Bizarre season so far

KONASDAD · May 19, 2008, 01:29:01 PM

This year is weird so far. Never before have their been so many swarms, and many hives are going queenless within my club. All at once about 20 club members have no queen in hive. Have no idea if the feral swarming and the queenlessness are related or not. Flow is very strong, but bees havent been out much b/c of rain. All of my hives were checker boarded and one swarmed anyway. They hid the swarm cells between the slatted rack bars , not actually on any frame, so I never saw swarm cells. Lots of them. So they swarmed but no queens have made their appearnce yet. I counted about 16 empty swarm cells. All very little too. Just an observation.............

derrick1p1 · May 19, 2008, 06:23:51 PM

All of mine swarmed (just 4) and am having trouble with queenless hives myself. But I am knew to this and probably made some mistakes (in my 2nd year) I did what I thought I should to prevent swarming, but happened anyway. And I agree, they can hide those queen cells.

I'll be more diligent and set up swarm traps next year.

Best of luck,
Derrick

Kris^ · May 19, 2008, 09:00:40 PM

As you know, I started new from packages this year, and they all seem queenright and growing normally. The one established hive I got swarmed twice, though, and I haven't yet checked for evidence of a queen in any of those. Hives going queenless was a problem I had last year, and ended up with colonies apparently not well enough populated to make it successfully through the winter. :'(

-- Kris

Kathyp · May 19, 2008, 09:13:20 PM

when i started getting swarm calls i went through all my hives. so far, so good. i'll super 2 of them this week as the raspberries start. may even need to add a brood box to one of the swarms. no guarantee that it will prevent swarms, but you can only do what you can do!

Brian D. Bray · May 19, 2008, 10:17:26 PM

Quote from: kathyp on May 19, 2008, 09:13:20 PM
when i started getting swarm calls i went through all my hives. so far, so good. i'll super 2 of them this week as the raspberries start. may even need to add a brood box to one of the swarms. no guarantee that it will prevent swarms, but you can only do what you can do!

KathyP, when you super pull frames 2 & 9 up into the center of the super and replace them with 2 frames from the super. This will do 2 things: keep the brood chamber open (they have to drawn new comb in the brood area) and bait the super with established frames. The 2 actions together go a long way towards averting swarms.

Moonshae · May 19, 2008, 10:22:26 PM

I am going to check my two overwintered hives. They haven't been showing much interest in the honey super I added, even after I removed the queen excluder. I don't have enough knowledge of the area to know when my flow occurs, but I'm hoping there is a decent one at this time, and I'm not confined to only fall flows. In truth, I'm starting to worry that goldenrod is my main flow.

Kathyp · May 19, 2008, 10:35:18 PM

i'll do that if i add to the swarms. the other two are getting honey supers. they have really built up in the last few weeks. at least one of the swarm hives has a lot of brood and if it looks as good in a few days, it will get another brood box.

Michael Bush · May 19, 2008, 10:59:38 PM

Maybe the bees sense that last year depleted the population and they are trying to replace it...

KONASDAD · May 20, 2008, 10:49:31 AM

Moonshae-the flow is on, but bees cant get out. The black locust bloom was beaten to death by rain, and clover is starting strong right now.

Brian-thats also what I do when i super.

lovelyembalmer · May 20, 2008, 04:44:02 PM

I have to agree about the queenless hives and swarming. This year we have had eight swarms and two hives that we could not find the queen and really did not see brood or eggs and they were the two hives that swarmed so we know they had queens at the beginning of the year.
As my husband says every where but our yard, bees are making honey. :-x

HAB · May 20, 2008, 06:51:59 PM

YesterdayI had to go over Rossman in Moultie Ga. to pickup some Beeking supplies. Had a great trip. :)

As we left about five miles from the house along US 84 my Wife and I dropped off an an old empty hive body with five empty frames and five partially drawn frames. Just a piece of old scrap plywood with a brick to hold it down for a top and bottom with a 1 inch hole drilled in the hive box for an entrance. The hive and old frames had been given to us by the Wife of a deceased Beek who died about 8 years ago. Today had to run over to Enterprise Al. for a hay baler part. Slowed down for a quick look at the Hive, imagine my surprise when I SAW IT COVER WITH A HUGE SWARM. :) :) :)

MrILoveTheAnts · May 20, 2008, 06:57:08 PM

Quote from: Michael Bush on May 19, 2008, 10:59:38 PM
Maybe the bees sense that last year depleted the population and they are trying to replace it...

More likely the genes that support multi-swarming hives are dominant in this time of CCD.

HAB · May 20, 2008, 07:34:08 PM

Don't know the reason for all the swarms, but so far have gotten $400 worth for free. But for a poor operation on a tight (think a family farm with next to nothing cash available) budget, it has been a fantastic boon during our first year. :) :) :)
May be all feral but they are hard at work. :)