The Buzz Newsletter

May 2004

 

 

Page 6

Swarming, what do I do? May 2004

Here it is May. That wonderful month when according to folklore a swarm of bees is worth a load of hay. Now I haven’t had the need to buy any hay recently or for that matter in over forty years, so I have no idea what a load of hay is truly worth. I do know that a three-pound package of bees shipped from a producer from a southern state will cost approximately $70 delivered by the U. S. Postal Service. So unless you want to give away a few $70 swarms of bees, I suggest you keep a close watch on your hives and keep the swarm cells for new queens removed on a weekly basis. If you miss just one queen cell one week, you may very likely loose a swarm of bees and the chance for a good honey crop from that hive this year. May is generally a month when rains interrupt the hive activity and often the plants stop flowing with nectar and the bees being force to stay home feel crowded and prepare swarm cells. By giving the bees another hive body with several frames of foundation in it can help relieve the crowded feeling and also give the bees something to do while cluster in the hive. This does not guarantee that the hive won’t still swarm. You just have to be prepared with an empty hive body with frames of foundation, a top and a bottom ready for that unexpected swarm. Often a swarm will settle on a bush or in a tree near the parent hive. By getting the swarm into a different hive they will often start to draw the comb immediately and you can go through your hives and often determine which hive the swarm immersed from and after removing the new queen swarm cells you can reunite the swarm to the old hive and still have a good strong colony. If you don’t want to reunite the swarm you can use it to increase your colonies. If you want to do a community service, call the local police dept or county sheriff office and offer to pick up swarms if any should occur near your home. In pass years I was willing to pick up swarms from several communities near my home and over the years my name has been transferred to various groups as some one to call to remove swarms. It amazes me where and how some people get my name. I always carry a spray bottle of sugar water with me when I go to catch a swarm. If the bees have been there for a day or longer, spraying them gently with the sugar water is the best thing I have found for keeping the swarm calm and docile. The last thing I want is for someone that is watching me collect a swarm to get stung by an irritated honeybee. I can assure you if you show up to remove a swarm of bees, you will have an audience of the home owner, neighbors and most of the kids in the neighborhood to watch the “idiot” that plays with bees, you know those insects that will sting all of the bad out of you; so I don’t see any way that a beekeeper will go anywhere but to heaven when they die.

May is the month that I consider one of the best nectar flows that makes a very delicious light colored honey. Normally from about a week before Memorial Day to a week afterward the black locust trees are in full bloom and if you are near a forest of them you should be able to harvest some wonderful locust honey. Now it is not like the mild flavored clover honey your bees will gather in late June and July. It also is not the robust flavor of heartsease honey that the bees sometime gather in September and October. It has a very distinct taste and if you are fortunate enough to gather a good crop of locust honey you will have a product that with proper marketing will bring a premium price of more than what you charge for clover honey. If you have black locust trees near your hives, take a stroll under the trees and see if you can hear the hum of the bees as they gather the nectar. You should be able to smell the sweet aroma of the blooms from a hundred yards away.

May all of your swarms come from hives other than your own and may they all be within five feet of the ground. There are numerous ways and devices for capturing swarms, but the best way to capture a swarm from your hive is to prevent the hive from swarming by good management.

By The Old Man