Beekeepers - working any swarms?

[Bruce Wrenn]

Used to remove bees from buildings. Wound up with 50 hives at one time. CHARGED to remove them. Did no repairs as I was too busy removing bees. Finally got novice beekeepers to go with me and take bees. The simplest way to get a swarm to stay in hive body is to add a frame of brood. The girls aren't going to leave babies alone. Best way to prevent swarms is have a young queen (less than 3 years old.) This means requeening every couple years.

[Allan Dozier]

Just helped my son check his new hives this weekend. The queens were all released and laying eggs like mad. They finished the last bit of Henbit and now are working over a bunch of holly trees we have.

[Jim Becker]

Not only that, but the workers "girls" toss out nearly all the drones (males) as soon as it gets cold in the fall.

Yea, well...the drones only have "one job" and otherwise just hang around and get fed like princes.

[John K Jordan]

Yea, well...the drones only have "one job" and otherwise just hang around and get fed like princes.

Yea sit on the couch, watch TV, drink beer, make a lot of obnoxious noise, never lift a finger, and get waited on hand and foot.

Until the day he chases and finally catches up with that exciting girlfriend. I read that during the very brief relationship she responds to his affections by ripping out the organ containing exactly what she needs to fertilize her eggs for the rest of her life. Oops.

JKJ

[John K Jordan]

My tale of bees doesn't include harvesting honey.

We bought this hundred-year-old farmhouse 32 years ago. It was a wreck needing complete rebuilding. (I wonder why we did that?)

On the first floor north wall a friend and I probed the plaster wall. I had intended to keep it, but one spot seemed punky. So my friend tapped it, and found it was crumbled. We decided to tear it out, and out came angry bees. More bees than I ever saw in my life. The large window in that wall was open and they turned and headed outside through it as we headed toward the back door. It was early March and cold. They seemed to die almost immediately as they hit the outside air.

The end of the story was us having to removing from the spaces between a dozen studs, foundation to roofline, bees and honey. About a third of the hives were dead and stinking. Stinking, really.

It delayed our remodeling for days.

A few years later another bunch found a way into the house from the west side. We had to call an exterminator.

I give bees a wide berth.

Yikes! Were they honeybees or yellow jackets? I've seen yellow jackets do that, they'll come through the tiniest hole and make a huge colony in a wall. I think honey bees usually like a bigger opening. The yellow jacket comb I've seen was smaller and darker, not pure white cappings over honey. If you open a honeybee colony some will come out to protect but most will stay in the colony, in a big ball when it is cold. If you open a yellow jacket colony, they will all come out and try to kill you. If you found a bunch of honey comb inside that would prove it.

I eradicate any yellow jacket nest I find with poison. Yellow jackets, BTW, are a type of hornet.

JKJ

[Jim Becker]

Yea sit on the couch, watch TV, drink beer, make a lot of obnoxious noise, never lift a finger, and get waited on hand and foot.

Until the day he chases and finally catches up with that exciting girlfriend. I read that during the very brief relationship she responds to his affections by ripping out the organ containing exactly what she needs to fertilize her eggs for the rest of her life. Oops.

JKJ

Yes...it's one shot to fame for that drone! Of course, Queenie avails herself of several during that one time of mating bliss. "She's a killer...Queeeen..." da da da da da... Violent hussy!

[Gail Ludwig]

No swarms in mid-Missouri yet - but they are soon to arrive. I have four hives in my backyard and they all survived the winter. The early warm weather really ramped things up and my hives are rocking. I put up a few swarm traps about a week ago and am thinking that the first warm spell will probably cause them to swarm. I tried to manipulate the frames and boxes to reduce the chance of swarming --but decided it was folly. If they decide they are going to swarm, little I could do to stop it. So now I just put out a lot of traps and for the most part, am able to capture them and rehive.

[Tony Zona]

John, it was full of honey, and a lot of "rotten," foul-smelling honey in some parts of the wall. I cleaned honey for what seemed like a lifetime.

White-faced hornets put me in the emergency on another occasion, with maybe 150 stings.

I've had a time of it with stinging animals. I don't prefer to be around them.

[John K Jordan]

...I put up a few swarm traps about a week ago and am thinking that the first warm spell will probably cause them to swarm. I tried to manipulate the frames and boxes to reduce the chance of swarming --but decided it was folly. If they decide they are going to swarm, little I could do to stop it. So now I just put out a lot of traps and for the most part, am able to capture them and rehive.

Gail,

I've never tried using a swarm trap. Do you make or buy them?

I've always spotted the swarm then used a long pole to catch them. A handle of a paint roller is attached to a ring cut from the top of a 5-gallon bucket, then a white feed sack is fastened so I hangs inside. I bump the branch with the ring and give the pole a twist to fold the bag over to keep them inside. Usually it takes me a couple of tries to get most of them. A trap would be a lot easier!

I'd like to try making some. I found this:
http://horizontalhive.com/how-to-bui...ee-plans.shtml

His article is interesting:
http://horizontalhive.com/honeybee-s...to-catch.shtml

I'd be interested in what you found that works.

JKJ

[Jim Becker]

John, this is the approach I'm taking for a swarm trap using an "old" (not really in our case) 10 frame deep...

http://letmbee.com/do-it-yourself/swarm-trap-plans/

[Tony Pisano]

It snowed here last week, so swarms are just a twinkle in our eyes right now. Crocuses did come up in our yard this week. 4 days of rain expected. I'm not sure if it's allowed here, but I have a book out called Build Your Own Beekeeping Equipment, published by Storey Publishing. You can find it at Tractor Supply, Amazon etc.

[John K Jordan]

John, this is the approach I'm taking for a swarm trap using an "old" (not really in our case) 10 frame deep...

http://letmbee.com/do-it-yourself/swarm-trap-plans/

I have some old deep boxes so that would be easy. I want to get something up in the next few days.

JKJ

[Jeff Ramsey]

I've only ever had one swarm, and that was in the summer during a dry spell when I was away. I came back and forgot to water them, and I looked out and a pile of bees was in front of the super ready to take flight. I quickly donned my suit, stoked up the smoker and went out to see if I could comb gently through the pile and find the restless (thirsty) queen. I did, and gently put her back and in went the rest. I was pretty good with splitting hives when they got too big. Unfortunately I lost my hives over the years due to disease and would like to see a natural swarm. Otherwise, I'll start anew at some point.

[Jim Becker]

I'm not sure if it's allowed here, but I have a book out called Build Your Own Beekeeping Equipment, published by Storey Publishing. You can find it at Tractor Supply, Amazon etc.

Congrats on that, Tony! Reviews seem to be pretty positive, too...

[John K Jordan]

Congrats on that, Tony! Reviews seem to be pretty positive, too...

Yes, thanks for the recommendation. I just ordered it for my growing library. I need to add a wing on my shop...

JKJ