Hi All

I understand there is some interest in this at the moment.

I am about to start a batch using the method outlined on my page
http://website.lineone.net/~dave.cushman/method2.html

The weather in UK is a little cold and wet, so I have delayed a couple of
days.

I thought a little background into the particular circumstances behind this
queen rearing/increase exercise may help to explain why I chose this
particular method at this time.

I have been breeding bees for more than 20 years, but due to ill health my
operation has dwindled over the last six years until last year I had only 5
colonies and one nuc left.
Two of these had AMM queens that were the result of 20 years of selection.

In early January all the hives (and many empty ones) were vandalised.
I rescued one bunch of bees that were clustering in the debris that had been
a mongrel swarm the previous year.

This has developed to cover ten British frames in two brood boxes. The bees
have turned dark brown, so one of my "good" queens must have joined the
others during the smash up.

So I have one largish colony, headed by a queen that I want to produce
offspring from. I will have to take pot luck with the drones on this
occasion but my stock has had quite an influence on the area for a good many
years and another breeding station three miles away uses compatible stock.

The version of the method that I am employing, ends up with the cell
finishing colony split into nucs to do the mating. At the time of this
splitting the original queen will be stored with a frame of brood in a nuc.
Then each of the nucs will be developed.

I will provide more information "as it happens".

Regards From:- Dave Cushman, G8MZY
Beekeeping and Bee Breeding, http://website.lineone.net/~dave.cushman
IBList Archives, http://website.lineone.net/~d.cushman