Loading swarm traps

[harvey]

Hello All,  I asked this in another thread but it might get lost there.  I am building swarm traps the size of a ten frame deep.  I plan on using lemon grass oil as a lure.  I have picked out some neat locations.  An old bee yard where the bees were abandoned to the point the hives decayed.  Used to be twenty hives,  I think they may now live in the woods in the trees.  Another has an old orchard that has not been taken care of for almost thirty years.  another is close to a neighbors bee yard.  He lost six hives last year and is not sure if it was due to swarming or not.  Then by a lot of wild cherrie trees in the woods.
  My question is what to load the swarm traps with.  I have one hive and think (this is a question) I could pull five empty frames from the bottom deep?  Also will this help this hive in regards to swarming?   So I put one drawn comb in each swarm trap and then nine frames with starter strips? ( that is a question also?)   Then I will put the swarm traps at about ten feet in height and twenty feet inside of the woodline at each location?    How am I doing so far?

[JP]

Sounds good. Drawn out frames are ok, make sure they are clean as a whistle though could attract wax moths.


...JP

[luvin honey]

Sounds good. Drawn out frames are ok, make sure they are clean as a whistle though could attract wax moths.


...JP

JP--I am seriously appreciating your detailed information. When you say clean, are you talking about pollen and honey? I just sewed up some fallen combs onto my topbars and was going to use them as swarm traps. Some are loaded with pollen. Should I pass on those?

Are wax moths an issue in the north?

Thanks!

[D Coates]

Mist a little BT on there and wax moths are as good as gone.  Sure the laid egs will hatch but as soon as they eat a little comb the BT parasites hatch in their gut and it's game over.  It's considered organic and completely harmless to everything short of wax moths.  I use blacker than night comb that's all kinds of stuff short of honey in it.  I can see the beginnings of wax moth webs in a cell or two but it never goes any further than that.

[JP]

Mist a little BT on there and wax moths are as good as gone.  Sure the laid egs will hatch but as soon as they eat a little comb the BT parasites hatch in their gut and it's game over.  It's considered organic and completely harmless to everything short of wax moths.  I use blacker than night comb that's all kinds of stuff short of honey in it.  I can see the beginnings of wax moth webs in a cell or two but it never goes any further than that.

luvin honey, you can do as D Coates suggests or use drawn comb free of everything.



...JP