[Jon11]

When requeening hives is it best to remove the old queen and place the new queen in a cage in right away, or give the colony a few hours to be queenless before placing the new caged queen in the hive?

 

[Gray Goose]

how many are you doing?
what is the size of the hive?
what race queen?
what race bee?
laying queen in your NUC? or ordered queen?

If I do it ,,details matter, a couple I may gyrate more, 100s not so much. different races tend to need more time.

best answer can be derived from very complete data.

Hoping to get you the best "answer/guess"

GG

 

[grozzie2]

Find the old queen and give her the hive tool test. After she fails that test, wipe the muck left over on the cage holding the new queen and put it in the hive for a candy release. Check back in 4 weeks.

 

[Michael Palmer]

When requeening a colony...I remove the old queen and install the new queen under a push in cage. Very good results. Pull cage four days later

 

[Jon11]

I'm requeening five hives, giving them mated Italian queens. I don't know what the queens are that I'm replacing, but I want fresh queens for next year and one hive is a little meaner than I like.

 

[Jon11]

Thanks everybody. Michael, how big do you make the push in cage?

 

[crofter]

Have a look over this thread.

https://www.beesource.com/forums/sh...-queens-accepted&highlight=queen+introduction

That is myy experience with having a fair number of failed introductions due to workers starting their own cells. Just a week or so ago I helped a fellow split a colony and introduce a new queen. Had him check back in a week and sure enough a capped queen cell along with an accepted laying queen.
What would the outcome have been had he not removed the queen cell?

I think the risk of disturbing a new queen and having her balled is far less than having her destroyed due to workers starting their own cells.

Michael Palmer's push in cage is a good insurance plan and takes only a minute or two to make from #8 screen.

 

[Michael Palmer]

Thanks everybody. Michael, how big do you make the push in cage?

3x5

 

[GregV]

Thanks everybody. Michael, how big do you make the push in cage?

You should also google or ask how to install a push-in cage properly.

Whatever you do, don't just smash all of your old queens.
Hang onto 1-2 until you are sure you had 100% acceptance.

 

[bruce.campo]

When requeening a colony...I remove the old queen and install the new queen under a push in cage. Very good results. Pull cage four days later

using the push in cage, does it require attendant bees in the cage or is the queen solo

 

[Michael Palmer]

The cage is located over emerging brood and some nectar. No other bees with the queen. The young bees that emerge have never known a queen, so they accept the new queen. She begins to lay...coming into a laying condition. The cage is removed on the 4th day. Before removing the cage, check for eggs outside the cage...indicating a second queen. Before removing cage, peek through the top to see the queen is on the comb and not on the cage. If you pull the cage when queen is on the cage, she might fly.

 

[dleemc1]

When requeening a colony...I remove the old queen and install the new queen under a push in cage. Very good results. Pull cage four days later

when i use a push in cage a lot of the time the bees have managed to chew a hole in the wax and the queen is already out in the hive, but have not had any problem with them rejecting them, have a great day