Our Own Queen Breeding Program
We breed our own high-quality Buckfast queens directly on the farm in Nottinghamshire. See the careful selection process, queen cells, mating nucs and how we raise strong, gentle and productive queens for our colonies and for other beekeepers.
Ready-made beewax queen cups used in our breeding program
Our own handmade queen cups made from pure beeswax
wax queen cups ready for grafting larvae
wax queen cups ready for grafting larvae
Breeding frame prepared for grafting larvae into queen cups
Sealed queen cells ready for emergence
Worker bees carefully tending to developing queen cells
Queen cell bar with developing cells and attending bees
Queen cells ready to be introduced into new colonies
Checking the breeding frame and assessing the condition of queen cells
Queen cells on our handmade beeswax cups
Queen cells in the incubator one day before the queens emerge
Inside the incubator – queen cells in protective cages
Inspecting the nurse colony that is raising the queens
Path between our production hives and dedicated queen rearing nucs on the Nottinghamshire farm
Mating nucs neatly arranged on tables for easier queen management and insemination
Colour-coded mating nucs help prevent confusion during the queen mating process
Mating nucs with established small colonies
Checking the mating nucs during the queen rearing process
Empty mating nucs prepared and ready for new queens
Mated queens safely caged and ready for dispatch to other beekeepers
Example of a ready-to-send bee nuc with a new queen
Several completed queen nucs ready for collection
Naturally built queen cell with larva floating on royal jelly
Frame from a mating nuc with a fresh, unmarked new queen
Bee stings collected on a silicone spoon for research and demonstration
When it rains during grafting, this tent becomes very useful protection
