I have been using Langstroth poly hives for years, and this year have had to make makeshift hives for swarms, not realising I could use a roof as a floor! Thank you SO much for this video! You are so calm around your bees also - a true example! 🐝
Hi Catherine, We've not had many swarms this year but I always seem to be missing that one piece of kit I need to get them housed securely. Another option we've used when missing a floor is placing a spare brood box on top of another colony but removing the roof and using the clear coverboard as a temporary floor, wedging the corner up to provide an entrance! It worked fine and they're now in a complete hive. Have a great Summer season. Stewart
We've been very lucky with our farmers, this area is "off-road" so no need to really trim the hawthorn back hard. We've had a couple of years of really great honey from it now. I hope your beekeeping season is going well. Stewart
Nice little video. Isn't is always the case: you put out carefully positioned and constructed swarm traps and they move into a stack of idle equipment....
Hi George, It certainly is, they seem to ignore our bait hives and settle elsewhere, we got lucky this time, a simple move for them and another colony to add to the apiary. Stewart
Hi DC, Looks like another nice Spring crop of Hawthorn honey coming off the bees this year. I hope you're enjoying a good start to the season. HAve a great Summer. Stewart
Hi Ken, Thanks for commenting, hopefully, we'll get some more lucky catches before the bees settle down and start their full Summer nectar foraging season. Stewart
Hi Glynis, They're a little on the small side so we'll build them up over the Summer (leave them to do their own thing!) and overwinter them ready for next Spring. Have a great Summer beekeeping. Stewart
Why is there a 4-5 cm overhang where they could before land on the super and walk in under the roof? You see it hinders them to find the entrance. A bunch of bees can’t find the entrance in this position
Hi Martin, Because we changed the set up, intially the bees were a little confused but now, some days later, they are perfectly fine with the entrance as it is. Stewart
I highly appreciated your contributions. I want your sharing on if there is possibility to use old brood wax frame and wax moth infested brood frame. I tried to melt old brood frame and reuse, the recovery of wax is negligible. For case of wax moth infested, I usually buried after strong sunshine exposure to avoid wax moth growing. If any new idea share please. Thanks
Hi, For really old wax or highly infested moth damaged frames I destroy. It's just not practical to try to reuse and as you say, the wax recliamed is very small. Stewart
I had exactly the same thing happen to me as you have swarm moved into a pile of my supers same height as yours were going under one of my old roofs a gap, watched them to see to try and ascertain if it was a swarm or just robber bees. Then I saw the queen running around on the front then went up under the roof she had no workers around her left them for 10 days waiting to see the pollen coming in then checked them she's laying like mad a monster layer like your swarm not large added a frame of sealed brood to give them the boost they needed there doing great. This swarm was the second in a week I got another swarm had moved in to a few brood boxes I had stored again though a gap between the brood boxes sat on top of each other now this swarm was a big one again a good laying queen, funny thing avoided my 5 bait hives altogether so started to bait my hives in the way the swarms liked it a small gap at the top already I'm having interest already will have to experiment with lots of my ideas to get that near perfect bait box been doing bees more then 30 years and this has to be the best for swarms I have seen.
Hi David, It certainly seems to vary how, where and when these swarms want to settle. We get them all over the place, occasionally in our bait hives but more often than not in something else! Stewart
I have been using Langstroth poly hives for years, and this year have had to make makeshift hives for swarms, not realising I could use a roof as a floor! Thank you SO much for this video! You are so calm around your bees also - a true example! 🐝
Hi Catherine,
We've not had many swarms this year but I always seem to be missing that one piece of kit I need to get them housed securely. Another option we've used when missing a floor is placing a spare brood box on top of another colony but removing the roof and using the clear coverboard as a temporary floor, wedging the corner up to provide an entrance! It worked fine and they're now in a complete hive. Have a great Summer season.
Stewart
If only more of our farmers would let the Hawthorne grow like that.
We've been very lucky with our farmers, this area is "off-road" so no need to really trim the hawthorn back hard. We've had a couple of years of really great honey from it now.
I hope your beekeeping season is going well.
Stewart
Love it when swarms land in back in your equipment... Automated splits 😁
If only they were all that simple! Have a great season.
Stewart
Nice little video. Isn't is always the case: you put out carefully positioned and constructed swarm traps and they move into a stack of idle equipment....
Hi George,
It certainly is, they seem to ignore our bait hives and settle elsewhere, we got lucky this time, a simple move for them and another colony to add to the apiary.
Stewart
We are having a huge Hawthorn bloom this year to, here in Washington State US.👍 Thanks for shoring.
Hi DC,
Looks like another nice Spring crop of Hawthorn honey coming off the bees this year. I hope you're enjoying a good start to the season. HAve a great Summer.
Stewart
Thanks for that!
Hi Peter,
You're welcome, have a great summer beekeeping.
Stewart
Very entertaining, especially for a single handed video. Cheers from Australia.
Hi Ken,
Thanks for commenting, hopefully, we'll get some more lucky catches before the bees settle down and start their full Summer nectar foraging season.
Stewart
Great catch 👍 It looks like that colony will soon build up, and they seemed to be nice bees 👍😃 🇬🇧
Hi Glynis,
They're a little on the small side so we'll build them up over the Summer (leave them to do their own thing!) and overwinter them ready for next Spring.
Have a great Summer beekeeping.
Stewart
Why is there a 4-5 cm overhang where they could before land on the super and walk in under the roof? You see it hinders them to find the entrance. A bunch of bees can’t find the entrance in this position
Hi Martin,
Because we changed the set up, intially the bees were a little confused but now, some days later, they are perfectly fine with the entrance as it is.
Stewart
Congratulations from Spain
Hi Ben,
I hope the weather in Spain gives you a great beekeeping Summer this year.
Stewart
I highly appreciated your contributions. I want your sharing on if there is possibility to use old brood wax frame and wax moth infested brood frame. I tried to melt old brood frame and reuse, the recovery of wax is negligible. For case of wax moth infested, I usually buried after strong sunshine exposure to avoid wax moth growing. If any new idea share please. Thanks
Hi,
For really old wax or highly infested moth damaged frames I destroy. It's just not practical to try to reuse and as you say, the wax recliamed is very small.
Stewart
I had exactly the same thing happen to me as you have swarm moved into a pile of my supers same height as yours were going under one of my old roofs a gap, watched them to see to try and ascertain if it was a swarm or just robber bees. Then I saw the queen running around on the front then went up under the roof she had no workers around her left them for 10 days waiting to see the pollen coming in then checked them she's laying like mad a monster layer like your swarm not large added a frame of sealed brood to give them the boost they needed there doing great. This swarm was the second in a week I got another swarm had moved in to a few brood boxes I had stored again though a gap between the brood boxes sat on top of each other now this swarm was a big one again a good laying queen, funny thing avoided my 5 bait hives altogether so started to bait my hives in the way the swarms liked it a small gap at the top already I'm having interest already will have to experiment with lots of my ideas to get that near perfect bait box been doing bees more then 30 years and this has to be the best for swarms I have seen.
Hi David,
It certainly seems to vary how, where and when these swarms want to settle. We get them all over the place, occasionally in our bait hives but more often than not in something else!
Stewart
I like those wooden supers Langstroth mediums? what make are they please? thanks in advance ...
Got to ask what that super with that nice blue colour what is the name of that paint
Hi David,
I'll have to check but it's a smooth masonry paint.
Stewart