> >>The absolute best way to requeen if you can't find the old queen is a
> ready to hatch sell placed in the honey supers.   The average is about 85%
> success in superseding the old queen, and >>no swarms.
>

This if often repeated as a successful method of re-queening, but whenever
I ask how they determined the success rate, the answer more often than not
is that there was no follow up check done (usually for the same reason this
method was selected - lack of time).   For those that have actually checked
it turns out the results usually aren't good at all.

Simon Lalonde, president of the Saskatchewan beekeepers association, spoke
at the OBA spring meeting about a month ago.   They requeen half of their
3000 hive operation every year and keep very good records.  For years they
would sometimes use the cells in super method when they had surplus cells
and assumed reasonable success until they actually followed up.  I can't
remember the exact numbers, but the success rate was below 10%.  They are
back to find the old queen and killing her before introducing the new queen
in every hive.

Adam
Barrie, ON

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