Checking my oldest QUEEN Bee | Should I Keep or Replace Her?

Checking a hive with my oldest queen bee and trying to decide if I should keep or replace her. My oldest queen is three years old. I would like to keep the queen and do splits, but it may be time to replace the queen. #queenbee #honeybees #hiveinspection #beekeeping #apimaye #apimayehive
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he queen bee is the heart of a honey bee colony, revered for her pivotal role in its survival and productivity. As the only fertile female in the colony, she lays eggs, dictating the population size and genetic diversity of the hive. Physically distinguished by her larger size and elongated abdomen, the queen emits pheromones that regulate the behavior and cohesion of the colony. From her emergence as a young queen, often through selection by the worker bees or introduction by the beekeeper, her primary duty is to ensure the colony's continuity. With a lifespan of several years, the queen bee tirelessly fulfills her duties, maintaining harmony within the hive and perpetuating the lineage of the colony.

[@Velacreations]

I keep my old queens until they start supercedure. The oldest I've ever had is 3 winters, 4th season.

[@NKYHoneyBees]

That's actually a good point. Bees know. Thanks for your input. It's awesome to have a queen that long.

[@Velacreations]

@@NKYHoneyBees the queens that survive several winters are good to graft from

[@NKYHoneyBees]

Totally. I'll be making a few splits to keep some of the genetics. I don't graft yet. I will try it next season.

[@Dr.RandyGriffis]

What brand jacket and veil are you wearing? It looks lightweight. Looking for a cooler jacket for South GA heat.

[@NKYHoneyBees]

Hey Dr. Randy, this one is a ventilated jacket from Humble Bee. I ordered it on Amazon. I did a quick review on it when I got it. It's in my videos. Thank you 😊

[@KajunHomestead]

👍

[@NKYHoneyBees]

👋👋

[@darrellvater8990]

Should be sheets of capped brood now. I didn’t see hardly any. Definitely needs replacing.

[@NKYHoneyBees]

It was strange there wasn't much capped brood. I agree. There are multiple frames that have eggs and larvae, but are not capped. Definitely not in her prime anymore. Thanks for watching and commenting.

[@russellkoopman3004]

Almost no capped brood. A good queen will mark out the area she wants to lay in and the bees will clear the area out. She is not doing that anymore. Even in MN I have way more capped brood than that a week ago. I would pull her and put her into a nuc for resources. I have one 21 queen, two 22 queens and 13 23 queens. The 21 queen is going into a nuc soon.

[@NKYHoneyBees]

Thanks, Russell. Yeah, I will probably put her in a Nuc. It was not to my liking. Thank you for watcing and commenting, brother. Always appreciate the feedback.

[@Mackabees]

Hope you can make it on the 27th. Flow is here. Looking good.

[@NKYHoneyBees]

What time will you be there?

[@Mackabees]

​@@NKYHoneyBees10am, but right now rain in the morning. May push to noon.

[@zulikkowalski3547]

Keep her!

[@NKYHoneyBees]

Thank you. I am leaning towards keeping for this season.

[@CraigFalls1]

What hive tool is that?

[@NKYHoneyBees]

I got it at the North american honey bee expo last year. I am not sure what the guys name was that was selling them. I love it. It's hand made.