We are not selling queens for the current season. If you need a queen now, we can’t help you this year — and we’d rather say so than take your money. Call (701) 809-0153 and we’ll point you toward someone who can. If you’re planning ahead for spring 2027, you’re in the right place. You are reserving a colony for pickup on our spring 2027 delivery route. Pickup only — we do not ship live bees.
Delivery is scheduled for April 2027, and those dates are tentative. We haul live animals across many states. Weather, supplier timing, and colony health all move dates, and we will not run a route that puts bees at risk. You’ll receive your exact stop, date, and time window by email. Read our delivery date policy.
Nucs and packages are delivered on separate days. We bring nucs through first, then return through the same towns with packages about two weeks later. If you order both, expect two pickup days.
One proven laying Italian queen bee ready for installation into your hive.
IMPORTANT: All queens are sold UNMARKED. We do NOT mark queens. If you need a marked queen, you'll need to mark her yourself or purchase from a different supplier.
Delivery Waves
We run four delivery waves. Nucs go out first, then we come back through the same towns with packages about two weeks later — so nucs and packages are never picked up on the same day.
Waves 1 & 2 — Southern: Nebraska, Iowa, Wyoming, South Dakota, southern Minnesota, southern Wisconsin. Nucs on Wave 1, packages on Wave 2.
Waves 3 & 4 — Northern: Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, northern Minnesota, northern Wisconsin, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Nucs on Wave 3, packages on Wave 4.
Delivery is scheduled for April 2027 and dates are tentative. We don’t publish a stop-by-stop schedule until we’re confident in it. You’ll receive your exact stop, date, and time window by email. Read our delivery date policy.
Payment Options
Pay in full by credit card at checkout
Cash-on-delivery available (50% deposit required by February 28, 2027 )
To pay your 50% deposit now by card, use coupon code 'Half Cash'.
I’m not sure she was mated. I installed her went back in a week no eggs that I could see went back a few days later installed a frame of capped brood and could see a few larva in another frame not the one I installed. I think she’s back and laying eggs. Overall I am happy with my bees from you. Thank you!
Northern California Breeding Stock — Selected for Northern Climate Adaptation
Selection Program
8+ Years in Selective Breeding Program (Est. 2018)
Recommended For
Requeening in Zones 4–6, Boosting Honey Production & Temperament
💡 Darin's Expert Advice
"We sell queens unmarked only — marking can damage queens during handling and we'd rather deliver a healthy, undamaged queen than a pretty one. Every queen we sell is a verified layer — we don't cage her until we've confirmed she's laying a solid pattern. Our Italian queens carry the same freeze kill tested, VSH verified genetics as our packages and nucs. If you're requeening to boost honey production or replacing a failing queen in Zone 4b or warmer, an Italian queen will give you larger brood nests, stronger foraging populations, and the production genetics that make Italians the most popular bee in America. Make sure your colony has adequate stores going into fall — Italian colonies maintain bigger clusters through winter."
📋 Data verified by Darin, owner of Little Apiary on the Prairie — 8+ years breeding bees for USDA Zones 3b–7a.
📞 Questions? Call (701) 809-0153
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