Bit of a dilemma

[alldigging]

BTW

http://www.wbka.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Swarm-Control-Wally-Shaw.pdf

is a great read.

Print it out.

 

[beeno]

Ironic that it happened when I left it for an extra few days rather than the week or weeks before lol.

I'm curious to know, how far does a swarm swarm. Would I be wasting my time if I went searching in the trees, Bush's and sheds near me.

Sorry that they swarmed. You cannot go the extra few days in the swarming season with swarmy stock. Do bear in mind that you probably have some eggs there that they can make emergency cells from so go in in six days time to make sure. By all means look to see if you can find the swarm as it often settles with 20m of the hive, but it is very difficult to see a settled swarm as it is not that much activity around it.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I spent half an hour looking for a queen in one of my boxes once. Went through the frames four times. As I closed up the swarm rose up from a tree a few metres behind me and disappeared faster than Stan could chase them.

 

[tonyofarr]

I clip all of my queens now so that if I miss something and they swarm I keep the bees even if I lose the queen; the bees will return to the hive when they find the queen is no longer with them. I have found the clipped queen under the hive floor before now. I started clipping the queens because I had to have surgery in the middle of the swarming season and couldn't find anyone to help with the bees.

 

[pargyle]

What would others have done in my situation. Would they have still went in every 7 days even thou a super was added with plenty of room.

What I gathered from this hive. The Queen started to lay in top corner of that old comb but didn't in rest of the frame then the bees filled it with Honey even thou there was a super on

If they are bees that are going to swarm then no amount of space will stop them .. space is not the only reason they swarm - remember, swarming is part of the bees need to reproduce - it's in their genetics. In some bees the swarming instinct is much stronger than others.

So .. if you don't want to lose bees then, in the swarming season, you really do have to inspect regularly .. 7 days - certainly not more than 10 days and you need to look for early signs of queen cells (play cups for instance) and be prepared to go back to these hives in a few days and re-check.

However, in your situation, whilst losing a swarm is not good for your honey production at least you are not in the sort of urban environment where a swarm of bees is going to be a real nuisance to anyone. It's always a good idea to have an empty hive with a bit of bait in there (a piece of old comb, a spot or two of lemon grass oil or some bee attractant) as there is always the chance that they will find it if they do decide to swarm and you miss the signs.