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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

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Subject:
From:
Peter Borst <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Mon, 13 Jan 2003 14:32:03 -0500
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I have been looking for examples where beekeepers have been using colours on their hives to help with queen returns.... is there anyone who is now using colours for this purpose

response:
I set up a queen mating yard every summer (in 2002 I had 100 nucs). I  have been raising queens for 25 years. I think the most important thing is that each hive or mating nuc must appear different to the queen. One way is to put them near natural landmarks like shrubs or boulders. If you have a lot of space this may work.

However, my  current mating nucs are painted different colors. Incidentally, I use a nuc that holds five standard frames. For mating queens the bees probably needn't bee stronger than about 2 frames worth. But such a large hive means it can expand and there is room to add a couple of frames of honey as needed.

The colors I use are yellow, green, blue, white and red in various shades. I place them in pairs with the entrances pointed in opposite directions. There should be at least six feet (2 M) between each pair, ten would be better (3 M). If there aren't obvious landmarks, I imagine the color is a big help.

By the way, picture yourself as a bee: a 5 frame nuc is about as big as a barn would be to you or me. It would be hard to mistake your barn, but if it was a particular color, that would help.

pb

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