[Michael Bush]

They are just more trouble. Yes they work. Yes they improve acceptance. No I don't usually bother with them unless they have already rejected a queen.

They are easy to make from #8 hardware cloth. You can also buy them from Betterbee made of plastic.

 

[Guest]

To my knowledge, the intention behind the development of
push-in cages had nothing to do with queen introduction.

The idea was to limit the queen's ability to lay
eggs during late fall, and thereby not have a
colony using up stores left on "for winter and
early spring" to raise additional fall brood.

To my knowledge, this problem really only shows
up in Italian breeds. The test is watching
entrances to see if pollen is still being harvested
in late fall.

The use of a push-in cage in queen introduction
is perhaps a bit over-careful, as it serves
exactly the same function as a properly-inserted
queen cage where the attendants have been released
from the queen cage prior to its introduction to
the hive.

 

[Michael Bush]

>To my knowledge, the intention behind the development of
push-in cages had nothing to do with queen introduction.

I've seen the "push-in-cage" put forth in almost every bee book I own as a "foolproof" method of introduction. I think it's more than is needed but I'm sure it's useful in difficult situations. Axtman also recommended something on these lines so I assume it is also used in Germany.

>The idea was to limit the queen's ability to lay
eggs during late fall, and thereby not have a
colony using up stores left on "for winter and
early spring" to raise additional fall brood.

I've only read about this idea once. I think it's an intersting concept. Seems like you want a decent amount of young bees going into winter though. I'm not clear how this would work.