Cell starter cups 100 pcs

Queen Cell Cup 100 pcs – A Proven Tool for Convenient Queen Rearing

We offer queen cell cups that are among the most widely used tools for queen rearing worldwide. The 100-piece package is designed as the foundation of a complete rearing system and significantly simplifies work in the apiary. The greatest advantage is the ability to bypass the demanding manual grafting process – you minimize the risk of damaging delicate larvae, save your eyesight and time, and maintain better control over the rearing process. The system allows you to work with larvae approximately 6–24 hours old, which in practice contributes to rearing strong and vital queens.

Why Bees Accept Them Well

The success of these cups is based on their well-thought-out design. The inner surface is textured to mimic the natural surface of beeswax comb. As a result, bees accept the cups more readily and begin working on them more quickly. Although the cups are primarily designed for a non-grafting queen rearing system, they also work excellently on their own – for example, for beekeepers who prefer the traditional manual grafting method.

Compatibility and Practical Use

The queen cell cup is designed as part of a grafting system and is easy to use. The cup is placed onto the molded plastic cells of the breeding frame, which is then inserted into the colony for egg laying. After the queen has laid eggs and the larvae of the desired age have hatched, the cup is easily removed and inserted into the queen cell cup holder. The individual components fit together precisely, creating a functional and efficient unit for queen rearing.

Technical Specifications of the Queen Cell Cup

Choose a practical and proven solution for queen rearing – with less effort and more consistent results throughout the breeding season.

Professional Non-Grafting System for Easier Queen Bee Rearing

Rearing your own queen bees is a path to greater self-sufficiency, better genetic control, and long-term stable productivity of colonies. This well-designed non-grafting system significantly simplifies the entire process and makes queen rearing accessible even to less experienced beekeepers. It allows you to obtain healthy and vital queens without the tedious, delicate manual work with tiny larvae.

Why Choose This System

• No Manual Grafting – there is no need for a grafting tool or transferring tiny larvae from the comb. This is especially appreciated by beekeepers with weaker eyesight or an unsteady hand. The procedure is faster, more precise, and gentler on the breeding material.
• Uniform Larval Age Under Control – you do not need to laboriously search for the "right" larvae and estimate their age. Thanks to the precisely known time of egg laying by the breeder queen, you obtain larvae of the same age, which positively impacts the quality of future queens.
• Gentle and Safe Handling – larvae remain in the original plastic cups and during the process you only transfer the cups. This minimizes the risk of damage, drying out, or chilling during handling.

Technical Specifications of the Set

Step-by-Step Queen Rearing Guide

1. Preparing the Breeding Frame
   Insert the plastic frame with the cups (110 pcs) into a standard wooden frame. Depending on your practice, you can cut an opening in drawn comb and screw the frame to the top bar, embed it into foundation during wiring, or temporarily attach it to the comb with rubber bands or string. The bees will soon build around it and naturally incorporate it into the comb.
2. "Polishing" by the Bees
   Place the prepared frame (including the transparent cover with queen excluder) into a colony for 2–3 days. The bees will coat the plastic with a thin layer of wax and propolis, conditioning it, scenting it, and significantly improving its acceptance.
3. Isolating the Breeder Queen
   Lightly brush the queen excluder side with honey. In a selected gentle and productive colony, locate the breeder queen, insert her through the front opening into the plastic frame, and close it. The queen cannot pass through the narrow exits, but worker bees can pass through, maintain contact with her, and continue to feed her.
4. Checking Egg Laying
   Place the frame in the center of the brood nest between combs with open brood. The queen usually lays across the frame area within 2–4 hours. The following day, check whether eggs are present at the bottom of the cells. If everything is in order, remove the front cover, release the queen, and return the frame so that the bees continue to incubate the laid eggs.
5. Checking the Larvae
   On the fourth day, remove the frame, gently brush off the bees, and verify that the larvae have hatched (approximately after 72 hours – they lie at the bottom of the cell in a slight curve). A faint glistening around the larva when held against the light usually indicates that it is already in royal jelly and is being fed.
6. Assembling the Cell Bar
   On a warm day (or in a warm room), remove the rear cover. Remove the plastic cups with larvae and insert them into the yellow holders. Then snap these into the base holders, which are pre-attached to the cell bars at a spacing of 28–40 mm.
7. Placing into the Cell Builder Colony
   Transfer the cell bar frame into a prepared queenless colony or into a super separated from the brood nest by a solid divider board. Ideally, insert it 30–60 minutes after dequeening so that the bees do not begin building emergency queen cells from their own brood. Place the frame in the center of the brood body, where there is stable temperature, suitable humidity, and plenty of young nurse bees.
8. Caging and Emergence
   On the 14th–15th day after egg laying, cage the mature queen cells by sliding a cylindrical queen cage onto the cell cup holder. Add a small amount of candy paste or crystallized honey into the cage as the first food for the young queen, which typically emerges on the 16th day.