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 larva19 October
+5Transfer to cell builder24 October
+9Cell capped28 October
+14Cell to mating nuc2 November
+16Queen emerges4 November
+21Mating flights begin9 November
+27Check for eggs15 November