Requeening
Lexikon
The replacement of a colony's queen, either by the colony itself or by the beekeeper.
The replacement of a colony's queen, either by the colony itself or by the beekeeper.
Reasons include declining laying performance, advanced age, aggressiveness, or a poor brood pattern. Deliberate requeening is also carried out to make breeding progress.
In practice, the old queen is removed and the new one is hung in an introduction cage, so that the colony gradually accepts her via the candy plug. A colony with open brood and queen cells is reluctant to accept a foreign queen, so all cells should be broken beforehand.