Swarm Prevention

[Finman]

You'd think everyone would be doing it already. Wouldn't you?

No. Far from that.

.

 

[Finman]

!

Nos da

You medication. That I am worried about. Jessöör.,

 

[Tremyfro]

No reason at all why it shouldn't .. I've never done it on a Long Hive so I'm not sure how it works .. someone like RAB will almost certainly have though ... you will need some sort of vertical queen excluder to separate the queen from the brood and you will need to think about where the hive entrance is in relation to separation. I have a feeling that Robin Dartington has a method in his booklet - I think you have a copy (I can't find mine at present) so you might want to have a rummage through there.

This video of Robin working one of the Beer Coolers will give you some ideas....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Xs_OVl25lw

Thank you...I have watched this before...some useful points. I have vertical excluders....they seem to be fairly bee proof but I will ensure they fit well before doing the separation. There is a queen excluder part which you can replace with a blank off after the bees have redistributed themselves. I have the Dartington booklet...it is well explained in there. I am looking forward to trying it out. This year the bees didn't show any signs of swarming...probably because of the nectar/poor weather situation. So I must be well prepared this coming year! If all fails...I can still do a vertical demarree....the long hive is very versatile but I can't see any advantage of doing that ATM. I have positioned the long hives so both entrances can be used during swarm control. Trying to cover all the bases! Despite the alternative advice from the depths of Grey, Green, Greasy......

 

[For want of a better word]

You medication. That I am worried about. Jessöör.,

My problem is that the three year old mead stock is disappearing fast... and what I have is not fit to drink.... yet
And woefully last years cider is gone and this years 30 gallons is still fermenting, and will not be ready till May!

Was given a bottle of Welsh Whiskey... I have put some plump Tamar Valley Sloes in that in attempt to make it drinkable....

Maybee I should come to Finland, visit old girlfriend, and drink your vodka!

Yeghes da

 

[Millet]

+1 ... Really essential advice for all beekeepers ... the reality is that, as a Hobby beekeeper, swarm prevention is something of a myth. You are more likely to be responding to finding queen cells than trying to stop them building them.

Unless .. you keep small colonies, have bees that are not swarmy, re-queen annually with a new queen, make sure they have plenty of space and have God on your side ...

However, The Demaree Method will give you the best chance and one of the best write up's I've seen for this is:

http://countryrubes.com/images[/COLOR]/Swarm_Prevention_By_Demaree_Method.pdf

Thank you for that i will look into it..

 

[Hawklord]

Does replacing the queen stop them swarming?

 

[Tremyfro]

Does replacing the queen stop them swarming?

That is a great question.....anyone know the answer?
I read somewhere that when you see bees congregating just inside the front wall of the hive....that they are beginning to make swarm preparations...long before queen cells are built......anyone know about this too?

 

[For want of a better word]

Does replacing the queen stop them swarming?

No... may even precipitate swarming.....

However I believe that when the bees are helicoptered to the Makuna mountains in NZ. queens are removed to prevent swarming?

Yeghes da

 

[Plenty of honey]

Taking any queen away from a colony is a sure way of stopping them swarming.
I think its in "Manly's honey farming" that this is mentioned in.

Someone asked the question about why dosent a queen go on day 5 after the cells are capped over in a cell builder? (or as soon as they are).
Well the answer is because if you remove the queen to make a cell builder queen less, then you are effectively are removing her from the hive for a period, while the bees build those lovely cells.
This is why i love Michael Palmers method, as the removal of a queen during the process, contributes intrinsicly to the reversal in behaviour of the whole gigantic colony going on day 5!! they have no queen to swarm with. When she is reunited on day 5 she's kind of lost that urge as she's been in an adjacent colony for 5 days with only a few support staff and tons of comb!! and before she thinks about it again you have given her more room to lay!! took me a few months to really understand the whole process as its complicated but isn't!!
If you understand how to make queens, you will understand a lot of how you hives behave the way they do!!
Underpinning knowledge is key!!

 

[Hivemaker.]

Someone asked the question about why dosent a queen go on day 5 after the cells are capped over in a cell builder? (or as soon as they are).
Well the answer is because if you remove the queen to make a cell builder queen less,

I don't remove the queen in the cell builders and they don't swarm, why is that.

 

[Arfermo]

Does replacing the queen stop them swarming?

No more than clipping the queens wings!!!

 

[Plenty of honey]

I don't remove the queen in the cell builders and they don't swarm, why is that.

Hivemaker, I would think its probably because you remove your cells and may be incubate them later in their last few days of development, and let them hatch to assess there viability. ( think thats what we discussed before that was really interesting to me) but hey, your far more a experienced and qualified to answer that question!!
I certainly dont know all the answers, but i would say that if you remove queen cells, between day 5 (of production) and their normal hatching time, theres less chance of the rest going as the queen has been previously subdued, even if the queen is back in the colony, the cells are usually behind an excluder by that time. so a combination of the two things usually keeps them from swarming but sometime you do lose one in a while! I am interested to hear exactly how you raise your queens, although keeping queeny in one side of a hive is well practiced in french queen raising but personally i dont like it!! I am looking to visit more queen rearing places to see as many different methods as possible, next year. its such a huge subject!!

 

[Erichalfbee]

I read somewhere that when you see bees congregating just inside the front wall of the hive....that they are beginning to make swarm preparations...long before queen cells are built......anyone know about this too?

I know that I have noticed festooned bored inactive bees a few days before they swarm.

 

[pargyle]

I know that I have noticed festooned bored inactive bees a few days before they swarm.

Yes ... but by then they usually have a dozen new queen cells hidden away ... if you see that festooning it's time to have a really good look through the hive - ignore that at your peril .. even when you inspected just a few days before .. amazing how quickly they can draw out queen cells when they are in the mood.

 

[Finman]

Yes ... but by then they usually have a dozen new queen cells hidden away ... if you see that festooning it's time to have a really good look through the hive - ignore that at your peril .. even when you inspected just a few days before .. amazing how quickly they can draw out queen cells when they are in the mood.

Quite quick is the larva stage. In 5 days weigh will grow from egg to 1700 fold larva. And the larva does not have much feces in the gut.

.

 

[REDWOOD]

Hivemaker, I would think its probably because you remove your cells and may be incubate them later in their last few days of development, and let them hatch to assess there viability. ( think thats what we discussed before that was really interesting to me) but hey, your far more a experienced and qualified to answer that question!!
I certainly dont know all the answers, but i would say that if you remove queen cells, between day 5 (of production) and their normal hatching time, theres less chance of the rest going as the queen has been previously subdued, even if the queen is back in the colony, the cells are usually behind an excluder by that time. so a combination of the two things usually keeps them from swarming but sometime you do lose one in a while! I am interested to hear exactly how you raise your queens, although keeping queeny in one side of a hive is well practiced in french queen raising but personally i dont like it!! I am looking to visit more queen rearing places to see as many different methods as possible, next year. its such a huge subject!!

Nop

 

[REDWOOD]

Yes ... but by then they usually have a dozen new queen cells hidden away ... if you see that festooning it's time to have a really good look through the hive - ignore that at your peril .. even when you inspected just a few days before .. amazing how quickly they can draw out queen cells when they are in the mood.

According to a few good sources bees are making swarm plans two weeks before you see a queen cell.

 

[Millet]

Why can't we just stick a queen excluder below the brood box if swarming is on the horizon ..

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

trapped drones, stressed colony...........................

 

[REDWOOD]

Just do your weekly inspections