I was walking back on my driveway to feed my rabbits and saw what I thought from a distance was a bald faced hornet nest in a mulberry tree over my driveway. I thought I'll have to get my shotgun and blast them with 7 1/2s. When I got close I realized it was a honeybee swarm.



I hopped in my truck, drove over and grabbed some very old hive pieces from a friend of mine, who used to check 64 hives a day for Ohio State. I waded through some stinging nettles, which I didn't notice and got my right calf stung pretty good. The hive pieces were covered in several inches of coon crap. I got 3 shallow supers and a lid that weren't as bad as the rest. I scabbed the 3 supers together and screwed a piece of plywood on the bottom side, with a shim to leave a gap for the bees.



The swarm was about 11' high. I pulled my truck up underneath it, so I could work from the bed. I found out my old loopers were overly dull. I had a lot of bees fall on me and got stung a lot. It wasn't bad. I switched to my battery powered chain saw and cut the thick branch I thought was supporting the swarm, dropping 3/4 of the bees in the box, Diane was holding. Diane got stung once, while holding the box. I got stung a lot more. The bees weren't aggressive, I just wasn't getting through the branches well, which I had to stretch full out to reach. The queen probably was in this remaining mass of bees, attached to smaller branches blocked from view by the swarm.



I dropped the remaining bees in another box and then dumped both boxes of bees in the hive body. Diane slapped the hive cover on as soon as I dumped the second box. The loose bees, of which there were a great many, immediately started going into the hive. I take that as a good sign I got the queen.




I've wanted bees for years but always thought they were too expensive, because my friends who keep them lose many of their hives, especially during the Winter.

I got stung around 30 times. I just had shorts and a t-shirt on. I got at least 4 bee stings in my calf, where the stinging nettle got me. It's strangely tingly right now.

I need to get some frames and a good hive body. I'm hoping the bees stick around in the cobbled together box, until I do.

Keith

Now you done it! a new expensive hobby!, lol

That made me LOL Keith and brought to mind things I can't say here but will when we talk again. WTG getting the bees. I hope they stick around and work out good for ya!
Strangely tingly.

Thank heavens you have a new hobby. I was wondering how you were going to spend that extra 3 or 4 minutes you hadn't allocated for.

I caught my first swarm 52 years ago. Didnt have a hive, brought them home in a cardboard box. My Grandfather brought over a hive that evening.

Need to get some frames and foundation asap. They’ll be drawing comb off the bottom of the lid. They build it fast.

Great story!

Hopefully beekeeping is somewhat profitable, but I don't have high hopes. I have hundreds of trees and other plants to pollinate. I hope they do lots of pollination for me, so that I get more fruit.

I pretty much do anything I am interested in and usually make pretty decent money at it. There is frequently a learning curve, but figuring things out gives me a lot of enjoyment. As long as it doesn't take much more than time, I'll be okay with it.

I have bees coming in and going out in small numbers, pretty consistently. Most of them don't seem to be carrying much, if anything at all. I lifted the lid a little bit and a large number of bees are hanging from it and are high on the sides of the hive body.

I need to get some comb foundation added in before they fill it with wild comb.

So far, I'm pretty confident the bees are sticking. I need to make a good base for the hive. I worry that something, even the wind, could knock it over.

I need to get a hood and smoker too. I don't mind getting stung on my body, but don't want to get stung in the eyes.

Keith

Good deal Keith. Hope it is a good beginning.

Swarming bees are packing up to 80% of their normal body weight in honey. Before they left their old colony, they loaded up their honey stomach with honey, that they will use to convert into beeswax to draw out comb. Swarms are comb building machines.

As far as not seeing bees toting anything….most are probably trying to orient themselves to their new surroundings. My guess is they’ll hit the ground running by hauling nectar ( which you won’t see ). Pollen is visible on the bee’s pollen baskets on their legs. But I’d say they’ll haul nectar over pollen at first. Bees can haul both, but seldom do.

Thanks that makes sense.

Thanks Bobs.

Keith

Way to go.Congrats

Get frames in there today! Or you will have a huge mess

Dont wait - get frames in asap.

Congrats on the new hive. But I got to be honest, I really wanted to hear the story of you shooting a hornet's nest with seven and a halfs. You think 30 honey bee stings was bad...... Lol

Ol dad

If you are going to keep bees . I used a 4x4 across cement blocks . use at least 8 foot 4x4's . There will then be room for your other hives, later Also make everything level. .Bees use a plumb bob , when making their comb. Also get your frames in. and good luck .and have fun with your bees. If you know a beekeeper. see if he will let you , tag along with him for a day.old243

nice! I plan on getting some bees next year since its to late in the season to get any honey from it.

Wow, SCORE!

Howzit going now, almost 2 months in?

My cousin just got rid of a hornets nest out of our friends Grizzly enclosure. It was made inside of one of the large concrete culverts he has around for the bears to shelter in.

Made short work of the nest backed up to concrete. Not a single sting and no problem with any of the 7 bear.

The bees seem to be doing well. On warm, sunny days there are huge numbers of bees going in and out. I have huge amounts of wild flowers on my farm, so many, that there still doesn't seem to be many bees around. I have two distinctly different colors of bees in the hive, I'm guessing they were fathered by different drones.

I never did get any frames put in. In the Spring, if the bees make it through the Winter, I'm going to pry off the lid and put some supers on. I'm guessing the combs are attached to the sides as well as the lids and won't drop. I'm also guessing it will still be messy.

