On 5 May 98 at 11:58, Nick Shilliff wrote: > I would like your input, based on your experience,on which type of > cell builder works best-swarm box type or cells in the top box over > a queen excluder with the queen in the bottom box or a full size > queenless colony.I am in upstate NY and planning 20 cells at a time. Over the years we've tried them all. We do find bigger cells, a bigger take and more consistent results with a queenless cell builder. It's easy to arrange. Make up a split with the old queen and as much open brood as possible, move her to a different part of the yard. All the flight bees will return boosting the cell builder, you need as many as possible,bulging would be a good term. We make the cell builder late today, and graft early tomorrow. Feed 1-1 syrup, check for stray cells in 48 hours and again 48 hours later and cut them out. Shake the bees off the frames to get a real good look. One final point. Add a frame of foundation to the box. It will prevent web being formed around the cells. Finally don't be greedy, we use the maximum graft of 45 per builder. If you need more than that, make more cell builders. ******************************************* The Bee Works, 9 Progress Dr, Unit 2, Orillia, Ontario, L3V 6H1 Phone/fax 705-326-7171 David Eyre, Owner. http://www.muskoka.net/~beeworks e-mail <[log in to unmask]> ********************************************