Beekeeping Miracle

**dcerdeiras** · 03-07-2012, 04:44 PM

True story.

A couple of months ago, I lost my beehive after a string of lost colonies. I decided to give the hobby a break because I couldn't afford buying another package of bees. Yesterday, I noticed bees going in and out of my empty supers. Upon inspection, i found a swarm has settled in my old beehive. Now I have bees again!

Has this happened to anyone before, I've never heard of this happening.

(I'm attributing this to St. Ambrose: patron saint of beekeepers)

**adam@azapiaries** · 03-07-2012, 05:40 PM

Not saying you didn't experience a miracle, but it happens frequently. A beehive is like mooving into a furnished apartment. At any rate, you now have bees!

**BeeTax** · 03-07-2012, 06:33 PM

I lost a hive several years ago and pretty much forgot about it. A year and a half later, in the Spring, it was full of bees, 2 deeps, and had a super of Tupelo honey.

**hoodswoods** · 03-07-2012, 07:11 PM

All that drawn comb and an empty, happy home - exactly what a swarm is looking for, just divine.

**dmpower** · 03-07-2012, 07:37 PM

Congratulations on having bees again. And you can also say you were successful at trapping a swarm.
There was a video posted on this site last year. A man was in town and noticed a swarm. He followed it for miles and it finally
got to their destination - a hive in his very own backyard! How cool is that?
But I digress,
Welcome back to beekeeping!!

**throrope** · 03-07-2012, 07:43 PM

Originally Posted by dcerdeiras

(I'm attributing this to St. Ambrose: patron saint of beekeepers)

Good enough for me.

**Intheswamp** · 03-07-2012, 08:29 PM

Nice story. Thanks for sharing!

Ed

**Ravenseye** · 03-08-2012, 05:34 AM

Always be thankful for gifts. As I get older, I remember that more often. It makes me share more with others. Enjoy the bees and let us know how things go!

**Daniel Y** · 03-08-2012, 06:13 AM

It may not be a miracle but it is fortunate. Congrats on getting your hive repopulated. I have heard one way to make a swarm trap more alluring is to place old comb in it. Sort of what you did even though you didn't intend to.

**dcerdeiras** · 03-08-2012, 09:20 AM

Thanks.
So far they are making their own comb as I had no foundation in the hive. I'll leave them alone for about a week and then try to rearrange the comb (I'm practicing natural comb hives). My only worry is that they may have some africanized genes in them (thats becoming a problem in South Floirda and it has happened to me before, not fun), but so far they are really gentle, as are mot swarms.

So far so good.

PS- it just occured to me that I accidentaly posted this under "beekeeping 101" instead of "bee forum". Oops.

**dcerdeiras** · 03-24-2012, 09:09 AM

Unfortuantly, They left.
Since I'm doing natural comb, I rearanged some of the natural comb they were making (I left about 2/3 untouched to not induce to much stress. About 4 days later, they left, but they already started working on the rearanged comb (bonding them together) and the left brood behind. Could rearanging comb induce that much stress?
The hive bodies were also heavily infested with beetles prior (Since they came without warning, I never had a chance to clean them), so the beetle residue is also a prime cause.