Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => REQUEENING & RAISING NEW QUEENS => Topic started by: van from Arkansas on May 30, 2019, 05:54:15 pm

Title: Pic of my starter colony for grafted larva.
Post by: van from Arkansas on May 30, 2019, 05:54:15 pm

My starter hive, a common design, well ventilated as wire on bottom as well as sides.

This 5 frame nuc box is filled with nurse bees as I shake at least 6-7 frames of bees into the nuc.  Older bees are allowed to fly off, I just want nurse bees.  Then I add 2 frames of capped brood and 2 frames of nectar and pollen.  A soaked sponge provides water.  Mr. Bush has a video more detailed on YouTube.
This box is used for 48 hours total.  First 24 hours the nurse bee fill up the Royal Jelly glands.  Then I add grafted larva and remove the next 24 hrs [total 48 hr] later I move to the finisher colony.  This works well for a small time hobbyist beekeeper, Me, as I graft 16 larva at a time.  Be sure there is no eggs or young larva on frames, just capped brood, pollen, and nectar.

Title: Re: Pic of my starter colony for grafted larva.
Post by: yes2matt on June 02, 2019, 08:30:23 am

Looks good! The bottom is screen? How do you get the water in?

Title: Pic of my starter colony for grafted larva.
Post by: TheHoneyPump on June 06, 2019, 12:13:55 am

I like to keep things  simple and equipment standardized around the beeyard.  My starter is a regular hive in a 10 frame box. It is truly just another hive in the beeyard. It just does not have a queen in it. 

There are two ways to setup the bees in it to to be ready to start cells. 
Method 1, frames of honey and pollen and one foundation. NO Brood.  Shake in 12 to 15 frames of bees from the surrounding hives.  Wait 4 hours.  Introduce grafts.  Shake in two more frames of bees  per 4 days it is run. 
Method 2, goto a regular hive.  Remove the queen and reduce the hive to one box. Shake in 3 to 4 more frames of bees from the other hives.  Replace/add 2+ more frames of capped brood.  Come back in 4 days.  Shake the bees off of every frame and destroy every queen cell.  Introduce grafts.  Shake in 2 frames of bees every 4 days that the starter is run.

My cell finisher is a regular strong queenrite hive nearby.  Double deep. Queen in the bottom under a queen excluder. Started partial cells are placed centre of the 2nd box.

(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190606/2a3784f22243048376f01f192c5aa353.jpg)