The Art and Science of Queen Rearing
Queen rearing is the pinnacle of apiary management, enabling the conscious shaping of productive traits in bees such as honey yield, gentleness and winter hardiness. Success in this field requires strict adherence to time schedules and the provision of ideal nutritional conditions for the developing queen larvae.
1. Biological foundations of queen development
Understanding the development timeline is crucial for keeping breeding work on schedule. Queen bee development takes 16 days and comprises the following stages:
- Egg: 3 days.
- Larva: 5 days (during this time she is intensively fed royal jelly).
- Pre-pupa and pupa: 8 days (at this stage the queen cell is capped).
The key factor determining queen quality is royal jelly. Queen larvae must be literally „bathed” in royal jelly from the first second of their lives, which ensures the full development of the reproductive system (the number of ovarioles in outstanding queens reaches 300–400).
2. Selection of breeding material (Choosing the breeder colony)
Not every colony is suitable for propagation. The so-called mass selection based on hard data is recommended:
- Group I (Elite): The best 10–15% of colonies in the apiary. They must demonstrate honey yields 1.5–2 times higher than the apiary average, overwinter excellently and be disease-free.
- Group II (Utility): Colonies with average parameters.
- Group III (Cull): The weakest units that must undergo queen replacement.
3. Artificial rearing technique
The most effective method is rearing by larval transfer.
Step 1: Preparing the starter colony
This colony must be in a state of „biological crowding” and queenlessness.
- The queen and all open brood are removed from a strong colony. After 3–6 hours, the bees feel strong queenlessness and are ready to accept larvae.
- The colony must occupy at least 10–12 standard frames and have abundant pollen stores.
Step 2: Larval transfer (Grafting)
- Worker larvae aged less than 1 day (ideally 12–24 hours) are transferred into artificial queen cups (wax or plastic).
- Important: The larva must not dry out; it should be transferred together with a drop of royal jelly using a special grafting tool.
Step 3: Queen cell care (Finisher)
After the larvae have been accepted in the starter (usually after 24 hours), the raising frame can be moved to a „finisher” – a strong colony with the queen separated by a queen excluder – which will provide the appropriate temperature (34–35 °C) and feeding.
- Supplementary feeding: During rearing, 0.5 l of syrup (1:1) should be fed to the colony daily, which stimulates royal jelly secretion.
Step 4: Isolation and emergence
On day 14 from egg laying (day 10 after grafting), the queen cells must be secured in individual protection cages so that the first emerged queen does not destroy the remaining ones.
4. Mating and quality assessment
The young queen (so-called „one-day-old”) should be introduced into mating nuclei (nucs) with a bee population of approximately 100 g.
- Mating flights: Take place between day 5 and day 15 of the queen’s life, at temperatures above 20 °C and in calm weather.
- Multiple mating: The queen mates with an average of 7–10 drones, ensuring genetic diversity of the offspring and colony stability.
Summary
| Queen development time | 16 days |
| Larva age for grafting | < 24 hours (ideally 12 h) |
| Temperature in the rearing nest | 34 – 35 °C |
| Number of ovarioles (quality) | 300 – 400 |
| Start of egg laying | 10 – 15 days after emergence |
Why bother? Your own queen rearing means apiary independence and a guarantee of the highest biological quality queens.