randy oliver <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>I encourage you to expand your apiary, Joe.  But don't underestimate
>yourself--you are only counting your queen mothers… 

Hello Randy!

I do recognize that I should make expansion a priority.  My biggest fear 
is that if one apiary gets wiped out by some catastrophe, and I could 
loose my best stock in one swoop.  Because I have limited number of 
colonies, I’ve been splitting my top ferals and moving them out to 
different yards as a way to spread out the risk a bit.  I admit to being a 
bit lax in my efforts to expand, so I need to get working at this a bit 
more.

Your drone mothers are
>likely mostly ferals,,,

I have been rather disappointed in the past with mating success, but last 
season I finally was able to get very nice matings, which I hope after 
waiting so long, is an indicator of adequate drone source from a 
recovering local feral population. The plan was to allow my better stock 
to raise what ever drone they wish as a way to get the genetics I like 
infused into my local feral population, which until last season, seemed to 
be lagging a bit in the feral recovery.  Then if catastrophe happens, I 
can draw back bees from my local feral population, and this will also aid 
in feral drone source for future matings.   

I can’t go down to the bee store and buy more ferals if I need stock,  so 
I am also considering the possibility of  moving drone source colonies 
from early recovery feral stock captured in 2001 from farmlands into a 
woodland area (discovered last season and in my early stage of assessing 
them found them to have very nice performing queens) as added insurance.  
I want to see if I can infuse traits found in the perfered 2001 stock into 
the woodland bees, this to create another repository of genetics with 
traits I prefer that I can draw from if need be.  Plus, it would be a bit 
closer to home. :) 

Best Wishes, 

Joe Waggle 
EcologicalBeekeeping.com 
‘Bees Gone Wild Apiaries' 
Feral Bee Project: 
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FeralBeeProject/

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