Use of Nuclei for Increase or for Rearing Queens for Requeening

Although good queens can be bought and kept in a "queen reservoir" until needed, few beekeepers do this. They do not buy enough good queens, or a large percentage of those they do buy are superseded at such a time that the crop of honey is lessened.

Unless a supply of mated queens is on hand at all times, all colonies cannot be kept in uniform honey-producing condition.

Besides the queen reservoir some nuclei with newly mated queens should always be on hand. This use of nuclei is good with any clear brood nest system of management, and utilizes all combs of brood taken from colonies that have swarmed or that want to swarm, as well as brood removed to keep a brood nest "clear".

Nuclei for queen rearing and increase are made early in summer, about the time of willow bloom or as early as nectar and pollen are coming in and drones flying.

Cells may be reared and placed in one-frame nuclei six or eight in a super, a wire cloth bottom being tacked on the super and the wood division boards between the nuclei. This super should be placed over a strong colony until the young queens emerge, to keep the cells from being chilled, and so the operator may cull out any poor queens. Shallow frames and supers are good for this work.

For each good virgin, with her one comb and bees, a nucleus is made in a full-width hive body, with another comb wrapped in newspaper as a division board. These nuclei are helped with brood taken to control swarming or to keep colonies uniform, or may be left to supply queens or to build up as they can. Any which have not reached standard strength at the end of the season are united with colonies whose queens need replacing.