Guess what I have been doing tonight?

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Guess what I have been doing tonight?
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alison
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 29 Oct 2004
Posts: 12918
Location: North Devon

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 09 9:10 pm Post subject: Guess what I have been doing tonight?
After the sad demise of my bees, from starvation during the snow, I have read enviously about everyones bees. Tonight though, I was contacted, and have collected my first swarm, on my own, and just finished tucking them up safely in the hive. How good do I feel!

joanne

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 7100
Location: Morecambe, Lancashire

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 09 9:14 pm Post subject:
Brilliant - Congratulations - I bet you feel 10ft tall!

alison
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 29 Oct 2004
Posts: 12918
Location: North Devon

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 09 9:21 pm Post subject:
Well you know how upset I was. I can't stop grinning!

jamanda
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 22 Oct 2006
Posts: 35056
Location: Devon

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 09 9:41 pm Post subject:
Great news Where were they?

Sally Too

Joined: 14 Sep 2006
Posts: 2511
Location: N.Ireland

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 09 9:52 pm Post subject:
Wonderful! ... any pictures???? We were going to open our hived swarm tonight, but it suddenly turned cold before we got there.... so perhaps tomorrow night.

alison
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 29 Oct 2004
Posts: 12918
Location: North Devon

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 09 10:20 pm Post subject:

Jamanda wrote:

Great news

Where were they?

Well I was taking the children to lifesaving, when OH rang me.

CU from the apairy had rung, and did I want a swarm. Rushed home and rang the house. Worried woman with 3 children , in Barnstaple, behind the hospital.

The swarm had arrived on Friday, but they didn't know who to call, and didn't want it killed. They rang a few people in the councel and pest control, and eventually Mr U was called, as he deals with swarms, and he offered me to get it. It was underneath their trampoline, so no difficult high brances for me to struggle with.

TheGrange

Joined: 12 Apr 2009
Posts: 874

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 09 10:48 pm Post subject:
oh well done i bet you're just simply buzzing ... sorry someone had too

goosey

Joined: 29 Apr 2009
Posts: 380
Location: Merry England

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 09 6:57 am Post subject:
Great news -very pleased for you

Penny Outskirts

Joined: 18 Sep 2005
Posts: 23385
Location: Planet, not on the....

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 09 7:04 am Post subject:
Well done you

joanne

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 7100
Location: Morecambe, Lancashire

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 09 7:13 am Post subject:
Was it a prime or a cast swarm?

chez

Joined: 13 Aug 2006
Posts: 35934
Location: The Hive of the Uberbee, Quantock Hills, Somerset

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 09 7:16 am Post subject:
Well done you!

Tavascarow

Joined: 06 Aug 2006
Posts: 8407
Location: South Cornwall

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 09 8:13 am Post subject:
Get some syrup into them. If they have been hanging for 3 days they will be hungry. Well done. Hope you have more luck with these.

BahamaMama

Joined: 21 Sep 2006
Posts: 2315
Location: Away with the fairies

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 09 8:45 am Post subject:

jocorless wrote:

Was it a prime or a cast swarm?

What is the difference? I know nothing about bees, just what I read on here so I am learning lots at the moment

joanne

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 7100
Location: Morecambe, Lancashire

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 09 9:14 am Post subject:

A prime swarm is 50% of the flying bee's plus the original queen - Very big usually and the best to catch

A cast swarm usually takes 50% of the remaining flying bee's plus a newly emerged Virgin Queen - You can get multiple ones of these until the bee's decide that enough of the colony has left to give them the space they need

I've spoken to the Bee Inspector this morning - he's not coming out to my bee's today as its so wet but he said that the Bee's are swarming like mad at the moment and alot of them are taking the opportunity to re-queen as well - its as though they've been put on hold for the last couple of years and someones pressed play!

BahamaMama

Joined: 21 Sep 2006
Posts: 2315
Location: Away with the fairies

Posted: Wed Jun 17, 09 9:50 am Post subject:
Thanks for the explanation. They are complicated little critters!

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