Things have looked fantastic in the hive, and it’s warmed up, so I took off the winter insulation. The bees seem healthy and happy, and they are bringing back pollen. I was making them mad doing a hive inspection, so I closed it up and left them alone before I got down to the brood frames. There was already a lot of new honey in the supers, so I was excited that it looked like they were nearly already caught up to where they had been at the end of last summer! But I didn’t realize I had trouble brewing below. I’m not sure if I would have identified the queen cells that were down in the brood frames, but it would have warned me that a swarm was imminent.
So I’ve learned a lot about swarms and building hives in the last few days.
I knew what to do with a swarm and how to capture it, but i was completely unprepared in regards to equipment. I had been added to the swarm list mostly because I wanted to observe a capture, and though “oh, if I get some hives built, then maybe I’ll take a swarm.” I didn’t realize it would be my own bees that would be one of the first swarms of the year.
I was on my way to church and could hear trouble at the hive. They sounded very angry, and at a glance I could see 5,000-10,000 bees swirling over the lilacs. It was either a major robbery (which is unlikely to happen to a healthy colony), or a swarm beginning. I’m grateful it was a Sunday, and i’m grateful I was able to observe the entire process. The swirling moved to the back yard, and I thought perhaps they would land in the neighbor’s short pine tree. I wasn’t suited up, so I wasn’t able to observe much, but it wasn’t long before I spotted the swarm in the lilacs.
 |
| Bee Swarm - 4 May 2014 - Fort Collins, CO |
Here's some cell phone footage of the mayhem of the swarm before they'd really settled down. (Set it to HD)
I guessed that the mass of bees had to be more than 20,000. It was a huge swarm. My initial thought was to put them back in the hive and try to keep them there, but after I got suited up and looked, it didn’t look like there was any room for another bee. No wonder the queen had left.
But that was the problem, she’s such and excellent queen, that I didn’t want to lose her. There was nowhere open to buy equipment, so I was really in a pinch. I called the NCBA Swarm Hotline - (970-213-3099) and Beth encouraged me to pass on the swarm or scramble together equipment. She also informed me that it’s hard to tell how long a swarm will stay put. It can be a few minutes, a few hours, or even a few days. No matter what, it was an urgent situation if I was going to keep these bees.
God bless the people a Beesource.com!!! They have put together plans for a lot of different beekeeping woodenware. I was able to download Langstroth Hive Plans. I dashed to home depot to get 1x12s and 1x8s to make supers. It took 12 hours, but I managed to get a Frankenhive put together. It was after midnight, that I went out to check on the swarm, and they were sound asleep. I thought it’d be best not to move them until morning, with the light, so I could see them, and they could see the new hive.
I was up early the next morning, and my prayers had been answered, the swarm was still in the lilacs. It was actually nice and cool too, which was good for me. Bees are a bit like lizards in that they are lethargic when they are cold. I was VERY lucky. I place two have bodies under the swarm and cut through the branch. One of the things they mentioned you need to deal with a swarm is help . . . and after having caught one . . . yes, you need help. The swarm was heavier than I thought, and I . . . well . . . just watch the video.
They all seemed to be moving in, so I moved Frankenhive to a semipermanent place in the back yard. There wasn’t a lot I could do for them except pray, and try to get home soon so I could build some inner and outer covers.
- to be continued -
No comments:
Post a Comment