Waldemar wrote:  "Very few of us have the benefit of being isolated but I believe most of us should be raising our own queens and selecting from the best."
   
  I couldn't agree more.  And I'm not against buying good commercially-produced queens to bring in fresh genetics and a higher degree of selection.  My preference of home-raised queens stems from the ideals of giving my newly mated queens plenty of time to mature and gives me the opportunity to fully evaluate.  Since I'm not horribly rushed with a quick turn-over, I leave my queens in the nucs (six-frame nucs boxes) rather than cage them in a queen bank.
   
  And I also have the benefit of raising local queens that compliment and compensate my management styles and incompetencies.  I think the benefits outweigh the mystique.  
   
  Grant
  Jackson, MO


       
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