Post by beelady on May 30, 2009 17:30:27 GMT -5
I had bees a few years ago and when i thought we were moving. i sold them. but we didnt move. and life happened.. this year i got some hives.. and bought some nucs.. wich are a mini hive about 5 frames of food and brood.
first photo is of a blond italian queen. marked for 2007 (color denotes year) with her attendants on a ritecell plastic comb frame.
econd is the 2 hives with the nucs put in them.. so now they have 9 frames to draw out.. this is before i put on the second hive body..
next is a trap i put out.. it was a single super with a bottom and a top.. with frames instaled i put drops of lemon grass oil.. real oil. it has some pheromone that bees find irrisistable..and i caught a small swarm. so what i did was take 2 frames of brood and food and introduced it to them.. then let them sit there till just this morning when at 5 am.. i plug the opening up. then at 7 am i. get the tractor and a pallet.. get my suit on (i sure looked funny driving it all kitted up..) and drive up to the side.. this trap was on the top of my fishing shelter 10 feet up or so. i put a strap around the hive. top to bottom. and put the hive on the pallet and slowly drive to where the beehives are in my garden. and installed it.. i piled branches and weeds around the opening then released them. they will not com eout right away.. it was still early.. there is an old saying. if you move a hive. 2 feet or 2 miles.as most bees will go back to where the old hive was instead of where it is now.. and the weeds and branches force them to reorient themselves since it is new.. (as if a tree branch fell on it so they can find home again) doing it that way i can move anywhere i want on the property..
since this was a swarm wihtout stores of food.. i did give them one jar of sugar syrup to give them a kick start so to speek and to help them decide to stay.
this is me in my bee suit.. neighbor calls it my alien outfit.
first photo is of a blond italian queen. marked for 2007 (color denotes year) with her attendants on a ritecell plastic comb frame.
econd is the 2 hives with the nucs put in them.. so now they have 9 frames to draw out.. this is before i put on the second hive body..
next is a trap i put out.. it was a single super with a bottom and a top.. with frames instaled i put drops of lemon grass oil.. real oil. it has some pheromone that bees find irrisistable..and i caught a small swarm. so what i did was take 2 frames of brood and food and introduced it to them.. then let them sit there till just this morning when at 5 am.. i plug the opening up. then at 7 am i. get the tractor and a pallet.. get my suit on (i sure looked funny driving it all kitted up..) and drive up to the side.. this trap was on the top of my fishing shelter 10 feet up or so. i put a strap around the hive. top to bottom. and put the hive on the pallet and slowly drive to where the beehives are in my garden. and installed it.. i piled branches and weeds around the opening then released them. they will not com eout right away.. it was still early.. there is an old saying. if you move a hive. 2 feet or 2 miles.as most bees will go back to where the old hive was instead of where it is now.. and the weeds and branches force them to reorient themselves since it is new.. (as if a tree branch fell on it so they can find home again) doing it that way i can move anywhere i want on the property..
since this was a swarm wihtout stores of food.. i did give them one jar of sugar syrup to give them a kick start so to speek and to help them decide to stay.
this is me in my bee suit.. neighbor calls it my alien outfit.
