In the panic I've forgotten what to do --swarming

[ShinySideUp]

One of my hives has swarmed. I saw them go just half an hour ago and can still see them high up in a nearby tree. What do I do now as all knowledge seems to have left me?

Firstly I can't recover them, they are too high in the tree, at least four metres.

How long will they stay there before moving to a more permanent home? I do have bait hives out but they are only a matter of metres away and I think it unlikely they will go there so I have to let them go -- ungrateful buggers.

I went through the hives last weekend and must have missed a [some]queen cell.

What do I do with the remaning bees? As I understand it I have about a week before any new queens hatch and I run the risk of a cast swarm so my plan is to go through the hive tomorrow and a take down all QC's but one (hopefully there will only be one) and then leave them alone for about four weeks -- does this seem reasonable?

 

[Finman]

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Very normal that you have another swarm after a week when queen cells rippen and they peep to each others.

 

[Finman]

I run the risk of a cast swarm so my plan is to go through the hive tomorrow and a take down all QC's but one (hopefully there will only be one) and then leave them alone for about four weeks -- does this seem reasonable?

When you do that, hive starts to rear new queen cells.
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They have 6 days time to start new queen cells.
If I were you, I would do after couple of days AS with queen cell Frame. When bees move to the AS hive, the rest of hive so weak, that it cannot swarm. Foundations and free space would kill the swarming fever of the AS.


I have made artificial swarms to my friend. The brood hives send very often cast because the friend does not mind to do anthing to hives' swarmimg fever.
.

 

[Erichalfbee]

What I would do.
Open up and choose a queen cell to keep. Destroy the rest. Go back in three days time and destroy any more you see.
This is useful.
Print a copy and keep it under the roof of one of your hives?
http://www.wbka.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/There-Are-Queen-Cells-In-My-Hive-WBKA-WAG.pdf

 

[beeno]

Extended paint pole. Drill hole in bucket and attach to paint pole. Place bucket under swarm and shake.

 

[BKF Admin]

harris 5 metre paint pole from b+q or homebase ect.
used mine many many times...


https://www.homebase.co.uk/harris-trademate-5m-extension-pole_p396094

 

[beeno]

harris 5 metre paint pole from b+q or homebase ect.
used mine many many times...


https://www.homebase.co.uk/harris-trademate-5m-extension-pole_p396094

Me too.

 

[ShinySideUp]

I appreciate the link to swarming and will look at it tonight.

As for catching the swarm using poles, well it's all a bit academic as I went out early this afternoon and got in touch with my local swarm catching man but when we got back to the garden some six hours after they had swarmed they had gone. Where? Who knows, but someone somewhere now has a swarm of bees with a very prolific queen. I do hope it's another beekeeper somewhere and not some pest-killing nimby.

 

[beeno]

Sorry to hear that.

 

[theeggman]

harris 5 metre paint pole from b+q or homebase ect.
used mine many many times...

Not your own swarms I assume Mark.

 

[john t]

the pole/bucket method can be tricky , imagine the weight you may have in the bucket,at an extension of 5 mtrs

alternatively if you can reach the branch they are on, is to use the pole with a hook attached and give a violent shake to the branch to dislodge them, having placed a bed sheet on the ground under the swarm first, and an upturned cardboard box(poke a few branches through the box, -gives them something to hang onto) just prop the opening an inch, if the bees fall onto the sheet they will crawl up into the box ,

i usually wait till late evening, let us know how you got on

 

[BKF Admin]

Not your own swarms I assume Mark.

Yep mine,nearly every year I get one or two were I check all 11 frames while shaking bees off and I still manage to miss a queen cell.
Although I do wear my glasses 100% of the time now under my veil and it does seem to of cured the problem.

Not collected swarms for a few years now,my queen rearing put a stop to it since i ran out of hives to house them in.

 

[Angry_Mob]

harris 5 metre paint pole from b+q or homebase ect.
used mine many many times...


https://www.homebase.co.uk/harris-trademate-5m-extension-pole_p396094

I bought one of those last year when painting a house along with a wallpaper steamer, never realised both would be useful for beekeeping.

 

[john t]

I bought one of those last year when painting a house along with a wallpaper steamer, never realised both would be useful for beekeeping.

what do you use the steamer for ?

 

[Angry_Mob]

Nothing yet but plan to make a steam wax extractor at some stage.

 

[john t]

Nothing yet but plan to make a steam wax extractor at some stage.

im liking the idea of tools having several uses

 

[charlievictorbravo]

What I would do.
Open up and choose a queen cell to keep. Destroy the rest. Go back in three days time and destroy any more you see.

Wally Shaw is not too sure about the beek choosing the best queen cell. I recall he suggested an option was to leave two queen cells and letting the colony decide which queen it wanted. It would be a bit embarrassing if the one chosen by the beek was a dud!

I reinforce the need to check after 3 days for more queen cells. I lost a swarm on Monday, inspected and reduced QCs to 2 on Tuesday and on Friday I found a further four when I inspected. I'm intending to leave them 2 QCs for a replacement queen and hope they don't send out a cast swarm with the spare one!

CVB

 

[ShinySideUp]

I'm intending to leave them 2 QCs for a replacement queen and hope they don't send out a cast swarm with the spare one!

CVB

I think this one runs and runs; two QC's or one.

I am of the '1 QC' group especially as even though my hive has swarmed I suspect it is still very strong as it was truly loaded with bees before the 'event'. For me to leave two queen cells would be inviting a cast swarm.

 

[Finman]

.
You may put the queens behind the excluder that the queens cannot go.

If the colony is strong, it does not give up swarming.
I would do AS with those Queen cells. IT would be artificial cast. Killing swarming fever is main job.

 

[Beefriendly]

I think this one runs and runs; two QC's or one.

For me it's a depends....depends if I know they have started from young larvae and I can see a nice fat queen grub in a cell.....then it's a definite one. Assuming I haven't missed any, which does occur more frequently than I would like..
If they are all sealed then it's a two and try to inspect on emergence day....
And if it's one of my F1's they are all knocked down and fresh eggs from an isolated mated queen are provided.