At 1400 Ilya and I start making up fertilisation hives, the mini minis with just two small frames. We put a good dolop of sugar paste in each, and go in search of baby bees for our new queens.
We shake bee off into our bucket from the Red Q daughter of yellow QNS, the old Brussels swarm now GreenQ, seen, and from the original Red hive on the end, which doesn't seem to have a Q, no eggs or larvae, but 6 or 7 Q cells.
With a spray of water to get them mixed up (the water spray breaks get a wet leg) i fill 6 small fertilisation boxes ready for later that day. Ilya had enough bees after two open hives and went indoors.
Finally make it to Ghislain's house for 1530, through crowds of bikes between t' Aloam and the street where Ghislain lives, which is closed to traffic just for good measure. He's not there - he's on his stand in Viane! - but his wife is and shes gives us the 2 free virgins and three at 7 euros - i must pay for them.
Back home i introduce the queens together with the three bees that are with them by inverting the box, open the slide a crack, wedging the Q cage in the slot and pulling back the slide cover to allow the Q to just run into the waiting crowd of bees.
I keep them closed for a full 24 hours to get them to re-set their home navigation, and open them monday, which goes without a hitch.
A quick look on weds sees all boxes with bees still in them, and one Virgin seen, although several boxes don't have the little Q excluder stopping the Q getting into the food part, and most are putting new wax on the roof or in the space to the food, not on the plastic frames, where i had attached new foundation, at all.
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