HORTICULTURE

Detailed explanation-1: -It confines the queen inside the hive. It is useful to prevent swarming and absconding. It also prevents the entry of bee enemies like wasps into the hive.

Detailed explanation-2: -Will a queen excluder prevent swarming? Like removing queen cells, placing a queen excluder at the bottom of the brood box or along the entrance won’t prevent, nor stop, a colony’s urge to swarm, but can similarly give you some time to perform a split soon.

Detailed explanation-3: -HONEY BEE QUEEN’S ROLE IN THE COLONY The Queen Bee plays a vital role in the hive because she is the only female with fully developed ovaries. The queen’s two primary purposes are to produce chemical scents that help regulate the unity of the colony and to lay lots of eggs.

Detailed explanation-4: -A queen gate made of aluminium (Figure 25) can be placed at the entrance of the beehive to prevent the queen flying out under certain conditions: ▪ until a queen bee has become accustomed to a new hive, ▪ during swarming and absconding, and ▪ after transferring a colony to a movable frame hive following swarming.

Detailed explanation-5: -While the workers start to build swarm cells for the new queens to help regulate these new colonies, the queen stops laying eggs and reduces her weight to be able to fly. When she is ready, the queen leaves the hive, followed by about half of the workers in a large cloud.