Kona Queens

[Kirk-o]

Has anyone ever purchased queens from Kona Queens and If how were they the queens that is
kirko

[TwT]

I had 3 Kona italian queens, they did pretty good, they dont swarm much and are good honey collectors...

[Dane Bramage]

4 packages queened with Carniolans from Kona Queens.  They were my best performers this year but also had the earliest start.

[Kirk-o]

Ok guys thank you for the info

kirko

[Cindi]

Kirk-o.  I purchased 4 package bees, all Kona Italian queens. 4 nucs, all Kona Italian queens.  I had one Carnioloan queen and her colony left over from last year that came through the winter with flying colours.  The Carniolan colony was one that I thought for sure would never have made it.  I gave them a terrarium heater to keep them warm this winter and it worked.  They built up and built up, really big time.  They almost swarmed once, I made a cut down split, which is going great guns, and the original colony swarmed on September 6.  I am awaiting the weather to see if the virgin queen of that colony mated and is laying.  The swarm and its queen are going like nothing on this earth.

I am very very impressed with the Kona Italian packages and colonies.  These queens really really like to lay brood.  They had amazing brood all summer long and even a couple of weeks ago they were still laying their brains out, with eggs, larvae in all stages and capped and emerging brood.  Going nuts.

About honey gatherers.  I am not too sure.  When I bought the nucs from a fellow in a neighbouring town he told me that the Kona Italian queens loved to raise babies, but were not so good with the honey gathering.  I don't know if I disagree or agree with that one.  They seem to be bringing in enough honey for their own uses, but I really don't know how to gage what is good honey gathering and what is poor honey gathering.  I can only go by what this breeder told me, that they are not great with honey gathering.

Now, going back to my Carniolan colonies (which are two, as you may have worked out in your head  ;) :).  Without a doubt in my mind they like to gather honey, lots of it and they also like to raise brood, lots of it.  But I really think that these ladies like to swarm.  There is not a doubt in my mind about that one too.  So.....next spring, I have to make some decisions here about what kind of bees I want to keep.  They will all probably be cross breeds eventually, so I may just let nature take its course.

This is my year of buildup, as should be the first season with packages and nucs.  The next year will be the focus on honey.

One thing that I can say about the Italian breed compared to the Carniolan breed is that:  Italians are wonderful propolis gatherers.  They stick everything together like nothing on this earth, myriads of auburn coloured propolis, thick.  So thick sometimes I even have a hard time getting off the top cover, if you can figure that one.  I scrape the excess off now and then when I am working the hive hoping that it may make the job easier next time, but I don't think so.  I think it makes them gather the propolis even faster and harder.

The Carniolan (and this is typical of this breed) do not gather much propolis, compared to the Italians, their hives are very clean in that way.  I do not even hardly have to scrape any propolis off anywhere to make life a little easier, they are just not a propolis gathering bee.

So, anyways, I am happy with the Kona queens, to answer the question that I kind of got lost with an answer to.  But I am also happy with the Carniolan queens too.  Hmmm......have a wonderful day, beautiful life we live.  Cindi

[Brian D. Bray]

This year in the PNW (where Cindi & I live) there has been a major nectar dreath so this is not a year for predicting honey production in various strains of bees. 
Generally speaking good honey production is 3-4 mediums supers per hive, poor would be 0-1, excellent 5 and up.
However, this must be tempered with weather and forage conditions.  In my area just to get the bees to a point of surviving the winter is a major success, a honey excess was not expected.

[BeeHopper]

I have visited the Kona Queen website to get more info. to supplement what I am getting here. My only concern is three-fold: 1: Overwintering in NJ, I see WA, OR and B.C. beekeepers here having the Konas, how are your winters ? 2: Varroa mite tolerance/resistance, Hawaii has none ? 3: How are you going to keep your lines pure from year to year uless you plan to buy new Queens exclusively ?

:-D

[Cindi]

Beehopper.  The genetics of the bees are not really a concern of mine.  If they are producing good brood and good honey and are healthy, they can be what they want to be.  I initially purchased Kona Italian queens because that was the only available queens the beginning of May, when packages and nucs were ready for sale in my area.

If they supercede and produce crosses, I really don't care, I'll let them do that.  But any digresion from good queen qualities, then I will requeen with a purchased queen.  No matter which way to me.

In B.C. the commercial beekeepers requeen their stock every year.  That is expensive, but then I guess that is simply what they do.  With knowing that the queens are young each year, I would imagine this takes away much of the worries about swarming.  I think that is one of the mind sets.  Have a wonderful day, best of this great life we live.  Cindi