might check with some of their members to see if drones are available all year round, in your area, and if supercedure would be possible.

Larry

[J'smob]

I user the Pierco drone comb frames, puting a frame in the broodnest at the outside edge of the frames of eggs. Don't put the drone comb frames in the hive having the queen you want daughters from. You can put the frames in around the 1st of February and when the frames are filled with capped brood, start your queen rearing operation with your good queen. By the time the queens are hatched and ready to mate, the drones will be old enough to mate the queens. This will get you going early, you'll maybe get laying queens by the first of April or maybe a bit sooner.

Thanks for the help!
Maybe I should start another thread, but if I want to queen 14 hives, ( and using the Jenter method),How many cells would I create. And if I am lucky and get more laying queens then I need what do I do with them?

[RayMarler]

Thanks for the help!
Maybe I should start another thread, but if I want to queen 14 hives, ( and using the Jenter method),How many cells would I create. And if I am lucky and get more laying queens then I need what do I do with them?

Try setting up 2 cell builders with 30 cells each. Hopefully you will get at least 28 queen cells built and sealed, and put 2 cells into each mating nuc as insurance. You'll be more sure of getting a hatched and mated queen in each nuc that way.

If you have a local beeclub, you might be able to sell unneeded sealed queen cells for a couple or 4 bucks each.

If you end up with extra mated queens you can always post them for sale here on the forums. :D or post for sale at your local beeclub or newpaper.

[J'smob]

Thanks for the help. I know you will be hearing from me this sring:)

[tecumseh]

at this location almost as if the girls checked the calendar I will see new drones by february 15 and mature dones by the end of the same month.

[Michael Bush]

It varies by climate and race. The darker bees raise drones earlier than the Italians, it seems like. Around here I don't feel like there is a really adequate supply until mid May, but there are some in April.

[mudlake]

Around here it is mid May before snow melts. Tony