[Jeff Hayes]

Hello all,

I have recently caught a swarm and they are temporarily housed in a swarm trap with five frames of pulled comb. I have a new hive body coming Tuesday which will be their permanent home. I have the swarm trap currently sitting atop a barrel in the bee yard but really don't like the exact location and would like to move it about 10 yard from its current location. What is the best way to do that? The bee's have already started coming and going for the trap as if it's now home. Will I lose any bees if I move the trap after dark? Thanks for any suggestions! I wasn't as prepared for this swarm as I would have liked.

 

[RayMarler]

Move it now. Set it up where you want it to permanently be located. The bees will go to the old location pretty heavily for three to five days, but they'll eventually figure it out. It will help some if it faces a different direction and will also help if you block the opening with grass clippings, but you'll still see a lot going back to the old location. They'll figure it out though. And, yes, move it at dark or dusk when the bees are all home.

 

[Jeff Hayes]

Thanks Ray, I'll take care of that this evening. It's such a small nucleus, I was just concerned of losing bees. I want them to get a good start. Thanks again.

 

[heaflaw]

How far are you moving it? I have moved them about 2 feet per day until I got it to it's permanent home without any disruption at all. If it's small and light and not too far, that would work well.

 

[Jeff Hayes]

Thanks Lawrence, I have already moved it tonight. As Ray said, I may have some go back to the old location, but hopefully they will find their way. I moved them less than 10 yards away from the original location. I new to all of this. I have one hive already, but this is the first time I have ever caught a swarm or moved a hive. hey are still in a temporary home, because of timing, I ordered a complete hive body with frames, where normally I would have built the body myself. I wanted them to be used to the permanent location. I'll let you know what happens in the next few days.

 

[RayMarler]

you can give them a big boost by moving a frame of sealed emerging brood with bees to it from your main hive.

 

[heaflaw]

Also, swarms are geared toward building comb. If you want some foundation drawn out, this is a great opportunity. I've hived swarms on nothing but foundation and they had it all drawn in less than a month and survived well.