2. Swarms
Can be an easy way to increase the number of hives you
have
It is the natural way that bees replicate themselves
It usually occurs in early spring to mid summer
Happens in large active healthily hives (so if the hive is
weak – it won’t swarm)
If you live in the city – swarming of your bees is a public
nuisance
3.
4. Types of Swarms
Primary Swarms
1st Swarm of the season
Contains a Queen and can have up to 25,000 bees
Sometimes this maybe the only swarm from a hive
Sometimes maybe the original queen (she ceases laying
eggs, so abdomen reduces and allows her to fly)
5.
6.
7. Types of Swarms
Secondary Swarms (sometimes called after-swarms)
Happen after the primary swarms (maybe only be a couple
a weeks after the primary one sometimes)
Usually a virgin queen
8.
9. Types of Swarms
Absconding Swarms
The whole hive leaves the box
They are starving
There is disease present
Insects are attacking the hive (hive month or ants)
This is rare – but it does happen
More common – the hive will die out before vacating the hive
10. Catching the Swarm
You need to consider 3 main points
How long the bees have been sitting there
Where exactly the swarm is located
The size of the swarm
11. Catching the Swarm
If the bees have not settled properly
They will not go into your box easily
They will probably move on very quickly
If the bees have been there a couple of days
They will move on very quickly to their new home
The Scout bees will have located a new hive spot
Even if you manage to catch them – they may leave
12. Location of the Swarm
If the bees settle in a very high tree or some other
difficult spot – it will be very difficult to catch them
Your success rate is very low
Accessibility – can you reach them
Do you need a ladder?
How high????
If the bees are in someone’s house wall, roof, inside part of
a building structure (which requires removal of the part of
the structure ----------CALL PEST CONTROL!
You must consider the safety aspect – and use
caution when grabbing the swarm
13. Size of the Swarm
If it is a primary swarm –
You may need a full size box
10 frames
If it is a secondary swarm
Use a nuc box
5 frames
14. Catching the Swarm
1. Suit up
2. Make sure you have all your wood ware ready
- put a couple of drawn frames in the hive box
- the bees have gorged on honey – so they don’t need
any honey frames
- Swarms are often used to repair damaged frames and
draw foundation
15. Catching the Swarm
The bees will be clustering around the queen
Shake the bees into a bucket
If possible – put the hive box underneath the swarm
Try disturb the bees as little as possible
You might have to shake the bees off several times
before they will stay in the box
You can tell that you have caught the queen because the
worker bees will ‘fan’
17. Catching the Swarm
Leave the lid off the swarm for the first 15-20 mins
Then when the bees start fanning and the majority of
the bees are in the hive box
Put the lid on BUT leave a gap for the bees to enter and
exit from
The bees will use the regular entrance as well as the gap
on the top
Leave the box on location until evening so that you
catch the entire hive before removing it
18. Emergency
You can put them into a cardboard box – use one that
closes
You can use a bucket with a lid – slip the bucket under
the swarm and put the lid on the bucket (snip the
branch)
Try to not to disturb the cluster – just quietly place the
box/bucket under the swarm – and shut it quickly
You won’t get all the bees – but most of them & the
queen
19.
20. Final thoughts on Swarms
You can use Bait hives to catch swarms when you are
not around – (nuc box with some drawn frames)
If the swarm is a secondary – you are better off
jamming it on top of a weaker hive
Greater number of bees === stronger hive, better cluster
Disease can be transferred with Swarms
If it is not your own hive swarm ----Play it safe and leave
the swarms separate from your own hives
Keep an eye on the brood for signs of disease
21.
22. Splitting Hives
If you want to increase the number of producing hives
for either the current year or the following year
It discourages swarming
You can generate an income from the sale of nucs
23. Hive Splits and Time of the Year
If you get the timing wrong – it will be a waste of time,
money and bees
Generally mid spring (when numbers in the hives begin
to increase) and before the honey flow peaks
There has to be adequate food in both splits for the both
hives to thrive (so you may have to feed them too)
The general rule – the earlier and the stronger each split
is – the more successful you will be
24. How to Split them
Split a double brood hive in half
Leave the queen in one box
Put a queen cell/mated queen in the other box
Make sure there is brood in both hives
Select brood and feed from a hive – and make up nucs
Minimum number of frames is 3 for a nuc
REMEMBER clustering and temperatures so 5 frames is best
You need a queen cell/mated queen for the nuc
26. Side by Side Hive Splits
Double Brood Boxes
Put 2 hive floors together – in front of the old hive
Put one box on each of the hive floors
Check to see which box has the queen
Re-queen the other box – mated queen/queen cell
27. Walk Away Splits
Split the hive in half (brood frames and honey)
Leave them alone
The Queen-less hive will raise a queen (16 days to
hatching – another week for her to mate)
Compare this to a mated queen – about 5 days to get
out of the cage – another 5 days to get laying well
Ripe queen cell – is about 11 days from hatching to
mating and laying
28. Hive Splitting
If you do it in the spring – 21 days for the hive to get
going if you leave it queenless
If you use a mature queen cell – 11 days for the hive to
get going
If you use a mated queen – it will take about 10 days
(maximum) to get going
30. Queens
Buy Mated queens – come in a cage, with other
bees
- They have a sugar ‘end’ – you MUST remove the
plastic cap so that the bees can eat through the
sugar end to release the queen -- takes about 45 days
Unmated Queen emerging