[liljake83]

This will be my first nuc that I have done I have a mated queen from strachen apiaries in a 3 hole cage my question is can I introduce the queen immediatly or do you have to wait and release her in a day or so like normal?

 

[drlonzo]

You need to allow the bees to release her as you normally would. Some Beeks do direct release if the hive has been queenless for a day or two , but most allow them to release in normal way. If the queen was a virgin queen, under most cases direct release can be done without any problems.

 

[Tenbears]

I am assuming you are doing the split from one of your hives. In which case the bees may see the new queen as an invader, leave them queenless for a few hours and then leave the queen in the cage with the candy plug do what you would do with a package.

 

[Andrew Dewey]

Direct release is most often done for packages that have had at least several days transport time - time for the bees to get used to their new queen.