8) Duncan Simmons (UK)

Duncan owns and runs Simmons Apiaries, a business based in Trematon in south west England. Duncan has been keeping bees for over 50 years and for 35 years as a professional. He produces queens, honey, offers training and sells equipment for dealing with varroa. 0:56 - Duncan tells a funny beekeeping story2:43 - The Buckfast bee3:51 - Peter Donovan 5:51 - Home apiary at Buckfast Abbey6:36 - The British native bee9:51 - Brother Adam’s mating station11:14 - Varroa 13:11 - InstantVap16:54 - The hive boxes Duncan runs 18:54 - Nicot system23:10 - Duncan’s work in St. Lucia25:12 - Wax queen cups vs plastic 27:43 - Priming cells cups 29:17 - The mating nucs Duncan runs 31:04 - The benefits of feeding mating nucs 33:07 - The push in queen introduction cage39:13 - How long should queen be in mating nucs  42:12 - Staying at Duncan’s farm to learn queen rearingGet in touch with Duncan [email protected]://www.facebook.com/SimmonsApiaries/Join the podcast facebook community groupwww.facebook.com/groups/breedingthehoneybeePodcast proudly brought to you by Brent Nixon at Nixon Queen Bees (Ballarat VIC, Australia)https://nixonqueenbees.com.au/Email Brent [email protected]: https://www.instagram.com/nixonqueenbees/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nixonqueenbees/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@NixonQueenBeesEpisode Musichttps://audionautix.com/