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Don't be fooled by the title. I don't really think that, but I just had to share this with you all.
I have been making splits and have had some luck at catching a few swarms this year, and my bee yards are building up quite well for the moment. I caught a swarm at my grandparents' and was telling them about the other swarms I have caught, and that is when my grandpa told me that he had told another beekeeper that I was making splits and catching swarms to make increases.
Here is where it gets good.....the beekeeper told him to tell me not to make splits, because it is not good for the hive ( for what reason I'm not sure. I always add a queen cell or queen when I make splits.) he wasn't able to say exactly why it is not good to make a split. Additionally, he said that he never catches swarms and that it would be best if I didn't either because swarms most likely originate from sick hives, and that is the reason they left the nest!
After my grandpa told me this ( grandpa knows better, but he was just repeating what this other beekeeper had said), I had to use a car jack to shut my jaw since it had fallen to the floor. To say that I was flabbergasted at this statement, by a beekeeper at that who should know that swarming is a reproductive behavior and more than likely is a sign of health than sickness, is a complete understatement!
Now, I understand that swarms late in the year don't do so well, but that's because it's late in the year. I also understand that bees will sometimes abscond a nest for various reasons. But, why in the world would someone reject a prime swarm and an after swarm during the spring of the year, during a strong nectar flow, and from a healthy hive? That beekeeper can do what he wants to, but I'll take the swarms all day long, make splits, increase my bees, and it will be my little secret!
This begs to question........where does he get his bees? I don't see how you can acquire bees without making splits or catching swarms. A package of bees is nothing but a split without comb. I wonder if others with his mentality have ever thought that through?
Anyway, I just had to share that. What do you all think?
I have been making splits and have had some luck at catching a few swarms this year, and my bee yards are building up quite well for the moment. I caught a swarm at my grandparents' and was telling them about the other swarms I have caught, and that is when my grandpa told me that he had told another beekeeper that I was making splits and catching swarms to make increases.
Here is where it gets good.....the beekeeper told him to tell me not to make splits, because it is not good for the hive ( for what reason I'm not sure. I always add a queen cell or queen when I make splits.) he wasn't able to say exactly why it is not good to make a split. Additionally, he said that he never catches swarms and that it would be best if I didn't either because swarms most likely originate from sick hives, and that is the reason they left the nest!
After my grandpa told me this ( grandpa knows better, but he was just repeating what this other beekeeper had said), I had to use a car jack to shut my jaw since it had fallen to the floor. To say that I was flabbergasted at this statement, by a beekeeper at that who should know that swarming is a reproductive behavior and more than likely is a sign of health than sickness, is a complete understatement!
Now, I understand that swarms late in the year don't do so well, but that's because it's late in the year. I also understand that bees will sometimes abscond a nest for various reasons. But, why in the world would someone reject a prime swarm and an after swarm during the spring of the year, during a strong nectar flow, and from a healthy hive? That beekeeper can do what he wants to, but I'll take the swarms all day long, make splits, increase my bees, and it will be my little secret!
This begs to question........where does he get his bees? I don't see how you can acquire bees without making splits or catching swarms. A package of bees is nothing but a split without comb. I wonder if others with his mentality have ever thought that through?
Anyway, I just had to share that. What do you all think?