Situation Vacant

[Monsieur Abeille]

My worst worst worst, least favourite and most hated job of all is delving into an ultra-aggressive hive looking for a queen. I find spotting the queen difficult at the best of times and having several thousand angry bees trying to find holes in my protection is just an unpleasant way of spending a day.

The answer of course is to re-queen, but the brighter amongst you will have spotted the drawback to this strategy.

Now I know there are various tricks to make this task easier - moving the hive etc etc, but to be honest my heart just wouldn't be in it.

Wouldn't it be wonderful for some brave soul with good eyesight to offer to do this for financial reward (it would be even better if they were volunteers, but I may have a long wait for that).

I'd be happy to give someone quite a reasonable wedge for such a task, and as luck would have it I even have a candidate hive. Any volunteers in or around Lincolnshire?

 

[MartinL]

Wouldn't you be better to leave it till there are more drones around?

Maybee offer your existing queen on couple of frames for a newbee to start a nuke with, (payment in goods)?

 

[itma]

... Now I know there are various tricks to make this task easier - moving the hive etc etc, but to be honest my heart just wouldn't be in it.
...

Have a go!

Block them in late evening.

Shift them 20 yards or more (well out of the way). Put another box (a nuc?) on the original site with a frame that has some brood on it (to 'anchor' them).
Let 'em loose - a string attached to the entrance block simplifies this for the faint-hearted.
Then just wait, and the fliers will 'home' to the old site.
After 24 hours, the hive should be much emptier (so easier to find HMQ) and the bees still present will be almost entirely baby bees, who don't fly and can't sting.
The job becomes much easier once you have the bovver squad out of the way. What you choose to do with them is another matter entirely!

 

[Pete D]

Hi,
just one hive ?
The mission is to seek and find the queen and stamp on her ?

I live about 40 miles away but could be up for the challenge if nobody else closer fancies it. Finding the time might be more of a challenge.

What happens if we cant find her ?

Once queenless they wont be any friendlier when you go back in after a couple of days to introduce another and tear down emergency cells.

You could call the bee inspector and say you think you may have EFB

 

[itma]

...
You could call the bee inspector and say you think you may have EFB

Don't bother trying that this week.
They are all in York at the mothership.

 

[beeno]

Hi Monsieur Abeille,
Needs must as they say. You can do it! Follow itma's advice and wear jeans and jean jacket under bee suit plus double marigolds. I often find that the thought of carrying out a task is worse than actually doing it!

 

[Oscarmonster]

Would love to, but struggling with time for my own beekeeping.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Wouldn't you be better to leave it till there are more drones around?

Maybee offer your existing queen on couple of frames for a newbee to start a nuke with, (payment in goods)?

Start 'em with a defensive strain and it can only get easier?

 

[drstitson]

hive move and cover cloths

split the residuum into 2 boxes quickly and wait to see which gets tetchier.

 

[drex]

My old trainer used to say that the best way to deal with a really aggressive hive was - petrol ( with smile on his face).
Last year I did re queen a nasty colony in a Nattional. 3 layers and they still got me. Due to their nature I was rather lax about swarm control. They did swarm and set up home in a warre. That lot did get petrol!

 

[Amari]

You brute drex

 

[Mr C]

I'd love to help but I live to far away good luck. You must have some one close by?

 

[blackcavebees]

Petrol is a solution, but last year we requeened a friend's hive and the change was dramatic! They used to chase me 100 yards right off his property. After requeening they are now not bad at all, and even before old queens bees died there was a marked change. Time of year is only problem. Not a lot of mature drones here for another 4-6 weeks or so. If you have access to a laying queen swap out, otherwise you may have to wait a bit. Not much fun getting your socks stapled to your feet though.

 

[Monsieur Abeille]

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. May well end up moving the box etc in the end, just thought that it could be quite a good job for a budding braveheart, and one which I'd be willing to pay for - there are many folks with a nasty hive or two and I know from bitter experience in the past, trying to find a queen in those circumstances is far from easy.

Wouldn't you be better to leave it till there are more drones around?

Maybee offer your existing queen on couple of frames for a newbee to start a nuke with, (payment in goods)?

Not sure the relevance of the drones, and the whole problem is finding the queen - once found I certainly wouldn't foist her on a newbee, more likely to become squished on a swarm bait post

Have a go!

What you choose to do with them is another matter entirely!

If I decide to brave it out, not too worried about "them" as things will improve once the new queen gets set

Hi,

Once queenless they wont be any friendlier when you go back in after a couple of days to introduce another and tear down emergency cells.

You could call the bee inspector and say you think you may have EFB

Probably wouldn't leave it a couple of days to leave the new queen, and while they will be uber-nasty without their old queen, checking for QCs can be done quicker than searching for a queen, and may not be necessary depending on timing of release. I do like the EFB idea though