Bailey better look out, I'm on a roll! :lau:
2 swarms in 2 days! :)
Schawee eyes up the situation...
Got a call from my nephew when I was at work this evening....He told me the bees were swarming. My first thought was that the swarm I had caught yesterday, Charlie Hive, was swarming out on me. I told him to keep an eye out for where they land and that I was on the way.
When I got there, he had them spotted in a patch of thicket about 50 feet or so from my 2 hives. However, it was obvious that they hadn't come from Charlie Hive...So, the logical answer is Alpha swarmed on me. However, I'm guess there is the possibility that it was a feral hive, I'm not really certain. I guess I'll have a better idea next time I inspect Alpha, but that's most likely where the smart money is at.
Anyway, put out a text to Bailey and Schawee for advice. Schawee was near by and offered to come by, an offer I promptly took him up on. However, my plan-A was to bee-vac them up and get them in a box. Something told me Schawee wasn't going to like that approach, and I was right.
He suggested we get them in a cardboard box and he'd show me how to find the queen. I told him that I was more likely to get stung under that plan, he politely agreed but told me that's how you learn. I couldn't argue with that, could I? :-D
Long story short, we got them in the cardboard box, found the queen, caged her and got them in a hive box, actually two...Schawee was estimating it at 4 1/2 to 5 pounds of bees.
I really appreciate Schawee coming by to help out, we had a great time and I racked up a few first...I took my first hand full of bees, I also got my first sting on the face...Dead center on the nose...:lau:
I think I ended the "learning experience" with 6 stings, while Schawee had ZERO! But hey, who's counting! :-D
Here's a little video of Schawee coaching me on the bee dump into the hive box.