Ham Morton asks "during requeening do you eliminate the host bees in the queen cage or leave them in the cage?" I have done it both ways and it has worked both ways. Some say that there is a hazard that the bees in the hive may accidentally sting the queen to death while trying to kill her attendants. Your mileage may vary depending upon the temperament of the hive. Sometimes very aggressive bees may be more likely to try and kill the workers and possibly the queen when the queen cage is first put in. In a case like that, I might remove the workers first. Mostly I just put the cage in with the attendants still in it, and (although maybe I'm just lucky) I've never had a problem doing that. I've had a successful intro- duction every time as long as I successfully removed or killed the queen that was previously in there. I usually try and leave the hive queenless for 24 hours previous to introducing the new queen because I think the bees are more receptive that way. Results can vary depending on the race and temperament of the bees being requeened. Have fun and best wishes for success. Layne Westover, College Station, Texas, U.S.A. (a small piece of cotton with water in it replenished at least once a day can keep the queen and her attendants alive for some time if waiting on inclement weather or other problems. I never kill the old queen until I have received the new one in the mail and made sure she is in good shape, and then I wait 24 hours before introducing the new queen. I must not be a commercial beekeeper.)