Too late in season to let them make a queen?

Started by contactme_11, July 30, 2009, 04:36:25 PM

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Kathyp

#20
July 31, 2009, 05:11:54 PM

The people the people are the rightful masters of both congresses and courts not to overthrow the Constitution, but to overthrow the men who pervert it.

Abraham  Lincoln
Speech in Kansas, December 1859

Scadsobees

#21
August 01, 2009, 12:30:14 AM
Quote from: kathyp on July 31, 2009, 05:11:54 PM


Wow...I can tell that you are a cold hearted conservative!! (any room at that puke station, I'm gonna need it too!!   :-D)

I'm in michigan and thinking of splitting my hives.  Cutting it close? Maybe a bit.  Want to spend $60 on queens?  Nope.  You still have time if you don't want to drop the moolah.
Rick

Pond Creek Farm

#22
August 02, 2009, 12:04:39 AM
So a question about queenlessness late in the season: Is this common?  I have had various packages go queenless, but it has been in the early season.  Are hives at risk to go queenless year round?  If so, what are the causes if we know?  If one were to get a queen this late, could heavy feeding keep them through the winter?
Brian

Robo

#23
August 02, 2009, 07:18:48 AM
Quote from: Pond Creek Farm on August 02, 2009, 12:04:39 AM
So a question about queenlessness late in the season: Is this common?  I have had various packages go queenless, but it has been in the early season.  Are hives at risk to go queenless year round?  If so, what are the causes if we know?  If one were to get a queen this late, could heavy feeding keep them through the winter?

Fall queen loss is not uncommon.   My personal feeling is that the real quality of a queen does not show up until fall/winter,  which by the way is the worse time to have them fail.  I also believe that a lot of winter failures that are blamed on "winter weather" are really queen failures.    I can only speak for myself,  but since I have been keeping only well feed grafted and swarm queens winter losses are less than when I tolerated emergency queens.   Ideally you want your new queen to go through 3 or so brood cycles before winter, so figure 2 months before the last fall brod rearing to introduce a new queen.
"Opportunity is missed by most people because it comes dressed in overalls and looks like work." - Thomas Edison


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buzzbee

#24
August 02, 2009, 05:16:10 PM
Didn't a recent article in Bee culture recommend re queening in the late summer early fall for the purpose of out breeding the mites?Maybe letting them make a queen is a push,but if you can buy a queen it may all be well.If it does requeen itself  and the population is light,be sure to shrink the colony to a size that can keep itself warm over the winter.Or do a combine with another hive.
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