Bees are pick-up only. For the health of the bees, we do not ship bees. Bees must be picked up during our Bee Day!
Customers must examine the contents of the package bees and queens for satisfaction when they pick them up. We can help you do that if you need it and we will exchange any queen or package not to the satisfaction of the customer. Leaving the premises with the bees constitutes customer satisfaction with the order. We will do our best to help you be successful, but as with any other livestock, we cannot guarantee the health of the bees once they have left our facility!
Carniolan bees: are known for winter survival and the queens are very responsive to changes in food and temperature. Carniolans tend to survive winter with a smaller cluster, and do really well in areas that have slow steady nectar flows, and in cooler climates. They build up a little slower than the Italian strains, so if the spring nectar flow comes early sometimes they miss it, on the other hand, they survive cold wet springs well. These queens are open mated drones with the thought that while the queens are Carniolan, the offspring may show traits of both Italian and Carniolan workers! The breeder is extensively involved with several of the breeding projects in California, bringing in diverse genetics, selecting for hygienic behavior and traits. These bees are generally extremely gentle as well. We have been very happy with these bees here on our farm! Queens are not marked.
Italian bees: are known for gentleness and honey production. They have been selected for mite and disease resistance and hygienic behavior. They are generally large and golden colored. Italians generally build up fast, but need a lot of food to get through the winter because they winter in such large clusters. Queens are not marked. These are Cordovan Italian queens from Koehnen.
