Natural Beekeeping International Forum

[bytheeye]

Does anyone know, can you take a ripe queen cell, and attract feral foragers, or simply take a cup of nurses from selected colony make a nucleus? does the virgin have to have related nurses around
to emerge?

[biobee]

Can you please describe exactly what you are trying to achieve here, so we can answer your question more accurately?

I am removing that poll as it is inappropriate in this context.

[bytheeye]

Just wondered, with a queen cell, alone, should it emerge, are there any options.? Apologies please if on wrong thread. Or is this question more suited to lab rearing forum? Not on here?

[biobee]

A queen cell on its own is no use to you. Queens need to emerge among bees, who will feed her and groom her.

Please tell us what you are trying to do, exactly.

[bytheeye]

Do the nurses have to be sisters? Not trying to do anything, but can a keeper put said cell alone on a frame and introduce desired breed of workers to maul her? As a learner I hope correct language used?

[Dexter's shed]

[biobee]

"maul"? Sounds to me like you need to learn to walk before you try to run.

An emerging queen needs warmth and she needs to be fed and cared for immediatly on emerging. The bees with her do not need to be her sisters, but there do need to be enough of them to protect her and they need to have foragers bringing in food meanwhile.

No, you cannot just attract feral bees to look after her - that is a non-starter.

I really suggest you come on a course and read some books before trying to keep bees. You are within reach of Brinscall Hall, for example, where we may have another beginners course on October if there is a demand.

[bytheeye]

There is the question? Will queen be nurtured by strangers or ignored and left with drifting nurses?

[bytheeye]

Thank you, great help

[biobee]

"drifting nurses"?

[bytheeye]

As my profile says "newbie"

[colobeekeep]

If you put a queen cell into an empty hive, then the queen will die. There are no roaming "nurse bees" flying from hive to hive looking for a new queen to take care of. Even if the queen emerges from her cell there will be no bees to feed her and care for her.
The only bees flying around looking for a hive to move into are bees from a swarm. If the swarm moves into the hive, they will kill her.
There is no reason to even consider moving a queen cell to an empty hive. That will accomplish nothing, except the killing of a queen bee.
As Biobee recommended, read several books and take a beekeeping course before working with bees.