Author Topic: Hive building on eave (Read 9558 times)

swflcpl · « **on:** May 21, 2015, 09:24:00 am »

Doing this for experience as it seemed like it would be relatively easy, although a long process. No vac here and watched a video from JP that used liberal smoke without his vac to run them off so the comb could be taken off easier.

Was thinking of setting up the first hive box on top of the ladder directly under this and cutting them off going down the ladder to rubber band them into frames and coming back up to put the frame in the box, it being there so the bees might fall into it if they do fall.

Any other ideas?

Apparently this is about a months worth of activity.

Jim134 · « **Reply #1 on:** May 21, 2015, 09:46:18 am »

swflcpl...
Do you have any idea how long the bees have been there for ?

BEE HAPPY Jim 134

swflcpl · « **Reply #2 on:** May 21, 2015, 09:53:06 am »

Quote from: swflcpl on May 21, 2015, 09:24:00 am

Apparently this is about a months worth of activity.

Jim134 · « **Reply #3 on:** May 21, 2015, 10:21:38 am »

You may run into a lot of soft comb.and at will not be easy to do a cut out.(especially if it is only a month old)
You may have to treat them like a swarm if the comb is too soft.

Quote from: swflcpl on May 21, 2015, 09:53:06 am

Quote from: swflcpl on May 21, 2015, 09:24:00 am

Apparently this is about a months worth of activity.

IMHO

I still don't understand your time line you have and s on the end of month .To me that means multiple months.

If I was doing this in Florida I would only put the brood comb in the frames and the honeycomb in my 5 gallon pail .
I do hope this helps you out.
I do hope you have a queen catcher ( hair clip style)

BEE HAPPY Jim 134 :)

swflcpl · « **Reply #4 on:** May 21, 2015, 02:24:44 pm »

Unfortunately I don't have a queen catcher. Is that so they don't abscond or what?

Sorry I missed an apostrophe. "A month's worth"

Plan on separating honeycomb out and just framing as much brood as possible.

Jim134 · « **Reply #5 on:** May 21, 2015, 11:39:25 pm »

these are a few reasons for this
1.when you have the queen you control the hive
2.I would use as little smoke as possible (until I caught the queen)/so the queen does not run in the cracks of the building where you cannot catcher her
3.everything I read from the southern part of the United States
honey bees like to apostrophe in late spring and summer on cutouts and/or swarms . Keep the queen caged up for 3 to 5 days help stop them from leaving.

BEE HAPPY Jim 134

Jim134 · « **Reply #6 on:** May 22, 2015, 06:55:50 am »

This is the perfect situation to have a bee vacuum.

BEE HAPPY Jim 134

jayj200 · « **Reply #7 on:** May 22, 2015, 09:02:33 am »

no queen cace how about queen excluder? when i forget the excluder thet leave

swflcpl · « **Reply #8 on:** May 22, 2015, 08:02:41 pm »

No excluders either. We'll have to see.

Sundog · « **Reply #9 on:** May 23, 2015, 12:51:02 am »

No vacuum, no queen catcher, no excluder... Do you have a hive to put them in if you do catch them?

You could use my vac, but I'm way up in Largo.

I doubt that they have much in the way of brood, and even less honey. A nuc might be the best for them.

Have fun!

swflcpl · « **Reply #10 on:** May 23, 2015, 08:17:53 am »

Lots of brood and a couple of the smaller outer comb were full of uncapped nectar/honey. Was 10 frames worth not putting in almost any honey.

What it looked like in the morning

As the morning went on

Before lunch, hoping the queen was in the box

After lunch we felt she most definitely was not in the boxes

Brushed and snowplowed (with a cardboard piece) as many big chunks as possible down into the box. And finally got her

And what they looked like 5 hours later at 7 pm

They also looked exactly like that at 9 when I hoisted them down off that ladder and into my truck. Put this box over I had that was nearly perfect size

Got them home, unboxed them and put them down onto their cinder block stand as soon as I got home.

Thanks for the offer of the vac though Sun

Dallasbeek · « **Reply #11 on:** May 23, 2015, 12:30:56 pm »

Good job. Now you have to keep them from absconding.

swflcpl · « **Reply #12 on:** May 23, 2015, 01:10:57 pm »

Thanks. Just have to hope

Jim134 · « **Reply #13 on:** May 23, 2015, 04:39:05 pm »

Hopefully the young brood will anchor them expescially since it is the same fairmoans(sp) as the queen.

I do hope you had a good time.

BEE HAPPY Jim 134

OldMech · « **Reply #14 on:** May 26, 2015, 10:41:49 am »

Exactly.. I was going to say that as well.. if they did have a goodly amount of brood they will hopefully remain WITH that brood to care for it.

When doing a removal like this, the queen will often move away as far as possible from where your working. Hoeny B Gone sprayed above them will often keep them from hiding in rafters etc.. That queen clip is important.. I like the metal ones.. I have tried two of the plastic ones from Mann lake, and they just snapped the moment I tried to open them. If you get a plastic one, dont buy the CLEAR plastic, find some place thathas the milky plastic clips, they hold up much better, and of course, the metal ones are wonderful.. I believe Mann Lake now has carries the metal as well as the junky clear plastic..

swflcpl · « **Reply #15 on:** May 26, 2015, 12:41:51 pm »

Tonight will be 4 full days out here. So far they have stayed. I've watched them on my pond shore gathering water, about 4 feet from where the other hives bees gather their water. Cabbage palm hopefully to start blooming here soon, hundreds of acres surrounding with that.

Dallasbeek · « **Reply #16 on:** May 26, 2015, 01:21:27 pm »

I'd say they are anchored there at this point. Good job.

swflcpl · « **Reply #17 on:** May 27, 2015, 09:53:09 am »

Thanks Dallasbeek

swflcpl · « **Reply #18 on:** June 10, 2015, 08:24:52 pm »

Went into the hive yesterday for the first time, 18 days after I brought them home. I only took the cover off to check the top box, to make sure they have room. I'm leaving town for 6 days and the cabbage palm is starting to breakout here. I didn't want them to be full and not have anywhere to build/store. It doesn't seem like they've done much, but I'm pretty sure they missed the saw palmetto blooming here and we've only had a smattering of brazilian pepper blooming. Also, since I didn't go into the bottom, they could have done a lot of work filling in all those partially filled, rubber banded frames from the cutout. Bring on a good cabbage palm :)

JP · « **Reply #19 on:** July 27, 2015, 11:25:10 am »

Swflcpl, how's the hive doing?

Sorry I wasn't there to answer any questions you may have had for me, sounds like you got it done fine though.

I am trying to make it a point to come on the boards more often.

Have a great day now

...JP