Would I be able to get the bees to move up and abandon the lower wild comb?

Keith

It will be tough to get the bees to leave the wild comb. Maybe put a super on top and keep an eye on it. If you see the queen laying in it you could slap a queen excluder under it. After the queen has been out of the wild comb for three weeks you could think about taking the wild combs off. Set the part of the hive with the queen on the old stand and set the part with the wild combs to the side and they will leave for the old stand. Of course, this is next summer.
You may be in for trouble prying the lid off that hive. It's not a sure bet the bees will have attached the combs to the walls really well. If not you might have to do a cut out or and this might sound crazy, turn it upside down and provide another entrance by drilling the hive body.

I know nothing about beekeeping, but it's cool that you're giving it a shot

good find!

You were told early on, and by more than one, to get frames in asap, and you didn’t. Why ask for advice now?

I didn't have any of the equipment. I ordered it and got it 6 days later. I was afraid at that point that I would lose the bees if I messed with the hive.

Keith

There is a lot of bee keepers on this site Keith. Most of them offer up good advice. I know from experience what playing from behind feels like trying to round up equipment on short notice. This is only my second year trying to figure it all out, if a person ever can. I started making a lot of my own equipment to defray some of the cost, but it still is a little pricey. Made about 100 two way pallets and migratory lids for this next year. Just finishing up another 30 swarm traps to add to the 30 I had in use this last year. Caught 39 swarms last year with them and had a blast doing it. Just like running a trap line in late spring and early summer. Had to pull them down because I ran out of equipment to put the bees in. You might want to make you a few too catch bees with if you’re wanting more colonies. Much easier and controlled than trying to cut them out of trees or other odd places. Make them come to you. I don’t know as much about keeping bees as a lot of people on this site but I know quite a bit about swarm trapping. Be glad to share information on that part with you at any time. I plan on trying to catch around 60-70 swarms this next year.

I would be excited to read and see how you go about trapping swarms of bees if you care to start a post on it. I don't know anything about it but I would like to learn.

I would like to hear how you catch swarms too, please.

I grew lemon grass this year, which I've heard can be used to attract swarms.

Keith

This might be my favorite post!! So cool!

I used to catch a lot of swarms probably similar to Keith. All the wild bees have died here, and I am isolated from other beekeepers so not as much now. I do it near my apiaries away from home where I cannot keep an eye on them.
It is pretty simple. I set out an empty hive with some old combs in them. Doesn't have to be full, a frame of old comb is all that is necessary. That is the attractant. If you don't have old combs they do sell pheromone-based lure.
It is not necessary to put the bait hive in a tree. I usually set mine in some tall grass to hide it from passerbys.
As to location, keep an eye out for bees working on flowers and set your bait hives out near there at the start of swarming season. Here that is late may, but I know farther south it is earlier. If you have a swarm box, you need to check every week as they can outgrow a small box rapidly. Even if you have a full-sized hive out letting it go can cause problems if they put enough honey away to make it difficult to move. One of my prerequisites for setting out a bait hive is an easy path to the pickup. It is hard enough moving a hive without obstacles.
If you are thinking about catching some bees next year you should educate yourself on mite treatments.

Look out for skunks, coon and bears!!!!!!

Give me a day or two and I’ll make a post on what equipment I use and how I trap bees. There’s several different ways to do it, just like making sets for coyotes, beaver, or coon. The first year I tried it I only caught one swarm and I think they had to be retarded to have went in the box. Went back to the drawing board, changed my design up on the box, changed how I treated and baited the box and started having good success catching them. Some days I had two different swarms fighting over the same box to see who got to move in before the other one did. I’m setting my apiary up with all local caught survivor feral bees that are already acclimated to the climate here.

Thanks. I look forward to it.

Keith

You found the swarm. You went home to get hive parts. You knew you were going back to get the swarm. It didn't dawn on you to put on long pants and a long sleeve shirt or light jacket?

good read thanks,

There is a lot too studied in whar size box amount if open space attract the most swarms. I uws what amounts to a a5 frame nuke 2 high. It holds 5 frames in the top bottom is open. I put one frame in the middle in the top with old comb and a cotton ball with 2nor 3 drops sof lemon grass oil on it and rebait about once a week maybe 2 weeks.
When you think been have moved in I don't take them down right away. I watch and wait until I see them taking pollen in and out.

ALL my bees have been from swarms or splits. Except when I have bought some Queens

Catching swarms is nice. BUT I had great success moving frames with queen cells into a queen Casle and basically making 5 colonies out of 1.

Never want to worry about having bees again learn how to graft and raise high quality queens. This includes learning how and what to cull. I read the basics but have not don't this yet.

IF you would like i con come up this spring Keith and we can play with bees and swarm traps. I would post pictures of mine but this new phone won't select the picture for some reason.

TO MUCH LEMON GRASS OIL will keep them from using the box.. It can be 2 strong. I Had one swarm stay on the outside of the box because of it. My 2nd year.. that why I only use 2 or 3 drops on a cotton ball vs a soaked one.

Way to go.

Swarms aren't aggressive. I only got stung because I basically showered myself with bees. I did eventually put on goggles. I also have some rare genetics where I have little reaction to pain. Pain compliance holds don't work on me. It made it harder for me when I used to teach unarmed self defense, to show how much force to use.

Keith

Thanks Matt. I would like that.

Keith

Nice Work