Perfect timing!

[Stringman]

I arrived at my office the other day and was caught off guard by all the "chaff" swirling around in the air near my door. After closing the door to my truck I began to realize they were alive and then quickly I determined BEES!! "How cool," I thought. No way I was letting the opportunity slip by, so I stood and waited and sure enough they started landing on a pine tree just a couple feet off the ground. I called animal control and got the number of the local swarm master and be was there in 10 minutes.



We stood around talkin about the situation while he was setting up a temp capture hive an cutting the limbs and laying them on the top and front of the box. He said he captures them often this time of year and really wanted me to have this swarm if I wants them. The more we talked, it turns out that he might be interested in a trade - bow for frames and a super...



Been trying to talk the little lady into a bee venture anyway. This might just be the right time!

[stringstretcher]

String Wax, String Wax, String Wax,  well you get the idea...lol

[JW_Halverson]

If your free bees are a little aggressive, you can always wait until next spring when the population of bees in your hive is at the lowest and kill her!  Yup, commit regicide!  Just make sure you have a new queen ordered a few days beforehand so that you can put her in her cage inside the hive.  She will reside safely in that cage for a few days until the hive gets used to her smell and decide she is their new leader.  You can pick an Italian strain queen because they are pretty tame bees.  Once she is released into the population she will go to laying eggs and her offspring will replace all the wild bees in a matter of a month and a half or so.  Voila! A whole new strain of bees!

[Poggins]

X2 on JW's comment .

[Stringman]

Here's something I don't understand... If I don't have a centrifuge (and I don't,) the method for robbing honey is to mash the whole mess out of the frame?!? Seems like that's a lot of stress on the bees to have to rebuild the comb. What's everyone's take on the cheap-n-easy of honey removal?

[Poggins]

The bees will need to build up their numbers and brood comb , you can put a honey super on later and when you do use some thin foundation in a couple of frames then when they fill them with honey and cap them you can cut the comb out in chunks leaving about half to three quarters of an inch of comb along the top of the frames And the bees will rebuild the comb so you can do it agian .

[JW_Halverson]

Go order a copy of Beekeeping For Dummies off Amazon.  Man, I love them Dummies books, I can really relate!