Magna Farms,
You should probably check out a good book about queen rearing. Michael Bush has some good, vintage ones available on his website. One thing that comes to mind when I read your posts in this thread and see your location -> How often and what time of the season are you going to have weather that will be conducive to proper queen matings? You may want to check with other local beekeepers to see how queen mating works in your local climate.
In my current location, Tucson, Arizona, U.S.A. I've been able to raise small batches of queens continuously, and I probably won't have a "down" time from the 2009 season, until now, the 2010 season. I know this probably won't always be possible, but, for now, it is. From what I've read from the experts, I believe, that matings work best when the temperatures are near or above 70F (21C), the winds are calm, and the sun is out. Conditions that all bees prefer when flying, especially queens and drones on mating flights. Once the virgin queens are about ten days old, they are old enough to mate, but if conditions aren't good during the next two weeks, they will likely not get mated, after which they become drone-laying queens (they will never be mated, so can only, ever and always after, lay only drone eggs).