I have to add that Joe is absolutely right on this process. Joe taught me this type of queen bank and I have been using it all summer. I still have a few queens in one right now. I might point out that I have also done the same process in a five frame NUC. The key is to make sure there is open brood on either side. I have also been able to add queens as Joe described once the bank is active. I made a different type of frame using hardware cloth since most of my queens are in the 3 hole wooden cages. Good video with excellent information.
Brother Adam would be proud of you! Letting those nurse bees be attendants is the most natural way I can think keeping the confined queens happy and healthy!
Thank you for such a clear explanation. You are the only person I've seen do this and I've been hoping you would take the time to create this video. The information you give is a great help and I just want to thank you again.
Awesome video. I do love a person who doesn't listen to what can't be done - at least not permanently. You should learn the skills needed - and once that is done, then you can - and should - start looking to see if there is not a better way to do it. I love the way you teach, and if you say you can do it - I know it has already been tested. So thank you for the video, the teaching, the testing and that you care enough to do all that.
NO wonder you are picking up so many subscribers, with all the good teaching. This video answers questions I was wondering about too. You had mentioned some of the big outfits bank queens through the winter. That sounds like it would have advantages to me, especially if you need a queen in early spring before the drones are hatched out. When a mated queen is over wintered in a bank how will it effect her laying ability? I am guessing no more than a loose queen that has stopped laying for the winter, would that be right? Thanks Joe for the great teaching and question answering. Sincerely, Phillip Hall
My bees were cranky last couple days. Figured out why on friday. I had a Africanized scout group come to take over a hive. Caused all kinds of trouble throughout the yard. Saturday I went back to kill them and they were gone. But about 30min after working some hives,the swarm came and landed on a different hive. I seen the queen and killed her and the small cell Africanized bees. I start thinking I can make queens here if I flood the area with good drones then I see Africans here. I’m only gonna sell bought queens with my nucs. Frustrating
What you witnessed was a usurpation event. In my ten years only saw it once and that was two weeks ago. Caged the good queen, killed the bad queen. Good queen is out and laying normally
I normally just catch the Africans hanging out under the front door way to hive. Clinging on and planning. I took 2 swarms in last year but the got very hot and I waited till after I seen drone comb started to make splits. They took new queens well and built fast in spring. I won’t gamble like that anymore. I’m moved to gentle stock from the north. No need to raise hot bees. No fun for anyone.
@@chrisbgarrett it's also a major liability. When I first started I would accept some behavior, but in the AG world no one wants grumpy bees. I get them from northern California, area free of AHB genetics. Good Queens they are. Keep those mites low.
Great video (again!). Would it be possible to keep each mated queen on a single frame up there, each one separated from the next frame by vertical and horizontal queen excluders - I know they’d make Q cells when the frame was full but it would keep their ovarioles in good shape and could supply laid up frames for nucs - after rubbing out the unwanted Q cells. Something I might try here in Wales this year. It sounds like something you might already know 😁
Should banked virgins not be removed from the bank put in some sort of mating nuc within four days? I understand that mated queens can be banked for weeks, but don't those virgins need to get out and mate before it is too late?
You read a lot of things in books that are not true. I have had virgins in the bank that I was going to AI did not get to them put them in mating boxes at about 3 weeks old they still went out and mated.
It will be a year tomorrow when you published this video. I am glad that I watched it again. Good stuff! Joe how many queens could you have put into this particular bank, and they still would have been able to be tended to by the nurse bees, and still been ok and not overloaded? Hope you had a good Labor Day today. Phillip Hall
Have searched for a source of queens that's "drive-n-go-get". Am in Champaign county, Illinois. What's your twenty? I'd consider a trip in May because that's when I could do splits. Kind of hoping you're in southern Indiana where spring comes early.
Mr. Joe got a question? I’ve noticed the bees have back filled some brood space, will the bees eat or move that when major egg laying begins in the spring? I took that brood frame and moved it up to a super that is full of stores for winter and took empty comb and put that in place of that one. But just wondering if they will open egg laying space for her after winter. Temps here are in the 70s in Northern California with rain coming. Thank you for your help you have given me! 🇺🇸👍🏻
Kind of wish I would have made more splits in September because we were in 80s most of of October so now I have 5 colonies that have exploded and running out of equipment.
They winter well, slow to swarm,gentle,make strong hive,above average honey, disease resent. The only thing I know negative is they are not VSH but I am working on that. Buckfast has a bad name for being mean that's because one of the only guys that sales them is in Texas they are Africanized. My bees come from Denmark though Canada.
This must not be for beginning beekeepers 'cause I had no idea what you were doing or trying to accomplish. You handled the bees rough and you got stung; no mystery there.
Joe is so busy we should consider it as major blessing for his time giving information and videos. I may be speaking out of line, but my guess is he does not have time for crap like editing and putting some music in the background, an introduction, etc. Sorry to be harsh, but just pointing out the obvious.
