Goldline Queen

[Shawn]

Well I called my friend today and he says the goldline queen is doing great. He said she is passing up other queens that have been there since the start of the season. He is thinking about replacing all his queens next year with goldline, about 28 of them. The only problem we are having is there is no flow. TOO DRY, nothing blooming, and its starting to get scary. Hope they appreciate being fed all year.

[Shawn]

Wednesday I am going to go help the guy I gave the queen to and see how she is doing. He said she started laying eggs after three days in the hive and has overpassed all his other hives. he has put on the second hive body and she is already laying in the second deep. Ill try to take some pictures of the frames and hopefully her.

[Shawn]

Well I had to work late and did not get up to go get the pictures as promised. Now that I know my original queen is no longer around I ordered a goldline queen and it will be here next Wednesday. I only have two more months before it starts getting cold here so hopefully she will get enough done for the winter.

[Shawn]

Just got my queen about 45 minutes ago and put her into the hive. She came in a plastic odd shaped container with a bar at the end, maybe for mutiple queen shipping. She is accompained with 5 other bees. Anyway I dont know if I put her in the right way but I took out one frame, not used, slid the frames apart where the majority of the bees were. put the cage in so bees could be on the top and bottom of her and slid the frames back together to hold her there. Man its just like having a newborn. I was trying to be very careful and wanted the frames tight so nothing happens to her. I watched for a minute or tow and the bees started getting on the top and bottom of her. None acted mean towads her but some were just sitting on there looking like, "hey who is this, why is this odd thing in our home, is she the new boss." Ill snap some pictures tomorrow when I let her go.

[Norton]

Hello,
Don't let her go tomorrow - you will loose her 100%.  Leave her in the cage for at least 72 hours and see how the recipient colony reacts to her.  SHE HAS TO ACCEPTED WHILST STILL IN THE CAGE,  No bees balling the cage before final release and then don't open for 10 days.
Good luck!
Norton.

[Shawn]

10 days? Thats like putting a present in front of a kid and say you cant open that for 10 days.

[Norton]

Hello,
That is the time that I recommend.  Sometimes the queen is released from the cage but doesn't start to lay immediately - if you open the hive and she hasn't started laying then she will try to run and hide and then she will be balled by the bees and probably killed.
Don't try to take short cuts when introducing - curiosity does not only kill cats!
Best regards
Norton.

[Shawn]

Ok so it has been raining for the past two days so i had to wait to let my new queen out. When I opened the hive I saw a lot of bees at the top cover and more bees flying out and about. When I took the inner cover off I saw there were a few bees on the queen cage. They looked like they were sticking their tongues through the little holes. The more I tried to brush them away the madder they got. I finally figured out how to open the cage and a bee flew out, hope it was not the queen. Anyway I put the cage lower and watched bees come out. Just as fast as they came out bees were going in. The cage was pakced with bees by the time I could figure out there were no queen in there. I did not get any pictures because the smoker would not stay lit and they were not liking me around the hive today. Ill give them three to four days and Ill check back in. hopefully the queen got in there. She was not marked or clipped, should have had her clipped. 

[Shawn]

Forgot to say that when I went out today I noticed quite a few dead bees and maybe larvae in front of the entrance and on the landing. Is that normal when a new queen is being introduced? Havent seen any deads for awhile.

[Shawn]

Well I posted a thing in the pictures area of my new queen. She appears to be doing great, the comb is starting look even, less drone cells, and there are a lot more bees coming and going from the hive, and more bees coming in with pollen. To view the picture of my little beauty go to the pictures section under "Fist pictures of my bees on frame." Just gotta say I am very impressed with the Goldline.

[Brian D. Bray]

10 days? Thats like putting a present in front of a kid and say you cant open that for 10 days.

Pretend it's Christmas!

[Joelel]

So,after a year now,how is everyones goldline doing.Are they mite resistant ,are they good honey producers,do they swarm alot,do they build up fast in the spring ? What did i miss ?

[Shawn]

Good question. I gave mine away so Ill have to ask the guy how she is doing. Glad you said something because I forgot. Let you know in a couple of days

[hardtime]

what is this goldline  queens doen  know ? are thay good honey makers  what is the up dates know?

[JWPick]

The Goldline bee does seem interesting from the reading. I'm beginning with Russians next year, but the Goldline might be interesting for us in another year or two, maybe in a different location. I would love to experiment...maybe even cross with the Russians. Please keep us all posted on the specifics. Thanks.

[Shawn]

Well I just receicved an email from Purvis Brothers saying it was for sale  . Go to their website for details. Dont know about availability so you'll have to check out the website.

[Sparky]

I got a response back from them just the other day and by the nature of the response it looks like they will continue to sell them. Did not see or ask about any 2010 price list yet.
  Here was my question and their response on 10/8/09.   
 When multiple queens are shipped will they all be separate with shipping charged individually or in one larger container and charged accordingly. Thanks. Tim.
Shipping is with UPS, charged by the container.
   1-5Q, then 6-25Q, 26-100Q then 100+ in largest box. We do not make money on shipping, we charge what UPS charges us. We may regroup next year and use the USPS but this year a trial period did not produce good results. No wonder the post office is in a mess financially...(. We just want to get the Q’s there alive as cheaply as possible.
Thanks,
Rose

[mudlakee]

I got Queens from Purvis a couple times this year. Very happy. One time got just one. Had them all in the hives by 10 AM. Over night is the only to go.  Tony

[homer]

Got 4 Goldline queens this year.  They don't say it on their website, but Walter T. Kelley sells Goldline queens if you ask for them, and they ship USPS so you save a bundle on shipping.  I was really happy with all 4 of the queens this year!  Next time I'm in need I will surely be ordering from them, though I hope to be efficient in raising enough for my needs in the future.

[specialkayme]

Does anyone know why Purvis Brothers Bees are for sale?

I have never had Goldline queens before, or dealth with Purvis Brothers, but something seems odd to me. Why are they selling their operation, but interested in moving away to continue a smaller, identical operation? Something just seems fishy.