Each line of queen bees is selected and raised in isolated apiaries. The success and quality of the queens are determined by several factors: breeding period, grafting method, and maturation time.
The breed is always evaluated before being used for queen production through morphometric analyses conducted by accredited institutes.
Mated queen bees, fertilized in mating nuclei, are collected after egg-laying begins. At the time of collection, an initial qualitative assessment of the queen’s laying pattern can be made.
Royal jelly nutrition is the key factor in transforming a worker bee larva into a queen bee. Shipments are carried out using ventilated cardboard boxes that can hold up to 24 queen bees. The queen bees are caged together with about ten attendant worker bees in yellow “Nicot” cages. These cages are excellent for both transport and acceptance into a new colony.
Once the queen bee has arrived at its destination, it should be used as soon as possible. Although bees can survive in the cage for several days, waiting too long can be highly detrimental to acceptance and causes excessive stress to the queen herself.
If it is necessary to keep the queen caged for a few days, the cage should be stored in a sheltered place with a temperature above 20°C. Additionally, it is advisable to replenish the consumed fondant before placing the cage in the hive where the queen is to be accepted.
Remember to remove the safety cap from the cage where the fondant is located. The cage containing the queen should be placed at the center of the hive, with the fondant facing downward, positioned between the heads of two frames, preferably between two brood frames.
In the case of an orphaned colony, it is always advisable to provide the colony with a fresh brood frame containing larvae taken from another hive. This will help keep the colony calm and facilitate the acceptance of the queen. When introducing a caged queen into a hive, it is crucial to ensure that the hive is indeed queenless.
For replacing an old or undesired queen, we recommend orphaning the colony and immediately inserting the cage with the new queen. The time the bees take to consume the fondant and release the new queen will be sufficient for them to recognize the absence of the old queen.
We strongly discourage introducing caged queen bees during the swarming period or during a strong nectar flow, as the acceptance rate may be significantly lower. The best time to replace queens in bee colonies is between two nectar flows. In our opinion, June and July are ideal months for these operations and for ensuring the quality of the queens.
The acceptance process is different in smaller nucleus colonies, where the lower number of bees makes the operation more successful.
Once the cage is placed inside the hive, wait at least 6-7 days before checking the acceptance. Checking too soon could disturb the colony and lead to the queen being killed.
At Ianua Api you will find a great selection of mated queen bees from may to september. You will be able to pick up your queen bees directly at the facility, but please remember to make an appointment by either calling at +39 348 7608178 or writing an email to flavio@ianuaapi.it. We are located in Monte San Pietro (BO), at the address: Via fosse Ardeatine, 18. We look forward to seeing you!
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