busy swarm season

[Nannysbees]

Called to a swarm yesterday, quite small, only over two sides of a frame. What do you do with swarms so small ,unite with another?

 

[Erichalfbee]

I like to bring them on. It’s fun.
As for uniting you have to make sure they are disease free

 

[JamezF]

I like to bring them on. It’s fun.
As for uniting you have to make sure they are disease free

Same here. I've had one or two very small swarms that turned into really pleasant colonies given a bit of time. Equally if it doesn't look like they're going to do well then once you're confident they're not going to bring in disease uniting is probably the sensible way forward.

James

 

[ericbeaumont]

What do you do with swarms so small

Yes, wait for them to grow. Give a hand if necessary, if they fail to mate or run short.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Called to a swarm yesterday, quite small, only over two sides of a frame. What do you do with swarms so small ,unite with another?

This is the smallest swarm I ever caught. I saw them come out of the tree box in the garden. I made a nuc up for them and the queen was superseded three? years later. Something like that.
View attachment trim.B1086E4A-642A-4B68-A741-6B6D12343A2B.MOV

 

[JimBee463]

Yes, I've seen beginners proudly posting on social media that their hive "keeps swarming" and how hilarious they find it. Not sure their neighbours are quite so impressed, in an urban area

I wasn't laughing, I can assure you

 

[Kaz]

I like to bring them on. It’s fun.
As for uniting you have to make sure they are disease free

Me too, it's so rewarding to watch them grow

 

[Mikey2230]

Only my second year into Bee Keeping and I manage 1 Hive. I will say I have only ever witnessed 3 swarms flying overhead and all these were within the last week! Thankfully I did manage to catch 1 swarm Tuesday (yesterday) afternoon. The 2 other swarms landed in trees to high for me to reach.

 

[Anduril]

Called to a swarm yesterday, quite small, only over two sides of a frame. What do you do with swarms so small ,unite with another?

I had one last year, it went into winter on 3 Maisemore poly nuc broods. But I did a bit of fiddling (checkerboarding).

 

[Moobee]

This is the smallest swarm I ever caught. I saw them come out of the tree box in the garden. I made a nuc up for them and the queen was superseded three? years later. Something like that.
View attachment 36404

Swarm in a teacup?

 

[Brian Bush]

I enjoy the challenge of bringing up a small swarm. I have had some amazing colonies that started out as a cast swarm.
The discrepancies in the weather pattern at present are perhaps the reason that some areas are reporting more swarms than others.
Here, in Buckinghamshire, we are enduring very cold winds, cloudy days and no rain for weeks. On Monday this week it was so cold and the wind so strong that the bees did not fly until late afternoon.
I am now a little worried that there are colonies waiting for more clement weather to swarm. As this High Pressure area moves or starts to collapse perhaps we will lose the cold winds that have been coming from the North East/East/South East. On Tuesday it was only 10C at 13:00hrs.

 

[Kaz]

I've been overwhelmed with calls about swarms this year, waaaaay more than any previous year, although the swarm rate in my own colonies is lower than usual

 

[Delgirl]

Beekeepers 'run out of equipment' as swarms rise​

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-65746081Ive only been beekeeping five years but Ive not known it this busy.

Waiting patiently for a too high up one to make up their minds. Hoping this lot are their scouts but been like this for two days now. Ho hum

 

[JamezF]

Waiting patiently for a too high up one to make up their minds. Hoping this lot are their scouts but been like this for two days now. Ho hum

I had one turn up here a few days ago and settle on a stack of boxes in the apiary. They flatly refused when I tried to smoke them up into a box however, and flew straight up to the branch of a sycamore tree about 10m high. I left a bait hive out, but they disappeared off elsewhere the following afternoon. Probably to find some pills for sea-sickness. It has been quite breezy here and they'd spent a good twenty-four hours swinging about in the wind.

James

 

[Newbeeneil]

While inspecting apiaries today I went round to remove swarm traps I have up as I didn’t want any more swarms. All three I went to remove are now occupied!!!! Little buggers!!!!

 

[Fellstoflats]

I enjoy the challenge of bringing up a small swarm. I have had some amazing colonies that started out as a cast swarm.
The discrepancies in the weather pattern at present are perhaps the reason that some areas are reporting more swarms than others.
Here, in Buckinghamshire, we are enduring very cold winds, cloudy days and no rain for weeks. On Monday this week it was so cold and the wind so strong that the bees did not fly until late afternoon.
I am now a little worried that there are colonies waiting for more clement weather to swarm. As this High Pressure area moves or starts to collapse perhaps we will lose the cold winds that have been coming from the North East/East/South East. On Tuesday it was only 10C at 13:00hrs.

Weather (and consequently the number of swarms) has been the same here in South Oxfordshire.

 

[Pembroke]

A few swarms, a lot more nests that have 'only just' been discovered. The thing our association lacks is swarm collectors, there's only 2 regular ones out of a membership of 95 or so. No one's interested in collecting this year for some reason.

 

[JamezF]

A few swarms, a lot more nests that have 'only just' been discovered. The thing our association lacks is swarm collectors, there's only 2 regular ones out of a membership of 95 or so. No one's interested in collecting this year for some reason.

Sometimes I get the impression that the prevailing view is that it's far too dangerous to take swarms because they'll probably be carrying disease.

James

 

[Jules59]

A few swarms, a lot more nests that have 'only just' been discovered. The thing our association lacks is swarm collectors, there's only 2 regular ones out of a membership of 95 or so. No one's interested in collecting this year for some reason.

We've got a group of new beekeepers really keen to collect swarms. So in total we have about 13 swarm collectors out of 60 members. One member has a bee vac.

 

[Newbeeneil]

Just got back from picking up 4 bait hives and a swarm from an apple tree.
This is getting silly