[pndwind]

Monday I caught a swarm put them in a deep with drawn comb and even watched the queen march in. Tuesday they swarmed again so I put them in a medium with foundation and watched the queen go in again. Wednesday I was at work all day and they left any suggestions on what I did wrong or maybe what I could have done to get them to stay?

 

[Colobee]

From Taylor's "How-To... make a swarm stay put"

" ...put a frame of unsealed brood in the hive before hiving the swarm. This acts as a veritable magnet."

I've done the same - adding the brood into a swarm I've already hived. Sprinkled with a little syrup to ease acceptance.

I've also seen too many swarms take off when I didn't have the time or temperament to do either of the above.

 

[MsCarol]

Pndwind,

Join the club on this one. I had both my 1 year old hives swarm. Caught both swarms but it took twice to do so on each one. That was WITH a frame of open brood in each box. I came out to discover the box empty except for the nurse bees on the brood and the rest back in the tree. Thankfully, second time was the charm and both have settled in. In fact the second needs a second medium 10 put on as soon as the rain stops. Checked yesterday and the first was FULL of comb already at just 8 days.

 

[GaryG74]

Sometimes a queen excluder under the box for a few days keeps the swarm from leaving. I use a frame of older drawn comb and that usually does the trick. Only had to use the excluder one time. If you use the excluder, don't leave it on more than 5-6 days, if the queen is a virgin she'll need to take a mating flight or two. Uncapped brood is a winner usually too.

 

[Riverderwent]

From my limited experience, a piece of excluder in front of the entrance for 4 days works for swarm clusters and swarms from a swarm trap. Like MsCarol, I've had to chase swarms (from clusters, not from swarm traps) that we have hived with a frame of open brood but without excluder. I have wondered whether adaptation to Varroa has changed the effect of open brood on locking down swarms or if, as is more likely, I'm just missing some nuance on using the frame with open brood.

 

[NewJoe]

I try to give them a frame with some nectar in it....so far it has worked every time!

 

[delber]

For me the few swarms that I have caught I have moved them far enough away and that made them stay. There was a swarm last year where I couldn't get all of the bees so I left the box at the bottom of the tree. When I came back to get them they were all in the tree. So just before dark I shook them all in again, closed it up and moved it. They never went out again.