How much abuse can a capped queen cell withstand?

746 Views 3 Replies 4 Participants Last post by Matt903, Jul 27, 2019

username00101

Discussion Starter · #1 · Jul 26, 2019

Occasionally I'll screw up and inspect a frame without noticing a capped queen cell hidden in an unusual location.

Yesterday, I turned the frame upside down, and noticed one. I didn't shake the frame, nor did I turn it upside down violently, but it was upside down at one point.

Sometimes I'll "damage" the outside of a capped queen cell, when removing an adjacent frame.

Questions:

1. How much abuse can a capped queen cell take - esp in regards to the 2 above mentioned accidents?

2. Will a hive be less likely to produce a secondary swarm if I remove most of the honey that the original hive stored?

Thanks for your help.

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Nelsonhoneyfarms

· Registered

Joined May 19, 2019

306 Posts

#3 · Jul 27, 2019

little_john said:
If moving queen cell, best between days 11 and 13 inclusive.

I agree. A friend of mine told me he worked for a guy that would actually put the capped QCs in a big bowl as he was collecting them with no problems.

I dropped a frame with several capped queen cells earlier this year. It dropped and banged against a metal pipe. The queens emerged fine.