swarm

sonny · May 15, 2009, 11:08:01 PM

Hi, anyway to lure a swarm that has settled on the main trunk of a tree? I had the pleasure of observing a swarm fly over and land in a tree. Unfortunately I was working at the time and it is not on my land. The bees are about 20 feet off the ground and the tree is about 3 inches in diameter. To compound the problem the tree top has a grape vine in the top and is growing up through a thorny Hawthorn. They are still there after 2 days.

RayMarler · May 16, 2009, 01:33:55 AM

Can you contact the property owners to get permission to go get that swarm?
If not, just set up a deep box with the oldest combs you have and maybe a drop of lemongrass oil if you have it.
I've had 4 swarms fly into boxes setting around with old dark comb in them in the past month.
Good luck!

sonny · May 16, 2009, 01:40:55 PM

Hi, I got permission from the landowner and took a spare hive with foundation and a couple of dark drawn frames near the swarm. They were checking it out when I left. I'll see what happens. tnx

G3farms · May 16, 2009, 03:34:23 PM

I bet that they go in, that old dark comb has the bee scent to it and will help draw them in. If they have been there a couple of days they will be a little hungry also.

I hope you get them.

G3

sonny · May 17, 2009, 01:06:09 PM

Hi, Well that didn't work. The bees were still in the tree but clustered more to one side of the tree. I hated to waste a trip so
I put the hive under the tree with the top removed and found a long stick and was able to brush off one big clump of bees into the hive. In the process I discovered that the bees had already started to build comb. There was a piece about 4x6 long that I knocked down. I didn't even have a veil with me and had escaped a sting so far so I decided to give the tree a shake. No more clumps of bees dislodged and there was no cluster but many were flying. I put the lid back on and will take a look tomorrow. I guess my only other option is a chain saw.

RayMarler · May 18, 2009, 12:27:01 AM

The queen will most likely have been on that comb you knocked off. Did you by chance put it in the nuc? Did you check the ground for a small cluster or clump of bees? If the queen got knocked off to the ground, a small clump of bees would be with her. Give it a check tomorrow and see what's up, they might be in your nuc now that you knocked off the comb.

G3farms · May 18, 2009, 08:30:05 AM

Lets hope she went in with the rest of the bees. I have a large white bed sheet that I will lay on the ground if I am going to make the cluster hit in the grass. Makes it easier for the bees to march into the hive plus you can see if they are making a cluster around the queen.

G3

sonny · May 18, 2009, 10:05:17 PM

Hi, The swarm was clustered in the same place today. So I went with plan B. A friend and I borrowed a ladder from the landowner and I used a mist bottle to spray 1 to 1 sugar syrup on the swarm. Then I used a small brush and brushed the swarm into a box and then into the hive. I believe I got the queen this time. It was a very difficult place to work but we didn't get any stings or broken bones :evil: