How far should bait boxes be from a hive

[Doey]

This is probably a stupid question but how far away should bait boxes be from a hive and also what kind of distance should they be spaced out?
As I'm new to bee keeping I don't have any old comb to put in the boxes so what would be the best alternative?
Thanks

 

[drex]

Depends on what space you have. Mine catch swarms about 30m from the hives, but of course they are never from my colonies. ! I have read about 50- 100m is best.
You have no old comb, so a frame of foundation, and an empty frame, with a couple of drops of lemon grass oil.
Bait hives are best if about 40L ( national BB size), facing south and well off the ground. Mine go on shed roofs.

 

[Doey]

Space isn't really an issue where my hive is, as I've only one hive I'd like to try and catch a swarm to add another hive.
I've made 3 national broad boxes to use as traps, would mid April be about the right time to put the bait boxes out?

 

[JamezF]

I don't think you need to be that fussy about distance. A little while back one of my colonies swarmed and moved into a stack of unused brood chambers no more than ten metres away from their original home. That's a mess I have to sort out this year.

James

 

[JamezF]

If you use old comb in a bait hive don't you find it ends up riddled with wax moth in no time?

James

 

[Doey]

Last question would you use an under floor entrance with a bait box?

 

[Erichalfbee]

Last question would you use an under floor entrance with a bait box?

My bait boxes have UFE yes, but a solid floor
You say you have another hive? If you scrape some propolis from it, use it to paint inside your bait box
You can buy swarm lures from the usual suspects as well

 

[Boston Bees]

how far away should bait boxes be from a hive

As far away as possible

(unless your garden/land is more than 200m long, in which case that's probably enough).

Bees will sometimes move into a bait hive close to their original hive, but given the choice they will spread further afield when they can, I think. Maximising genetic success would seem to point that way, if nothing else.

But most of us are restricted to the land we have access to (often our gardens) of course. And positioning/baiting is probably more important than distance. A swarm will (I think) choose a high, south-facing, well-baited swarm trap right next to their hive, rather than a nasty box on the floor 200m away.

 

[pargyle]

This is probably a stupid question but how far away should bait boxes be from a hive and also what kind of distance should they be spaced out?
As I'm new to bee keeping I don't have any old comb to put in the boxes so what would be the best alternative?
Thanks

If what you are saying is that you would like to catch a swarm from your own hive then you will need a lot of luck - it does happen but it's by no means a certainty. The catching of swarms is pretty much a matter of luck - I find that one or two arrive in my front garden, more or less in the same vicinity, every year and they are certainly not from my hives.

Perhaps read this: Bees and Energy (Ley?) Lines

However, if all you want to do is make increase and you have an existing colony it's very easy to make another colony from the one you have ... rather than waiting for them to swam you can either wait until you find a queen cell (or ten !) in your hive and split them or just split the colony and the queenless half will make a queen cell or few and bob's yer uncle you have another colony (assuming that the newly created queen gets mated).

Looking back over your posts it looks like you have come into the craft after a course 10 years ago and taken delivery of a Nuc in January ... it's time for a bit of reading - Did you get hold of a copy of the Haynes Manual of Beekeeping because you are going to need it shortly.

 

[JamezF]

Perhaps read this: Bees and Energy (Ley?) Lines

Or preferably don't. Ley/"energy" lines have been shown time and time again to be utter drivel.

James

 

[pargyle]

Or preferably don't. Ley/"energy" lines have been shown time and time again to be utter drivel.

James

Is that from personal experience or just the usual negative comments trotted out by the naysayers ? If you haven't tried it then leave it to those of us who have.

 

[JamezF]

Is that from personal experience or just the usual negative comments trotted out by the naysayers ? If you haven't tried it then leave it to those of us who have.

It's based on the fact that scientists who have attempted to analyse the phenomenon have come to the conclusion that there's absolutely no plausible evidence to support their existence. It's people seeing patterns in random data because that's what peoples' brains are good at. But it doesn't make them real.

James

 

[Erichalfbee]

Or preferably don't. Ley/"energy" lines have been shown time and time again to be utter drivel.

James

My potting shed is at an intersection of two ley lines and I get a couple of swarms on it every year. Science can’t explain everything

 

[user 20297]

It's based on the fact that scientists who have attempted to analyse the phenomenon have come to the conclusion that there's absolutely no plausible evidence to support their existence. It's people seeing patterns in random data because that's what peoples' brains are good at. But it doesn't make them real.

.......scientific evidence? .....not required on this forum for metaphysical phenomena. .

 

[JamezF]

My potting shed is at an intersection of two ley lines and I get a couple of swarms on it every year. Science can’t explain everything

Science isn't about explaining everything. Anyone who thinks that really doesn't understand science. In part (the part that's relevant in this instance), science is a method for obtaining data and drawing conclusions in a way that minimises the opportunity for error and is consistent with what we already know. It's not some mystical thing. It's a process that answers the question "How can I really be sure as possible about this?"

People who believe in ley lines have failed to apply the basic test "Is there some other, and perhaps simpler, way to explain these observations?". And as it turns out there is, as I've already said.

In the specific case of why swarms arrive at your potting shed, one would ask "What other possible reasons for swarms choosing your potting shed as a new home might exist, and how have you eliminated them as unviable explanations?" Of course this isn't limited to just the possible explanations you can think of, but those that anyone can think of and demonstrate are plausible.

James

 

[user 20297]

It looks like beekeepers are attracted to live in houses built on "leylines".

 

[JamezF]

It looks like beekeepers are attracted to live in houses built on "leylines".

Much as were the builders of pizza restaurants and the people who chose where telephone boxes should be sited.

James

 

[Doey]

If what you are saying is that you would like to catch a swarm from your own hive then you will need a lot of luck - it does happen but it's by no means a certainty. The catching of swarms is pretty much a matter of luck - I find that one or two arrive in my front garden, more or less in the same vicinity, every year and they are certainly not from my hives.

Perhaps read this: Bees and Energy (Ley?) Lines

However, if all you want to do is make increase and you have an existing colony it's very easy to make another colony from the one you have ... rather than waiting for them to swam you can either wait until you find a queen cell (or ten !) in your hive and split them or just split the colony and the queenless half will make a queen cell or few and bob's yer uncle you have another colony (assuming that the newly created queen gets mated).

Looking back over your posts it looks like you have come into the craft after a course 10 years ago and taken delivery of a Nuc in January ... it's time for a bit of reading - Did you get hold of a copy of the Haynes Manual of Beekeeping because you are going to need it shortly.

Very interesting read on the lay lines I could definitely believe this, I might get the rods out some day and give it a try

 

[JamezF]

Very interesting read on the lay lines I could definitely believe this, I might get the rods out some day and give it a try

Because dowsing really works, right?

James

 

[user 20297]

Because dowsing really works, right?

James

........it works just as well as ley-lines do; especially when you first get a psychic to tell you where to start.