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Date: | Thu, 20 Nov 2008 23:27:51 -0600 |
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in particular cases there may be huge differences, and they are
> well known in commercial circles. Right Bob?
Exactly right!
In commercial beekeeping one needs to choose his queens wisely. All have
their good and bad points.
Some queen producers put out very poor quality queens on a regular basis.
Price has little to do with the queens you get as to quality.
Also as Allen pointed out you might go several years with queens from a
queen producer and then get a batch which will not winter or produce honey.
I never put all my eggs in one basket by using a single queen source.
I looked at the largest test group of queens sold in the U.S. I have ever
seen in one place last January in Florida. A forty acre field was lined with
fifty five gallon barrels on which each had a hive . Each group of hives had
hives headed with queens from a particular queen producer. One group stood
out from the others. So queens were ordered the next year from the queen
producer. We were not disappointed but as Allen said we could have received
a bad batch.
The first queens out the gate are always suspect. The next batch are usually
better mated.
The queen is the most important insect in the hive and good queens do not
cost but pay dividends. Actually with the costs of maintaining a hive
throughout the year ( meds, feed & labor) queens are one of the lowest
costs.
However unlike the Adee's and the Brown's which requeen all hives every year
I still keep queens two years and (like Brother Adam) believe queens produce
better in the second year (but are swarmy so precautions need taken over
first year queens). Giving the second year queen room to lay ( not
foundation but drawn comb ) is essential. Make use if a surprise flow starts
supers are in place so the bees do not plug the brood area with nectar as a
second year queen will hit the trees in a heartbeat if happens.
For me I have a hard time putting a hive tool to a queen in her second
season but many commercial beeks do not. I mark & use marked queens these
days so I have an idea of age or if the queen has been superceded. Unless
part of a test I do cull third year production queens. My experience has
been problems with yards with third year queens but others may have
different experience. I recall Murray saying he has had luck with older
queens.
bob
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