Riverview Road Apiary
Queen Rearing Course
Queen Rearing Course
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Hands-On Beekeeping Experience
Ready to take your beekeeping to the next level? Join us for a hands-on Queen Rearing Course at Riverview Road Apiary! The course includes a bag of queen grafting tools, jzbz queen cups, queen grafting frame and cup holders, and queen rearing calendar.
Class will be taught by Master Beekeeper Luke Harvey and Steven Schmidt.
Date: May 16th
Cost: $200
Location: Riverview Road Apiary – 12000 N Riverview Road, Chillicothe, IL 61523
Class Size: Limited to 5 participants
You Will Learn:
• Biology of Queens & Drones
• Advanced beekeeping techniques
• Selecting Winter-Hardy Mite-resistant bees
• Preparing finishing colony (queenright vs queenless)
• Preparing Swarm Box
• Grafting (hands-on)
• Procedure from Egg to Queen
• Queen Mating
• Practicing what you have learned
• Marking Queens (or drones)
What's Included
What's Included
Queen grafting tools
JZBZ queen cups
Queen grafting frame
JZBZ cup holder bar
Queen Rearing Calendar
What You'll Learn
What You'll Learn
You Will Learn:
• Introduction to Queen Rearing Systems
• Biology of Queens & Drones
• Advanced beekeeping techniques
• Selecting Winter-Hardy Mite-resistant bees
• Preparing finishing colony (queenright vs queenless)
• Preparing Swarm Box
• Grafting (hands-on)
• Procedure from Egg to Queen
• Queen Mating
• Practicing what you have learned
• Marking Queens (or drones)
Grafting results will be shared with those who want to track their progress
Whether you're looking to raise your own queens for expansion or simply want to deepen your beekeeping knowledge, this course will get you there.
Itinerary
9:00AM – Welcome & Course Overview
Brief introductions
9:15 AM – Queen Biology & Lifecycle
Worker vs. queen development.
Key timing milestones for queen rearing.
When to graft, when to expect laying queens.
Traits to look for when selecting breeder queens.
9:45am - Tools & Setup for Grafting
Overview of grafting tools and how to use them.
Frame prep and setup.
Lighting and visibility tips.
How to store and transport queen cells.
10:15 AM – Selecting Larvae & Grafting Demo
How to identify the right larvae for grafting (age, size, royal jelly presence).
Live demo on how to graft into cell cups.
Grafting practice begins (supervised, hands-on).
11:15 AM – Setting Up a Queen Rearing Colony
Starter colony vs. finisher colony.
Colony configurations for queen acceptance.
Use of cloake board (if applicable).
Ideal bee density and feeding during rearing.
12:00 PM – Lunch (Provided)
Informal Q&A over lunch
Swap tips, stories, and questions
12:45 PM – Setting Up Mating Nucs
Mating nuc box options.
How to populate a mating nuc.
Feeding, placement, and checking for a laying queen.
Tips for maximizing mating success.
1:30 PM – Troubleshooting & Grafting Success
Common grafting problems and how to improve.
What to do if your grafts don’t take.
How to introduce queen cells into colonies.
We'll follow up later with success rates from today’s grafts for those interested.
2:15 PM – Final Q&A & Resources
Open discussion.
Review printed take-home guides.
Supply list for continued queen rearing at home.
Local and online resources for equipment and support.
2:45 PM – Wrap-Up
Optional hive inspections or additional practice (weather permitting).
Clean-up and departure.
