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  1. #2941
    Senior Member Kate Atchley's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jon View Post
    There are 3 main methods:
    1. fill an apidea and add the virgin at the same time. The virgin is added first and a scoop of wet bees is placed on top. Apideas are filled via the sliding floor. You can open this one the following evening, ie closed about 36 hours.
    2. fill an apidea and add a ripe queen cell. This is kept closed until the queen has emerged from the cell. Check the cell for emergence by removing it and open the door if the queen is out.
    Jon your detailed posts are so helpful. I think this is pretty much what I've been doing but is it right to follow 1 and 2 – ie fairly rapid opening of the mating nuc – even if the bees were from a neighbouring or adjacent apiary? Or would more time or putting into dark place be necessary then?

  2. #2942
    Senior Member busybeephilip's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kate Atchley View Post
    even if the bees were from a neighbouring or adjacent apiary? Or would more time or putting into dark place be necessary then?
    Yes, this is my query too

  3. #2943
    Senior Member Jon's Avatar
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    I find it is not necessary to have them in the dark for 3 days.
    Where did that all start anyway?
    3 days closed up is very stressful for bees.
    However, if you open too soon with a virgin queen a lot will abscond even if moved to another apiary.
    They go into any hive or mini nuc in the vicinity which has a mated queen in it.
    You need some time for the unit to gel but not as long as 3 days.

  4. #2944
    Senior Member Jon's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by busybeephilip View Post
    Yes, this is my query too
    Phil
    Tim B brought several Kielers to my apiary a few years ago to get queen cells. He had just filled them elsewhere.
    I gave him a few queen cells and when my back was turned he set them out and opened them up. 95% of the bees absconded into my apideas which had laying queens in them. This happened within a couple of hours. The key thing is to keep the mini nuc closed until the queen has emerged from the cell. They are a unit once the queen is out of the cell.

  5. #2945
    Senior Member Kate Atchley's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jon View Post
    Phil
    ...The key thing is to keep the mini nuc closed until the queen has emerged from the cell. They are a unit once the queen is out of the cell.
    Gotcha! Thanks Jon

  6. #2946
    Senior Member busybeephilip's Avatar
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    So just to clarify, you use bees from site eg A, wiat till queen hatches then release in the same apairy at site A

    My concern is bees drifting back to the parent hive, as you know I move my mating units to different sites
    Last edited by busybeephilip; 19-11-2015 at 03:08 PM.

  7. #2947
    Senior Member Jon's Avatar
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    It's better if you fill in one apiary and move to another.
    You will always lose some bees drifting back to where they came from.
    If you look at what we do at Minnowburn, people bring their filled apideas, receive a ripe queen cell then stack the apideas on a pallet.
    Someone goes along the next day to set out the apideas and opens each one up at its station after checking that the queen is out of the cell.
    If the queen has not emerged the apidea is left another day on the pallet.

  8. #2948

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    I bought my first Apideas over 20 years ago. The 'keeping in the dark' instruction came with them, in a written set of instructions, back in those days (early 1990's). Even then it was not 3 days however. 24 to 48 hours was stated, to make sure the nuc achieved unity. I think it was about small numbers of them because it mentioned that you should see them drawing out the comb by then if all was ok, but bigger users don't have time to go opening them all to see the new wax.

    The 'in the same site' question I cannot answer as we fill packages with mixed bees in the field as requested by Jolanta and she soaks the bulk bees and scoops out the correct amount (which is surprisingly small) at the breeding shed then after the VQ or cell has been added she stacks them away behind the shed in a dark compartment and puts them out in place the next day or day after.

    Don't go thinking I have 20 odd years Apidea experience however.....they were used sporadically due to being too busy to mess around with them, and for over half that time they were stored away in a shed.

  9. #2949
    Senior Member busybeephilip's Avatar
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    As Jon knows, I'm not a great apidea fan myself as i use a smaller unit, but I wanted to clarify the loss of bees due to drifting back to their own parent hive in a situation where apideas are filled and positioned in the same apairy should i try this next season instead of using a remote site - still not clear on the answer. Do you move or use the same site Jon?

  10. #2950
    Senior Member Jon's Avatar
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    I try and fill in one place and move to another if I can.

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