Queen calendar
Rearing timeline from grafting date
Start
Queen: egg 3 d + larva 5 d + capped 8 d = emerges on day 16. The cell caps on day 9 — form the mating nuc before capping. Mating flights — 5–14 days after emergence. Check for eggs — 23–25 days from start. Slipping >5 days at any stage = recalculate the rest.
Stages
+0Grafting the larva28 October
+5Transfer to cell builder2 November
+9Cell capped6 November
+14Cell to mating nuc11 November
+16Queen emerges13 November
+21Mating flights begin18 November
+27Check for eggs24 November