What Is a Queen Castle?
A queen castle is a hive box divided into several separate compartments, each of which houses a small colony with its own queen. A common design is a standard 10-frame box (see the bee hive size guide) split with solid dividers into smaller sections, each with its own entrance. Beekeepers use castles to hold virgin queens while they mate, to keep spare laying queens, or to run several small units in the space of one box. Designs vary, so some castles hold three or four compartments and others hold more.
How a Queen Castle Works
Each compartment is stocked with a small amount of brood, food and young bees, and then receives a queen cell, a virgin queen or a mated queen. Because each section is a separate colony, a virgin can emerge, mature, take mating flights and begin laying without disturbing the others. Separate entrances, often facing different directions, help returning queens find the right compartment.
Setting One Up
- Choose a box with solid, bee-tight dividers and separate entrances.
- Fill each compartment with frames (or partial frames) containing sealed brood, food and a good number of nurse bees.
- Shake in extra young bees if needed so that each unit has enough to cover the brood.
- Add a ripe queen cell or a virgin queen, following your usual introduction method.
- Keep entrances reduced while units settle.
Details such as how many frames per compartment vary by design and climate.
Advantages and Limitations
Advantages
- Several queens can be housed in one piece of equipment
- Compartments share warmth, which may help small units
- It is a compact way to produce or hold queens during the season
Limitations
- Drifting and queens entering the wrong entrance can cause losses
- Small units can be robbed more easily and may need feeding
- Units can be hard to keep equal in strength
- Disease can spread between sections in the same box
Managing a Castle
Keep entrances reduced, feed if forage is scarce, and check each section regularly. When a compartment has a laying queen, you can move her to a larger colony or use the unit as a nucleus colony. For how to confirm that a queen has mated, see how to tell if a queen bee has mated.
Alternatives
Mating nucs (small boxes holding a few frames) are a common alternative and are easier to manage individually. A queen castle fits into the broader process described in raising queen bees, and the cells you place in it are described in queen cells.
FAQ
Do queen bees lay eggs?
Yes. After a successful mating, a queen lays eggs, and in a healthy colony she is the main egg layer.
How can I tell if a bee is a queen?
She is usually longer than workers, with a longer abdomen, and often moves with a retinue of workers around her. Marking can help.