Large swarm

[MEdmonson]

A local oldtime beekeeper gave me a large swarm of bees yesterday.  The swarm was the largest he had ever capture and wouldn't fit int a deep and a super.  I opened up the super as soon as I got home and put a top feeder on the super.  They seem to be all fitting into the boxes now.
Will I need to put another super on it only when they have drawn out a majority of the comb or do they need more space right now?

[thegolfpsycho]

I probably wouldn't add room right away, but swarms, expecially big ones, are wax machines.  Give em a little time to get hold of what they've got, and have a box ready to slap on when they need it.  If they really go to town, keep feeding them foundation and get a couple boxes ahead.  Always nice to have drawn comb in the bank.

[Brian D. Bray]

Was he generous or what?  But that's how I got started, an 86 year old beekeeper gave an 11 year old kid a empty hive and talked me through hiving a mid-May prime.  Hiving a swarm as your first experience ever with bees is a sure fire way to get enthused.
With a swarm that size add 2 or even three supers at once, especially if your using medium or shallows.  Mid-May primes usually don't even begin to slow down on the comb building until August when they will shift to concentrating on stores for the winters larder.