Moving Bees

[MJBee]

The swarm that arrived on 25 June has drawn all 11 frames and filled them with either brood or stores. decision time super or move?

Decided to move then super - weight the main consideration - 1115pm yesterday, pitch dark but still 20C went to seal the entrance and found a couple of dozen bees "chillin" on the alighting board - rats. Pushed the foam in anyway and just left a small opening.

0600 this morning no bees visible so sealed the entrance strapped the hive and moved it without problems, left them to settle for an hour then opened the entrance - no boil out of angry bees - so carefully removed the roof and added a QX and super, job done.

Moving bees at this time of year - long days and high temperatures - involves serious sleep deprivation

PS Put a nuc box with a very small entrance and a drawn brood frame on the site and have rounded up about 200 foragers!! If they ever go to bed I'll lock them in and reunite them with their queen

 

[RoseCottage]

Well done, I'm moving my two hives tomorrow.
How far did you move them?
Sam

 

[MJBee]

Hi Sam,
my far apiary is 3.5 miles away, I use it as a change of memory site and bring any colonies back to my own woods which are 400 and 800 yards away, and therefore too close for a direct move, after a month. I've been watching your thread and you could have a problem with foragers returning to their original site - good luck.
Mike

 

[Poly Hive]

Be very aware of the dangers of suffocation in this current "heat wave" and ensure two things.

One. Massive ventilation.

Two. Dry super on. Note the dry... they have a nasty habit of putting nectar in supers put on for a move a couple of days before and that can lead to problems. Namely suffocation.

PH

 

[susbees]

Quite....I know someone who cooked a whole colony by letting a beginner put in an entrance block towards autumn and not checking their actions. Yep, it was round the wrong way.