Swarm Lure Placement

[StarrGin]

One goal I have this year is to catch a swarm and establish a new hive.
I have an empty hive and a nuc.  I'm going to place each on separate sites on my property that are likely to see strong activity.
I have swarm lures to place in each.

Where is the best location to place the lure.
Low in the front near entrance?
High in the back?

Recommendations appreciated.

[BjornBee]

Not sure if it really matters as to the exact placement of the lures inside the box. The bees will smell it regardless.

Here is some info on trap placement that might also help:
http://www.bjornapiaries.com/equipmentmanagement.html
 
Good luck.

[tandemrx]

I agree with Bjorn - I don't think it matters at all where the lure goes - the bees are very adept at finding cavities that they would like.

Not sure about your placement ideas, but I think it is actually better to be a good 1/4 mile from other colonies and I think Tom Seeley even had some number of feet that it was best to be away from a bee yard (600 or meters? I can't remember, I have it somewhere).  I do think I have had better success with my traps that were a ways away and they have completely ignored some traps very close to the bee yard they left.  They would find these close by traps - for sure - with a lot of scout activity checking them out after a hive had swarmed and was sitting somewhere outside the hive . . . but they would nearly routinely decide not to go to the nearby traps and head off to further sites . . . even if it was not some nice cozy box that I had given them with lure, frames, old frames, 10 feet up, south facing bottom entrance, out of the sun, etc, etc (all the criteria that Tom Seeley would give the perfect trap as noted on Bjorn's page).  I had at least 6 swarms from one bee yard this past summer and a "perfect" swarm box some 500 feet away . . . Never caught a swarm.  That is not to say it doesn't happen - even just feet away - but I am becoming more convinced that 1/4 mile or so is a good number.

If you want to catch swarms I HIGHLY recommend you read Tom Seeley's HoneyBee Democracy.  Besides being a great book, it tells all regarding swarms.

[bailey]

i place mine inside the trap on the floor and up the tree they go.