Inspection of a colony from two trap outs

[The Bix]

Shaux and I pulled apart a hive that was a merged colony from two separate trap outs I did last summer/fall.  Being a new beekeeper, it seemed to me that I jumped into the deep end of the pool.  One of the trap outs was an exceedingly difficult and somewhat perilous operation, as they were a pretty hot hive on top of a slippery shake shingle roof.  I merged this colony with another trap out colony I extracted.  And, I brought the eggs from a very calm Italian colony.

Upon yesterday's inspection, I now have a very calm colony of bees and I easily found a big, beautiful Italian queen. As it turns out, this merged colony is the one that has the largest number of bees and seems to be the strongest going into springtime.

Without iddee's help, it never would've happened.  Thanks iddee!

-John

[iddee]

Don't you know trap outs don't work. Ask a hundred beeks and 95 of them will tell you so.  Of course, man can't fly, either, until 1903, after thousands of years of failing to do so.  :-D   :-D   :-D

Congrats... It's nice to know the word is getting around.

[The Bix]

Iddee, oh they work alright, but they weren't easy for me.  And, unless you're very close geographically, you need good eyes on the ground who'll give you good, thoughtful feedback.  That's something I didn't have in either case, that made everything twice as difficult.  I learned a lot through the experience and I'm thankful for all the good information you've provided.  Thanks again.

--John

[D Coates]

Iddee helped me last year to successfully complete my first 2 trap outs.  On another site, for some reason other beekeepers were disputing that trap outs work and trying to take Iddee to task.  I'm not sure why some folks don't think they work.  It's logical, and if you do it right, and give it time it works.  Short of having to go back and check on the progress on a weekly to bi-weekly basis it's easy.  Keep in mind I don't have SHB's here but I don't know why more people don't do trap outs as an option instead of a cut out.

When I'm quoting prices for hive removals I quote both techniques with the pros and cons of both.  The Cut outs cost more up front, have repair costs, but are really fast.  Trap outs take much longer, costs less, and have no repair costs.  Let the customer decide what they want.