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From:
"Dave Green, Eastern Pollinator Newsletter" <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Discussion of Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Wed, 12 Jul 1995 10:12:30 -0400
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In a message dated 95-07-12 00:05:46 EDT,       [log in to unmask] (Mike High)
wrote:
 
>Are you sure you're not expecting too much from a queen?
 
   Absolutely not!  The queen is everything.  After the spring and early
summer, where we are raising queens and making increase, my main purpose
throughout the rest of the season is to cull the junk. Breeding is the single
most important item in any livestock production, and bees are no exception.
 
   This thread could be highly informative, if *politeness* doesn't get in
the way.  Just the facts, ma'am.....
 
    It would be easy to raise production queens, and sell them cheap. I could
raise them by the thousands.  But I have never gotten into commercial queen
rearing, because I know how much it takes to make a quality queen, and I only
have about enough time and energy to make my own.
 
   There are a number of southern queen breeders that do raise production
(rather than quality) queens, and they often overbook, so then they scramble
to find other suppliers.  You may not be aware how much some of these
production guys trade around, and I won't do business with someone who trades
around.  Who knows what you get!
 
   In the south, in my book Reggie Wilbanks stands out.
Weaver is also top notch.
 
    A young New York breeder, Bob Brachmann, I think is up and coming.  I
haven't used his queens personally, but I have worked with him and seen his
stock (very nice!) and his systems of selection and quality control,  and I
think he's going to go places.  There are other small breeders which do not
advertise, but have all the sales they can handle through word of mouth,
because they produce a high quality product.
 
   I have used a lot of Homer Park queens, which used to be so different (the
queens lay all the time!), that they required different management, but I
loved them. As long as you took into account their characteristics, you could
do wonderful things with them.  Lately, with Homer not so involved, I think
they are not such a standout, though still a good queen.
 
   Some principles:
 
1.   El cheapos are strictly production queens.  It takes too much input to
make a quality queen to sell her cheap.  You'd be bankrupt if you tried.  ie.
Miserly beekeepers cannot get good queens.
 
2.   There are also high priced queens which are not quality, but make their
sales based on hype.  Caveat emptor.
 
3.   Get three or four good reliable sources, then rotate, so you don't wind
up with all one stock.  (You don't want inbred supercedures, do you?)  That
also gives you some comparisons and a learning experience.
 
4.   If you have enough hives so that you can do some selection, and more
than one location, you'd gain by trying a little queen rearing yourself.  You
want at least one isolated spot without other bees around, so that you can
mostly control drone populations.  (These spots are easier to find than they
used to be.)  Use your best stock to raise mamas and the also-rans to raise
papas.
 
[log in to unmask]                       Dave Green
PO Box 1215,   Hemingway,   SC   29554
 
 
*Beekeeping is a higher state of consciousness.  -So are fresh figs.*

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