[khaas15]

Hi,

This is my first year with a hive. I purchased an established hive (one deep) this spring and added a second deep and fed, fed, fed. The hive built out the second deep and was starting to store in it (sugar water), so I added a super. Anyway, I kept feeding making sure they weren't storing in the super. Well, they started to so I stopped feeding. But I guess I fed them too much because they swarmed on me. My nin year old called me and said there was a tornado of bees behind our house. He took this picuture!

http://home.comcast.net/~khaas15/Swarm2010.JPG

What would you do now? Let them requeen themselves? Introduce a new queen? I was also told that I should break off all the queen cells but two because they might swarm again.

BTW, I looked and looked for the swarm but no luck. I have a swarm trap in the yard and there are now bees around it constantly. I am hoping they come back.

 

[JOHNYOGA2]

Hi Khaas!
There will be a new queen in place of the old in a few days. The hive will go on. Let them requeen themselves. Swarms are a sign that the hive is happy with it's location, happy enough to feel confident and want to reproduce. Happy hives swarm, Unhappy hives abscound. Of course it's nicer if you split the hive before it swarms, but that's something you learn in time (some of the time). Sometimes they do come back. Every beek, new or old, has a hive swarm sometime or other. You have just added a new feral hive to your area.

 

[EastSideBuzz]

Build a Bait hive and try to capture them back.

 

[c10250]

I saw his setup. He had a bait hive there with some bur comb, a pherome lure, and some LGO even BEFORE he got the hive. He's been trying to capture a swarm for a while now.

There is a LOT of activity around the bait hive now. I'd say around 10-20 bees flying in and out at any one time. We were trying to beeline them yesterday to find the swarm, but no luck.

I told him he was going to feed those things into swarming!!

If you look at his picture, you can just make out his hive under the tree

Ken

 

[Hillbillenigma]

I told him he was going to feed those things into swarming!!

Ken

Being new, how does one "feed them into swarming"? I was under the impression that once nectar started flowing the bees would gradually reduce thier intake of syrup..?

 

[honeybeekeeper]

you have just helped the honey bee population & you have a nice happy hive, i would give yourself a pat on the back for such an achievment. Good Job!!!

 

[khaas15]

So, a few more questions.

I have decided to let nature take its course and let the hive requeen itself. The hive swarmed Sunday, so about how long should I wait to inspect the hive to make sure the new queen is laying?

I was also told that the first queen to hatch will kill the other queens in their cells. But this doesn't always happen and the hive may swarm again with one of the new queens. Is this likely?

Also, there was a lot of activity around my swarm trap yesterday. I have one deep with 10 frames, LGO, and pheromone lure. I am hoping that when I get home today there will be a swarm that has moved in.

 

[JOHNYOGA2]

10 TO 30 DAYS PLUS OR MINUS. I would give them three weeks before I opened them up to look. It will seem a very long three weeks. Remember that they've been planning this swarm for a while now and have everything in place for it to be successful.
How likely is it to have an afterswarm? Likely. Especially if the hive was really going gang-busters.
I hope you capture a swarm too! Sometimes the magic works...

 

[c10250]

Being new, how does one "feed them into swarming"? I was under the impression that once nectar started flowing the bees would gradually reduce thier intake of syrup..?

From my understanding (no expert here), you can feed too much so that they fill out all the comb with sugar water. The hive becomes plugged with honey. The queen has little room to lay. Under those conditions the queen has a higher probability of swarming.

 

[Ravenseye]

Well, you can certainly overfeed although I've, more often than not, seen them simply stop taking syrup when a flow is on. When that happens, it seems they tend to regulate themselves better although your ability to give them space is very important, no matter what they're filling the comb with. They may throw another swarm or more. As mentioned, you have little control at this point. Don't expect your new queen to give you brood very quickly. If it were me, I'd wait about three weeks unless I was just dying to check in on how the colony looked.

 

[Cascade Failure]

From my understanding (no expert here), you can feed too much so that they fill out all the comb with sugar water. The hive becomes plugged with honey. The queen has little room to lay. Under those conditions the queen has a higher probability of swarming.

So what is a good ratio eggs to syrup? When should I pull the feeders?

 

[elliebee]

I am new too, first hive this year, almost 4 weeks since hived the b's. Was in there today, and noticed that on the frames with most capped brood, they are starting to store honey in the upper corners of the frame, is this an indication that it is time to start laying off the sugar water, have been keeping the feeder filled every day since hiving them.

 

[Deamiter]

I am new too, first hive this year, almost 4 weeks since hived the b's. Was in there today, and noticed that on the frames with most capped brood, they are starting to store honey in the upper corners of the frame, is this an indication that it is time to start laying off the sugar water, have been keeping the feeder filled every day since hiving them.

This is what most of your brood frames will look like. The queen typically (with much variation, but this is average) will lay eggs in a football shape in the middle of the frame, and the workers will add a layer of pollen above and around the brood. Outside of the pollen comes a layer of honey.

You're seeing the start of the layer of honey -- it's just in the corners because they decided to use the rest of the frame for brood and pollen.