Small Scale Queen Rearing - One Technique

 I’m often asked how a small scale beekeeper can raise a dozen queens or so. My answer is that raising more than a few isn’t a problem because other beekeepers are usually interested in cells, virgins or mated queens. However, I do have a simple technique that doesn’t use a lot of resources.
 Raising quality queens is a matter of having a strong population of bees desperately in need of a queen. This condition is called “hopelessly queenless”. Provide them with ample resources and grafted larvae of the right age and they will make excellent queens for you. 
 The technique described here uses a single hive and returns it to its original state once completed. Options are also included at the end of the article.
 First, identify a donor colony. Select one with vigor, mild temperament, great honey production, hygienic behavior or any other traits you want to promote. Make sure the queen in the donor is actively laying and has open comb to keep laying.

 Then, select a strong, healthy colony to raise your queens; the starter/finisher. Temperament doesn’t matter much but it should be loaded with bees and as free of pests and parasites as possible. A single deep works fine. Use an EZPZ Brood Breaker Cage to isolate the queen, placing it near the center of the hive. This allows her pheromones to be spread throughout the colony so they don’t think they’re queenless but she can’t lay eggs. After 8 days, place her and a half dozen attendants in an EZPZ Queen Cage that has been provisioned with honey and water in the troughs. A Candy Cap filled with queen candy can be used to keep them in. Place the cage in a room temperature location free of drafts and direct sunlight for best results.
 The colony is now hopelessly queenless! After 24 hours, more or less, pull a frame of open brood from the donor colony that includes very young larvae. Gently remove the bees from it with a brush. Do not shake them off the frame as it can disturb the position of the larvae in the cells. Working in a warm, moist location, transfer very young larvae (comma shape is best) to a bar of queen cell cups and place it on a grafting frame. Carry it, covered in a slightly damp towel, to the starter/finisher. Place it in the center of the brood nest. Avoid smoke when doing this. Return the frame to the donor colony, too.
 Watch the caged queen and her attendants daily to make sure they have water and honey so they will survive their time away from the starter/finisher.

 After about 4 to 5 days, the cells should be capped. They can be checked before then by gently lifting the frame with the cells on it but don’t jostle or shake the frame. Avoid handling the cells from 6 to 8 days after grafting. This is a sensitive development period. Always be gentle with them at other times, too.

 Capped cells only need warmth and humidity to finish so they can be removed from the bar and placed in an incubator in EZPZ Queen Cages (see option below to skip the incubator). Provision the cages with a drop of honey and a drop of water in the troughs and carefully click the cells into them. At this time, the queen and her attendants in the EZPZ Queen Cage can be returned to the starter/finisher where they will be released and she will get back to work.
 Approximately 12 days after grafting, your queens will begin to emerge. Swap the cell cups for Candy Caps and install them into mating nucs.

Suggestions:
 Practice grafting ahead of time! Sacrificing a few larvae won’t harm a colony.
 Practice handling the EZPZ Queen Cages and cell cups. Feel them click into place. Squeeze the long sides near the top to release the cell cups easily.
 Prepare a dozen or more Candy Caps in advance and keep them in a sealed plastic bag or tub.
-Plan ahead to make the starter/finisher as free of pests and parasites as possible. EG: Beetle traps and appropriate Varroa treatments.

Options:
-Incubator-free #1: Leave the cells in the starter/finisher instead of moving them to an incubator. They should still be caged once they’re capped to avoid problems with emerging virgins killing each other. This means the caged queen and her attendants will be on their own for a lot longer so it may be necessary to use one of the virgins to requeen the starter/finisher. Or, break it up into mating nucs. They will readily accept your virgins.
-Incubator-free #2: Move capped cells to mating nucs instead of allowing the virgins to emerge. This gives your caged queen and attendants a shorter time out of the starter/finisher. Note: This technique doesn’t allow you to confirm viability and quality of the virgins.
-Provision the starter/finisher with syrup and pollen patties once the queen is removed if you want to place more grafts than a single bar.