Hello group..
I'm not sure how many of you deal with Trap-Outs or Cut-Outs of bee hives that find themselves unwanted. But here in the Los Angeles Backwards Beekeepers (LABeeRescue) we have had our hands full of bee issues throughout the So. Cal area. My question is that we (friend and me) have just installed a trap-out on a roof and the bees came pouring out, generally a nuc with suffice but at the rate the bees were leaving the hive "not this time". Anyways we ended up putting a 10 frame box in place and will monitor the trap. Now with all those bees and NO queen - what is the fix??. I suggested one of our many swarms in the area that will have a FREE queen and merge them together. My friend says "let me build their own queen" and wait???
I'm generally a common sense kinda guy and don't remember reading that anywhere... any input will be appreciated - thanks.
calrow99
Read about iddee's trap out thread. But in short, take a frame out of a hive that you would like to have the genetics from and make sure that the frame has eggs in it and no queen. Then go put it in with the trap box and they will make a new queen.
http://www.bushfarms.com/beespanacea.htm (http://www.bushfarms.com/beespanacea.htm)
Calrow, over the years I tried several methods of trying to catch the queen if I thought she would be of some value in adding new genetics to my apiary. The one solution that I came up with is somewhat of timing and a daily check on the hive being trapped.
When the number of bees exiting the cone becomes very few and with no new pollen or nector comming in she will be ready to take the remaining few bees and leave. Then I take a piece of metal queen excluder and place it about 2 inches from the end of the cone, then I check it ever day or so until she exits. In the past I have had great success using this method. When she comes out take another larger piece of queen excluder and place behind her and then you can take down your funnel and queen all at the same time.
Like I said it works for me, but maybe too time intensive for others. AHHH! Ain't it wonderful having all this time on your hands to play with the bees!
What MB said. :-D I like that too.
Beesource has a nice long thread on how to catch the queen in a trapout. My understanding of the method which I am going to try is make a solid tunnel (no mesh) from the bee tree entrance to an opening in the back of a super placed in front of the entrance. Once the feral bees are used to using the front entrance of the super, place a frame of uncapped brood without any bees in the super. The uncapped brood attracts the house bees and at times the queen who will start laying in nearby pulled out frames. Checking for her in 24 hours of the frame of brood being placed seems to be the key. I have two bee trees set up to do this once the dandilion flows starts here in Montana.