Lab & Equipment
We conduct our research & perform our I.I. procedures in a private self-funded laboratory with advanced equipment to achieve our goals. Our Laboratory is dedicated to support us in our research & enhancement of our honeybee livestock, and exists to further expand on & improve our genetics.
Project Initiative
The main focus of our project is not only limited to research, but also dedicated to the improvement and public contribution to queen-breeding methods that yield greater results for a superior specimen in terms of production, temperament, & disease resistance.
We are dedicated to enhancing and uplifting honeybee queen breeding and rearing efforts for all to benefit from by contributing our own independent findings & replicating known methods, as well as adjusting or improving them for our own use.
We strive to provide an example that revolves around replicability and yield quality for small-scale queen breeders & backyard beekeepers to follow who desire to improve their own stock in ways that are easy to achieve for those who cannot rely on state owned laboratories.
Instrumental Insemination
Specialized and high-quality equipment is utilized for our Instrumental Insemination procedures. We use an Instrumental Insemination tool designed & created by Ivan Babych, who is based in The Netherlands. He owns a small business and produces hand-made I.I. devices and tools of excellent craftsmanship and durability, in which we proudly use on a regular basis for the combining of our selected genetics. We are proud to choose to support small-scale vendors & small businesses.
We test strain combinations, and are currently working on our own strain and also working towards discovering other potent subspecies combinations for hybrid vigor, to create a more productive, self-sustaining and effective line that is productive for honey production, pollination & more resistant to varroa & diseases.
VSH Testing Methods
We score our queens on a point system to provide a standard of testing, utilizing the Harbo testing method in conjunction with our own, in which we have modified over the years to accommodate for our other criteria, such as diseases like DWS, Nosema, AFB & EFB. Currently, we are focused on varroa-bound diseases, and will be moving on to others once we have made significant progress.
Our testing criteria require a combination of different methods, most prominently the Harbo Assay test as a baseline for our different categories. We use live frames, frozen frames, and we use varroa screen testing for our mite-mauler and mite-chewing variants.
All of our work is conducted under a microscope, & countless hours of labor and patience is used to ensure the queens we breed from are reproductive mite-free.
