injured queen

[10framer]

i've got one hive that has constantly kept queen cells since maybe late february.  the queen is a laying machine.  a2 or 3 weeks ago i went through the hive and noticed one of her wings was in an odd position and then i noticed she had what looked like a healed injury on her abdomen.  there were several queen cells that were about to be capped so i decided to leave them in place.  i went through yesterday and found a couple of cells that looked like they'd been cut down after the developing queens had been killed (sides were chewed away).  i thought i'd find a virgin queen running around.  next frame there sits the injured queen and she's still laying.  i guess she killed the unhatched queens.  i'm thinking i should replace her before fall.  this is her second maybe third season.  i think i'm going to graft some queens off of her then split a nuc off of the hive and keep her in it.  this hive is a little aggressive at times but i never see beetles in it, they are hard workers and she is a good layer.  am i wasting resources by keeping her as she goes down hill?  

[Spear]

I personally would keep the old "battle axe" around until she is replaced by the workers since she is in such good laying form. But then I don't have any experience yet - only getting my 1st hive later this month...

[rbinhood]

10framer.....I have a queen that is going on 4 years old and she has been wingless since she was about a month old due to an accident when she was being marked.....she has always be a prolific layer and is still going strong....just saying deformed or broken wing is not a sentence of death.  As long as she is doing her job and the hive stays strong why would you want to destroy her.

[don2]

I would take her with the frame she is on along with one other frame with mostly capped brood and put those with 3 other frames, 2 with honey and pollen the other drawn or foundation into a 5 frame nuc. Let the hive go ahead with the rearing of a new queen. Nothing to loose, maybe a queen to gain.  :)d2

[10framer]

I would take her with the frame she is on along with one other frame with mostly capped brood and put those with 3 other frames, 2 with honey and pollen the other drawn or foundation into a 5 frame nuc. Let the hive go ahead with the rearing of a new queen. Nothing to loose, maybe a queen to gain.  :)d2

don that's more or less my plan.  i'm going to graft some cells with her larvae and then move them into her hive right before they emerge then mover her into the nursery nuc.  i at least want to have her spitting out drones in a mediocre hive next year to keep the genes in the mix one more season.

[10framer]

10framer.....I have a queen that is going on 4 years old and she has been wingless since she was about a month old due to an accident when she was being marked.....she has always be a prolific layer and is still going strong....just saying deformed or broken wing is not a sentence of death.  As long as she is doing her job and the hive stays strong why would you want to destroy her.

she's got more than damaged wings, she has a sunken spot in her abdomen.  i don't know if i rolled her at some point or if she had to fight a virgin queen recently.  either way, she's going into a nuc when the season starts winding down.  i'll at least graft off of her or throw some drone comb in with her next year when i rear some queens.

[don2]

I would take her out very soon. What the workers will do is if she keeps on attacking the new queen cells eventually if the workers think she needs to go they will hold her back till a new queen emerges then it will be a fight to death. She opens the cell before the new queen can get her stinger end around to get her.  If you have to graft try to do that and remove her simultaneously.  If you have extre boxes and need to make increase, just let them make ever how many cells they will. In 9or 10 days just make splits and give each one a cell.
 JMO  :) d2

[10framer]

if i was sure that sumac and buckwheat were going to produce i'd make a few splits.  i think she's injured from a recent fight.  i stole a near capped cell and put it in a hive that should have had a laying queen by now but i'm not seeing her.  if they start another cell over the next few days i'll make a split with her.  if they don't i'll do the grafting and trade places with her and the cells.  that way i don't have another hive with a lull in the brood cycle.