3 miles or loads of rosemary twigs?

[Newbeeneil]

I've always been a bit doubtful of the "put some twigs at the hive entrance and you will get no returnees brigade" when moving hives and have always gone for moving to an out apiary 3 miles away before moving to an adjacent site.
Due to EFB at the intermediate site I had to try the twig theory as I wanted to move two hives to a site that is 4.4miles by road but only 0.8miles as the bee flies and I can see the original site from the new one.
So I delivered the hives stuffed the entrance with rosemary twigs and returned to the home apiary where I had left a nuc box on the original site of the hives. Over the next two days I have only seen one bee at the nuc!
Job done!

 

[Erichalfbee]

It's the herbs that did it
Great that it worked though...

 

[enrico]

Maybe the twigs have blocked the entrance totally

 

[Newbeeneil]

Maybe the twigs have blocked the entrance totally

I did wonder that when I first placed them but after about 10 mins there were bees orientating around the hives.... phew

 

[The Poot]

Perhaps you’ve proved a JBM myth to be not a myth?

 

[Bazzer]

I've always been a bit doubtful of the "put some twigs at the hive entrance and you will get no returnees brigade" when moving hives and have always gone for moving to an out apiary 3 miles away before moving to an adjacent site.
Due to EFB at the intermediate site I had to try the twig theory as I wanted to move two hives to a site that is 4.4miles by road but only 0.8miles as the bee flies and I can see the original site from the new one.
So I delivered the hives stuffed the entrance with rosemary twigs and returned to the home apiary where I had left a nuc box on the original site of the hives. Over the next two days I have only seen one bee at the nuc!
Job done!

Easier to do with bruised sprigs of mint because the leaves are much larger. Also it wilts nicely over a day or so releasing the bees so you don't need to go back

 

[Do224]

Is there a specific reason to use rosemary or mint…rather than just grass for instance?

 

[Erichalfbee]

Aromatic herbs.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

some grass is very 'aromatic'