Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. => Topic started by: danno on August 22, 2013, 02:19:39 pm

Title: swarm #15
Post by: danno on August 22, 2013, 02:19:39 pm
Going to shake swarm #15 after work tonight.  Basketball size, 4 ft off the ground on the outside branches of a spruce.   Will dump them in a single deep and feed the heck out of them. 
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: BlueBee on August 22, 2013, 02:46:12 pm
Check your calender Danny, it's about September  :laugh:
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: danno on August 22, 2013, 02:54:45 pm
Blueboy
Thanks for reminding me!!!  You are such a tool!!!  
Not that I feel I need to explain to you but I will take a swarm anytime and any month.  At the very least they will draw out wax.  It would definitely be to late for them to make it on there own but its not to late with help.  First off they will have a complete hive of drawn comb with a couple of honey frames and pollen.  The queen will be laying by the weekend.   I will leave them settle in for a couple of weeks before checking on them and if at that time I feel they wont have a chance I will dump the whole hive body on another one that needs a boost.  Now pay attention here blueboy. When you have more then 3 colonies as you do it can give you alot more options.   My last round of honey extraction will be Sat. and I will end up vacuuming a few  pounds of bees off the honey house windows.  I know that you will have a hard time grasping that number being the little hobby guy you are   These will also be placed on a colony that needs a population boost.   
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: forrestcav on August 23, 2013, 01:43:16 am
so have you had good luck hiving a swarm this late Danno?  How do you keep the vacuumed bees from returning to their own colonies.
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: millipede on August 23, 2013, 02:01:28 am
Ha I dropped a swarm half that size in the nuc last weekend. I am pretty sure they will make it with some help form me.
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: Brian D. Bray on August 23, 2013, 02:25:40 am
If you're using deeps you'll have better success overwintering the swarm if you put into a double stacked nuc, they will build out both boxes between now and mid-September, if fed, and develop a decent brood chamber to build up the population.  Bees build up better than they  build out which is why multiple stacked nucs work so well for late swarms.
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: forrestcav on August 23, 2013, 08:08:11 am
I'll have to keep that in mind. only caught one swarm last year, and it absconded. I didn't even try this year. Maybe next year with a little luck
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: danno on August 23, 2013, 08:55:20 am
so have you had good luck hiving a swarm this late Danno?  How do you keep the vacuumed bees from returning to their own colonies.
I quit swarm trapping over a month ago but I always seem to pickup one or two late ones.   The woman that had this one hanging in her front yard found me on this site.  Thanks Beemaster!!   Most of the late swarms end up strengthening another colony but this one is was really big.  The queen is a wootens golden queen and the swarm has alot of very young bee's in it.   So many young bee's I believe it was a hive that absconded not swarmed.  I know they are wootens because of the very light color and a old beekeeper died a couple of months ago 1/2 mile down the road and he always used wootens.  First thing his wife did was get rid of all the bee's but this one most like was a escapee from years past.   I bought wootens queens from him about 5 or 6 years ago and they were the same light golden color.  
Most the vacuumed bee's are brought in from out yards so they will stay where ever I put them plus they are mostly young bee's that refused to leave the supers because of a patch of brood or two
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: danno on August 23, 2013, 08:59:12 am
If you're using deeps you'll have better success overwintering the swarm if you put into a double stacked nuc, they will build out both boxes between now and mid-September, if fed, and develop a decent brood chamber to build up the population.  Bees build up better than they  build out which is why multiple stacked nucs work so well for late swarms.
This is why feral colonies do so well in wall cavities.  16" to 24" X 4" X many feet.   The food is all straight up
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: gdog on August 23, 2013, 11:09:37 am
Danno

Has the fall flow started by you yet? The goldenrod by me is starting not too much yet but I'm sure it will kick off after the rain we got yesterday was a great year for the bees
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: danno on August 23, 2013, 12:09:31 pm
Danno

Has the fall flow started by you yet? The goldenrod by me is starting not too much yet but I'm sure it will kick off after the rain we got yesterday was a great year for the bees
patches of goldenrod have been popping up for the last week and a half.   I have about 15 acres that is just starting to show signs of yellow.   In the next week it will be in bloom.   I leave it for the bee's so I plan on pulling everything tomorrow. 
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: gdog on August 23, 2013, 12:39:51 pm
danno

will the bees be able to collect enough pollen and nectar for the winter ? do you then knock the hive down to just two or three supers?
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: danno on August 23, 2013, 01:45:50 pm
I winter in double deeps.   I will have most knocked down this weekend.  I do leave a super on the ones that are VERY strong so they dont swarm.   These will winter at 2 1/2 stories.   With goldenrod and aster they have alot of time to get to there winter weight.  The way winters have been going these should run into Nov so they have a full 2 months. 
Title: Re: swarm #15
Post by: 10framer on August 23, 2013, 02:49:45 pm
danno i was thinking the same thing.  this time last year i started getting swarm calls and i'm sure it was really hive beetle victims.  i think the latest i've ever hived a swarm down here was june first and it was maybe 2 pounds of what looked like pure carnis.