Royal Jelly Rearing Frames

A royal jelly collection frame is an empty frame made to the standard frame size of the hive, which carries the cell cup strips or cell bars used in royal jelly production. The grafted cups are given to the colony in this frame and taken out for harvest in the same frame about three days later. It is a simple piece of equipment, but the bar layout, the number of cups and its position in the hive directly determine the pace and yield of production.

What is a royal jelly collection frame for?

Royal jelly is obtained by collecting the jelly that bees deposit around young larvae transferred into artificial queen cells (cell cups), before the larvae consume it. The cups must sit vertically, mouth down, in the middle of the colony; the collection frame provides this arrangement. It carries the cups into the brood area where the bees are densest, and at harvest it lets you take them all out of the hive in one move.

Structurally it is the same as the cell bar frame used in queen rearing. The difference lies in the pace of use: a royal jelly frame is harvested, cleaned and regrafted every three days, so durability and ease of removing and refitting the bars matter more.

How is a collection frame built?

• Outer dimensions: It should have the same outer dimensions as the brood frames of your hive (e.g. Langstroth or Dadant) and sit in the hive without leaving gaps.
• Top bar: Carries the frame; leave space on it to write the batch number and grafting date.
• Side bars: Carry the slots or runners in which the cell bars sit. The slots should hold the bar firmly but let it be removed easily by hand.
• Horizontal cell bars: Cup strips or holders are fitted, stuck or slid onto these bars. A frame usually has three or four bars, some layouts more.
• Bottom bar: Absent or slimmed down in some models; this makes it easier for the bees to work the lowest strip.

Rotating and removable bars

In a good collection frame the bars are either fully removable or rotatable on their own axis. For grafting the bar is turned over so the cups face upwards and the larvae can be placed easily; the bar is then turned back so the cups hang mouth down. At harvest each bar is taken out and processed separately while the others wait in a cool place.

What is it made of?

Whichever material you choose, the frame must be odourless and free of paint, varnish or preservative chemicals. Because it is the part closest to the cups, any chemical residue shows up directly in the acceptance rate.

How many cups should go on one frame?

The number of cups on a frame is limited less by what the frame can hold than by what the colony can feed. If more cups are given than the colony can handle, acceptance drops and each cup receives less jelly. A small number of well-fed cups yields more than a large number of poorly fed ones.

• Starting out: Begin the first batches with a moderate number of cups; record the acceptance rate and the amount of jelly.
• Increasing: If acceptance is high and the cups are full of jelly, increase the number gradually in the next batch.
• Warning sign: When the acceptance rate falls or cups come back half full, you know you have exceeded capacity.

In intensive production, with lines selected for jelly yield and very strong colonies, frames with well over a hundred cups are sometimes used. This, however, requires continuous protein supplementation, reinforcement with young bees and experience; it is not a goal for beginners.

Where does the collection frame go in the hive?

The cups are fed by young nurse bees whose jelly glands are active. These bees concentrate around open brood. Therefore:

• In the centre: The frame goes in the middle of the production section, where nurse bees are densest.
• Next to open brood and pollen: Young open brood on one side and a pollen frame on the other increase acceptance and the amount of jelly.
• Away from the queen: In a queenright production colony, the queen is kept out of the section holding the frame with a queen excluder.
• Spacing: Leave enough space between the cups and the neighbouring frames that the bees do not attach the cups to the adjacent comb.

Working with the collection frame in a three-day cycle

1. Day 0 – Grafting: The bars are rotated or removed, larvae are transferred into the cups, the bars are refitted and the frame is given to the colony before it cools. Write the date on the top bar.
2. Day 1 – Acceptance check (optional): The frame can be lifted out briefly to count the accepted cups; work quickly and without jarring.
3. Day 3 – Harvest: About 72 hours after grafting the frame is removed, the bees are brushed off and it is taken to a cool, bee-proof room. If you wait longer, the larva consumes the jelly.
4. Same day – Regrafting: The harvested cups are cleaned, regrafted and the frame is returned to the colony.

Labelling, records and cleaning

In continuous production with several frames, the most common mistake is mixing frames up. A frame with an unknown grafting date is harvested either too early or too late. Give each frame a permanent number and write the date of each batch on the top bar and in your notebook.

• After every cycle: Wax remnants and dried jelly are cleaned off the bars and strips. Leftover jelly spoils, and its smell reduces acceptance.
• Washing: Plastic parts are washed in lukewarm water; if detergent is used it must be unscented and rinsed off very thoroughly.
• Wooden parts: Scraped and dried completely; damp wood goes mouldy.
• End of season: Frames are cleaned and stored in a closed, dry place away from chemicals.

Common mistakes

• Putting the frame at the edge: Cups at the cool edge of the hive are poorly fed.
• Letting it chill in transit: If a grafted frame is left in the open, the larvae dry out or die of cold.
• Loose bars: A strip that drops off in transport loses the whole batch.
• Not resting the colony: A colony in continuous production wears out; it needs protein supplementation, reinforcement with sealed brood and rotation.