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Author Topic: my bees are swarming right now  (Read 7227 times)

Offline DayValleyDahlias

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #20 on: March 04, 2008, 01:26:21 pm »
The swarm cluster has not budged from the oak tree...bees are just beginning to leave the cluster to forage I guess.

I have to leave the airport in a bit, so I can't really check anything at the moment.  I have the 2 traps sitting about 10-12 feet from the cluster at about the same height (my back deck )...

Have to leave it up to the universe now...

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Offline annette

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #21 on: March 04, 2008, 01:29:28 pm »
OK, I will keep checking your post. This is way to exciting.

Annette

Offline Kathyp

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #22 on: March 04, 2008, 02:18:52 pm »
they are probably sending out scouts to look for a new home. 
Someone really ought to tell them that the world of Ayn Rand?s novel was not meant to be aspirational.

Offline watercarving

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #23 on: March 04, 2008, 05:25:37 pm »
I remember our bees swarming when I was a kid. It was incredible and the sound was something else...

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Offline DayValleyDahlias

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #24 on: March 04, 2008, 05:35:28 pm »
The cluster has...vanished.  Got home just now, bees are gone...I think I will go walk the property to see if they have remained somewhere here...hope they haven't gone to the neighbor's  hahaha

Offline LocustHoney

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #25 on: March 04, 2008, 06:41:07 pm »
Got to experience a swarm last year and man was it AWESOME!!! It was like a bee tornado is all the words that I can think of to explain it. Were in the south here so the big ol' tale of what to do (and ALOT of the beekeepers do it) is to get a pan and a wooden spoon and bang on it. They say it keeps the bees from flying off and makes them get lower to the ground. They story is they think it is a thunderstorm so they don't fly off. Hey, I made my wife do it while I wnet flying down the road to get a hive. Came back and seen my wife and two kids standing at the bush in the side yard jumping up and down. Hated I had to leave but seen enough to fall in love. Sorry yours got away but from the sound of it you got to see the best part....mother nature. The thing that made it so amazing to me was the fact that I knew no matter what I did I couldn't stop it! Helplessness yet powerful... :shock:

Offline DayValleyDahlias

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #26 on: March 04, 2008, 06:49:28 pm »
Golly they returned, or some other bees did!  Whoa, now trying to get them will be a challenge!

Offline johnnybigfish

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #27 on: March 04, 2008, 09:27:56 pm »
HURRY, HURRY..!!
The suspense is KILLING us here!!
 The heck with letting mother nature have them!
Put up a FIGHT, Sharon!!
Knock them into a box!!..YOU can DO it!!
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Offline DayValleyDahlias

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #28 on: March 04, 2008, 09:31:14 pm »
Easier said than done...the first time they were too high, this time they are so darn low and a midget oak tree, on a fat trunk, I smacked the darn thing, couldn't get bees to fall at all...tried scraping them off with cardboard, got some clumps into the hive body, looked somewhat promising...just went out and they are back on the tree, I have no experience whatsoever...sad, because I am sure any one of you experienced beeks would have had them hived and happy in no time... :-\

Offline deejaycee

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #29 on: March 04, 2008, 09:44:15 pm »
They'll follow the queen. 

If you didn't get them all off the trunk, then likely the queen was still on the trunk, so back the girls troop to her. 

If you haven't got a bee brush, get a clean (unused) paint brush (house size - 3-4 inch), a dust brush, even a soft broom and sweep them off.   If you're using a heavier/more solid brush than a bee brush, make sure you press it against the trunk and sweep towards the cluster of bees so you roll them all off at once, rather than pushing the brush into the cluster and squishing bees under the brush.  There'll be bees in the air, but just make sure you don't leave any bees on the trunk and you can then be pretty sure you'll have the queen.

Don't worry about trying to see the queen - it's a nice bonus if you do, but I never have in a swarm.  ONce you get her in the box you'll notice in a few minutes those bees outside the box will start trooping in towards her.

Offline pdmattox

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #30 on: March 04, 2008, 09:53:24 pm »
you need to plant some of the trees i keep here on my farm. Nice limber limbs makes for easy removal. :-D



Offline DayValleyDahlias

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #31 on: March 04, 2008, 10:03:42 pm »
Sounds like a plan...if they are still there in the morning I will give it a try...OR should I wait til afternoon???

Offline Jerrymac

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #32 on: March 04, 2008, 10:26:21 pm »
Swarms are unpredictable. They could up and leave as soon as they get warm enough to fly.
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Offline deejaycee

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #33 on: March 04, 2008, 10:31:53 pm »
Jerry's right - a swarm there now is no guarantee of a swarm there in an hour, and absolutely no guarantee of them being there tomorrow. Get into em first chance you get.

Is it night where you are now?  If it's dark I'd get out and get them at first light tomorrow morning - very first light.

Offline Kathyp

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #34 on: March 04, 2008, 10:35:34 pm »
yours sounds like one that a friend of mine had on a wooden fence post.  at the time her husband was keeping bees, so he caught them.  they were all over the post and low to the ground.  he got them goopy with syrup and used his hand to kind of peel them off into a dust pan.  he just dumped the pan in the hive and peeled some more.  i have no idea how that worked out with the queen and stuff.  i just remember he did it from the bottom up.  don't know if there was a reason for that either except that they were clumped on the top and down the sides.

after this, go buy a cheap camera for the bees!!!!!  :-)
Someone really ought to tell them that the world of Ayn Rand?s novel was not meant to be aspirational.

Offline DayValleyDahlias

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #35 on: March 04, 2008, 11:53:44 pm »
Ok first thing in the am if they are there, dust pan, and i will buy a cheap camera! I estimate there must be 3# of bees...and I am not sure they are from my hive, I am looking in my hive tomorrow to see what is going on!

Online Michael Bush

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #36 on: March 05, 2008, 08:48:40 am »
Most swarms leave the hive about mid morning and leave for the wild blue yonder about mid afternoon.  If they are sill there the next day, they are probably stuck with no where to go and the odds of them still being there actually increase, as they didn't have a destination in mind when they started.  But they still may leave any second. Or they may be stuck there forever.
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Offline Irwin

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #37 on: December 05, 2008, 11:44:20 am »
Come on what happend with the bee's :?
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Offline DayValleyDahlias

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #38 on: December 05, 2008, 08:13:01 pm »
Hey Irwin...

I think I have another post somewhere about the swarm, I was so freaked about it.  A total of 3 swarms came to our land, I was successful in obtaining 2 with the help of many fine folks here.  The swarm Ikept lost their queen, so I did a combine with a strong colony ( the only colony I had ) they made a great new queen, nicest bees ever, very strong stock, YAY!

Offline Irwin

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Re: my bees are swarming right now
« Reply #39 on: December 06, 2008, 09:46:21 am »
Good for you  :-D
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