It would be interesting to experiment with number of frames. I have only used 5 so can't tell which number is ideal. I would say that 4 is the minimum though because you should need one for the grafts, one for the pollen, one for brood and one for nectar. Perhaps next time you might try the 6 framer to see if it makes any difference.
Here's the cell raiser in situ now. The pollen trap isn't operational but will be for a day out of the next 4 as part of the COLOSS pollen study. Grafting frame goes in for the bees to clean up tomorrow and first round of grafts goes in on Friday!
I am looking forward to hearing your results Drumgerry. Fingers crossed.
Hope you don't mind me posting these pics here Steve. I'll try not to hog your thread too much!
Hog it all you like. I'm anxious to see how you get on with it.
• Put queen excluder(s) and 2 half-width brood boxes over a standard colony when the first supers would normally be fitted.Steve Rose Queen Rearing Summary
• Wait for bees to start putting nectar in the half boxes and mature drones are available.
• Day 1 - Move one frame of open brood and one of pollen up into one of the top half boxes. Slip a queen cell frame between the brood and pollen frame in the half box and leave existing nectar bearing ones in the other two.
• Day 2 - Put a plastic film over the queen excluder and under the half box with the brood etc. Graft young larvae into the queen cell frame and return it between the brood and pollen. Leave the other half box on its own queen excluder and hence accessible to the bees below.
• Day 3 - Remove the plastic film (leaving the queen excluder in place) so that the queen pheromones have normal access to the box again.
Replacinghalfbox.jpg
Having just re-read this thread (nice one, Steve) one bit of info which is missing from the summary is to ensure that there is a route over the top of the two upper boxes (or split box) for the bees to migrate into the cell-raising chamber.
As I've already got a Morris Board, think I'll give this a go in 'Rose mode' next year with a split brood box - that is, to leave one Q/X permanently open, and simply close the other using the slide as if it were the plastic sheet. And no fiddling around with various door permutations ! The only difference I can then see is in the different size Q/X's - the Morris Board's only being 4" square. Whether this reduced size is siginificant or not, we'll soon see ...
The method is far simpler (less steps/ manipulations) than that of the Morris Board, and the underlying principle certainly sounds right. I'm looking forward to trying this ...
LJ
Good point.Originally Posted by Little_John
Sounds like it could be an improvement if you already have the board. The board will mean slightly less disturbance to the colony. You must let us know if it works well.As I've already got a Morris Board, think I'll give this a go in 'Rose mode' next year with a split brood box - that is, to leave one Q/X permanently open, and simply close the other using the slide as if it were the plastic sheet. And no fiddling around with various door permutations ! The only difference I can then see is in the different size Q/X's - the Morris Board's only being 4" square. Whether this reduced size is significant or not, we'll soon see ...
The method is far simpler (less steps/ manipulations) than that of the Morris Board, and the underlying principle certainly sounds right. I'm looking forward to trying this ...LJ
Hello Steve - me again ...
I've spotted a difference between your first post and the latest summary - which I assume is due to your having 'fine-tuned' the method ?
In the first post you describe a 4-day sequence, with grafting on Day 3 - and transferring the q/cells to nucs 9 days after restoring the hive to 'Queen-right'.
In the summary you've recently posted, you describe a 3-day sequence, with grafting on Day 2, and in an earlier post you mentioned transferring the q/cells to nucs 10 days later. (so - same 13 days)
The difference between these of course being that of grafting on the same day as the half-box is made 'queen-less', or the day after.
So - just checking - which is the preferred method ? I'm assuming 'same-day' grafting - less disturbance/ less chance of emergency cells being started etc ?
'best
LJ
Last edited by Little_John; 25-10-2014 at 12:23 AM.
Hi LJ
You are correct, of course, in that I have reduced the number of visits by one day.
The reason for putting the summery up in the first place was that it was taken from a slide I presented at the recent BIBBA conference, people were unable to make a note of the sequence at the time and Grizzly asked me to show it here. In the talk I explained how the system had developed and had ended up with 3 visits and one queen as opposed to the original 4 visits and 2 queens. I had spent a couple of seasons playing with 4 visits and 1 queen before finally arriving at the current system this year.
I still distribute the queen cells 10 days after grafting as that is what most people do regardless of the system they use.
There is still plenty of scope for further experimentation though.
Good luck
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