Hi all,
I live in a suburban area. Last weekend my neighbours (who for the last couple of years had no problems from my hives) came over and said they had a problem. They had a clump of bees on the ground in their back yard that had bitten them and their new puppy.
I cleaned up the mess, and while doing so told me that this year they had copped a lot of grief from bees. They had relatives with allergies bitten etc. it was the first I'd heard of it.
The next day I looked up and realised a swarm had settled in a gum tree about 15-20 metres above the clump of dead bees.
Today the bees swarmed off again while I was trying to dislodge it, and vanished into thin air.
They told me all about how the first two years I had the hives they had no problems, but over the last year they had been stung repeatedly and could no longer go in their backyard comfortably and they were worried about their puppy. They and their puppy had been stung heaps. Meanwhile on my side we had no problems, my kids had only been stung if they stepped on a dead bee.
I've told them I will get rid of them. What is the best way to sell them, or should I give them away? They have been good producers and have been requeened every two years. Appreciate any thoughts. I've had a quick look on gumtree and the prices there for existing hives seem very inconsistent. I'm in the suburbs of Sydney. I'm devastated to sell them but it's more important to me that I have happy neighbours. I don't want to rip anyone off - including myself! Thanks