Yesterday I was offered a feral hive located about 12 feet up a very large oak tree inside a now hollow limb (about 12" diameter). I've followed the advice threads on hive capture, and have a pretty good idea what to do, but have never done it. Please review my outlne of steps and make any comments or recommendations applicable.
1. Wait until early spring to begin the capture. What time of day? Use smoke and full gear.
2. Build and use bee-vac to capture as many bees as possible.
3. Use smoke.
4. Cut off the hollow limb, taking care not to drop it. Use smoke.
5. Here is the first "heck if I know" part, cut the limb lenght-wise, top and bottom, to expose the comb.
6. Search for queen and hope like heck she is friendly. Capture.
7. Tie the recovered comb in empty frames and place in one or more deep boxes (9 frame to allow some room for loose comb).
8. Now more "heck if I know." Should I leave the deep at the same location for the field bees to find, or move it immediately to the new location, some 30 miles away?
9. Depending on the above, apply more smoke to the bee-vac and then shake into the new home.
10. Cut and run anytime above if they take too much offense to my urban renewal plan.
Ron
1. Wait until early spring to begin the capture. What time of day? Use smoke and full gear.
2. Build and use bee-vac to capture as many bees as possible.
3. Use smoke.
4. Cut off the hollow limb, taking care not to drop it. Use smoke.
5. Here is the first "heck if I know" part, cut the limb lenght-wise, top and bottom, to expose the comb.
6. Search for queen and hope like heck she is friendly. Capture.
7. Tie the recovered comb in empty frames and place in one or more deep boxes (9 frame to allow some room for loose comb).
8. Now more "heck if I know." Should I leave the deep at the same location for the field bees to find, or move it immediately to the new location, some 30 miles away?
9. Depending on the above, apply more smoke to the bee-vac and then shake into the new home.
10. Cut and run anytime above if they take too much offense to my urban renewal plan.
Ron