Great to see you there Jim. I'll second all of that! Except that I do sleep, only not enough ....
Well done folks, it was really good. Anyone else with pictures they'd like to share?
Great to see you there Jim. I'll second all of that! Except that I do sleep, only not enough ....
Well done folks, it was really good. Anyone else with pictures they'd like to share?
That looked like a great course.
Whose bees did you use? - they look just like mine.
Hi Jon,
The bees were supplied by Enid Brown and John Durkacz both who are interested in the conservation of native black bees. John and myself have also been working on morph samples from other beekeepers in Scotland.
Jimbo
I am trying grafting for the first time this year.
I just set up a second queen right cellraising colony last Friday.
I have been having very mixed results.
The first attempt we got 9/20 started but subsequently it has been 2/20 or similar.
I have got about 15 cells on the go, the first due to hatch tomorrow but I am doing an inordinate amount of repeat grafting to get this far.
Apart from the obvious, which is that my grafting technique leaves someting to be desired, what are the top tips from the course to increase success?
Be nice to the larvae, work quickly and return them without delay. Don't use any that touch the sides. Still, warm conditions (maybe in a car). Transfer them with some royal jelly. Don't go for the youngest, around 1 day is fine. No need to prepare the cups, no need to charge them with larvae then discard them before the proper run, as some people do.
Hmm.
The hardest part of that is the mention of a car as my mode of transport is the humble bicycle.
How much royal jelly should you transfer, just a wafer thin smidgen or a reasonable amount?
That's also an interesting comment about those which touch the sides I I kid myself that they have not been damaged.
Hi Jon,
I also had a go at grafting which is not as hard as people make out. My tips from the weekend. Use a frame of nice light coloured drawn comb. Usually the queen will be on it. Brush off all the bees Look for larvae at all stages. If there is sealed brood in the middle look further out for the young larvae and eggs.
If you have to carry the frame any distance wet a tea towel with hot water from a flask, wring it out and let it start to cool. Wrap the frame in the towel This will preserve the larvae better with humidity and warmth. On the weekend we did not do this as we were grafting next to the hives. You need to be sitting preferably at a table with good light. I used a light head magnifying glass to see the larvae. We cut along a row of larvae with a sharp knife to see and help lift out the larvae. I used the chinese grafting tool which I prefered as you can slide the larvae off. I tried various other tool but found them more difficult. We did not charge the wax cups or the plastic cups we just put the larvae into. The important bit is the larvae have to be 1 day old and the frame of grafts must go into a strong queenless colony that have brood that is too old to make new queen cells. You must also feed at all times.
I intend to try grafting this thursday with me old mentor Ben Bellamy who is 83 yrs old but is still wanting to give it a go. I will keep you informed on how it goes.
On a different note I saw my first virgin queen this year emerge. The first time I have seen this. She was born at 10.33am. I felt like a proud father and if any other people had been there I would have handed out the cigars and drink.
Jimbo
I doubt that it is crucial as some folk lift larvae rather than scoop them as we were doing with those Chinese tools with the very thin flexible ends and the plunger to push them off.Originally Posted by Jon
Not putting too many at once in one colony was another factor mentioned. Maybe a dozen.
G.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks