{"id":8586,"date":"2023-11-15T15:55:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-15T15:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/farmandanimals.com\/?p=8586"},"modified":"2023-11-15T19:52:50","modified_gmt":"2023-11-15T19:52:50","slug":"how-to-attract-a-swarm-of-bees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/farmandanimals.com\/how-to-attract-a-swarm-of-bees\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Attract A Swarm Of Bees And Keep Them?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

There are quite a few factors and specific conditions that encourage bees to swarm. If you are in search of a swarm of honeybees<\/a> to bring home, you need to understand these factors and conditions. In this article, we discuss what makes bees swarm, how you can find them; how to attract a swarm of honey bees safely and successfully; how to lure bees into a hive and\/or gather them. Read on to learn more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hive Overcrowding Contributes To Swarm Behavior<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"swarm<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A very successful hive, is almost sure to become full with energetic, busy, hungry bees by the end of winter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the home hive is overcrowded, as is often the case in the springtime, this is especially true. When a queen produces a second queen, a swarm is guaranteed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Swarming Is Seasonal<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When the seasons change, from winter to spring, weather is warm and nectar is abundant, bees are more likely to swarm. Hungry, overcrowded bees are highly motivated to seek a new home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unpredictable Weather Impacts Swarm Behavior<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

These days, as the global climate warms, winter weather is often warm enough for swarming to occur. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, during warm winters, the queen will start building up the numbers of hive inhabitants early. This means that swarming is quite likely very early in the springtime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Can You Know When To Look For Swarms?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of the best ways to predict potential swarming behavior is to keep a very close eye on the weather forecast. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because weather has been so unpredictable over the last several decades, you will need to stay right on top of it to have some idea of when you should be looking for be swarms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enlist The Aid Of Other Beekeepers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You may also want to sign up with a swarm notification list kept by many beekeepers\u2019 associations. Doing this will give you access to a good heads-up when swarms are cited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Can You Get Bees To Move Into Your Empty Hive?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"how<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

If you’re extremely lucky, and you play your cards right, you may be able to simply set up an empty hive and attract a swarm of bees. Remember that the bees are looking for a new home, so if you build it, they may come!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To set up an attractive hive for bees, follow these 5 tips.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Use an old brood honeycomb to attract bees<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Fresh, new honeycomb is very pale white or light yellow. A good brood comb is quite dark because it has an accumulation of cocoons that have been left behind after fully formed bees have emerged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The presence of brood honeycomb encourages bees to move into hives that have been abandoned yet still have old honeycomb inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This dark, brood honeycomb is quite attractive to bees scouting out a new place to live. If you can obtain some brood honeycomb, place it inside your empty hive or swarm trap to attract scout bees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also use brood comb by melting it down and spreading it on the inside of the hive you hope bees will seek out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you use melted brood comb, you can either wipe it on the walls inside the hive, or soak a clean cloth in the melted brood comb and hang it in the open on a tree branch to attract a swarm of bees to that location. Then you can knock them into a box and settle them into your hive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just as brood honeycomb attracts bees seeking a new home, other types of hive materials and propilis can also attract bees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Apply simulated or natural pheromones<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Spread attractive scents inside the hive and around the entrance. Bees seem to be attracted to domiciles where other bees have lived, so anything that can give them that impression will be helpful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nasonov pheromones are extremely attractive to swarming honeybees. This pheromone is normally excreted by bees scouting for a new home. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the swarming bees smell this pheromone, it guides them to the new site. You can purchase artificially produced chemical pheromones that mimic the scent of the Nasonov pheromone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also used pheromones that have been taken from queens that have been culled from the hive or those that have died. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To extract these pheromones, these queens are distilled in rubbing alcohol to preserve both the body of the bee and the pheromones contained therein.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These pheromones can be added to the inside of the hive by simply wiping them on to the walls and around the entrance with a soaked cotton swab or cotton ball. If you wipe the solution on the walls of the inside of the hive, you’ll need to reapply it frequently because the scent will evaporate and become weakened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You may also wish to place the cotton ball or the cotton swab inside a plastic bag, seal it and then poke a small hole in it so that the scent is emitted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Lemongrass oil is attractive to bees<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You can also use essential oils to attract a swarm of bees. One of the most successful is lemongrass, which smells very much like the pheromones emitted by scout bees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This strong smelling essential oil is easy to obtain and economical. It just takes a couple of drops on a cotton swab or cotton ball placed inside the hive to attract the swarm. You may also want to put a few drops of lemongrass oil around the entrance to the hive or trap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just as with pheromones, you can place a soaked cotton swab or cotton ball inside a sealed plastic bag and then poke a few holes in it and place it inside the hive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, if you don’t have access to brood comb, you can use fresh honeycomb, melt it and add lemongrass oil to it. Soak a cloth in it and hang it in a tree to attract a swarm or place the soaked cloth inside your bait hive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Put the empty hive in an attractive location<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You may find a wild colony of bees in a hollow tree, in the roof of a cave or in the roof of the shed. Bees choose these areas because they like to be in high, sheltered locations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Typically, a successful placements of bait hives and swarm traps will be in elevated areas amid flowering trees. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While it’s possible to capture bees with a low placed hive in the open, it’s unusual. They like to have a higher, sheltered setting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’re using a bait box, you may wish to hang it in a tree to get the elevation needed for success. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you don’t want your bees to be permanently positioned in a high location, you can attract and trap them and move them after they’ve settled in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Design a hive that feels safe<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The best thing you can do to prevent your bees swarming away once you\u2019ve lured them is to have comfortable, inviting, attractive hives ready and waiting for them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bees like an empty hive that provides safety. They like small, natural cavities that allow them to come and go freely while preventing the entrance of intruders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For this reason, you may find that bees are attracted to objects such as flowerpots, bee boxes and swarm buckets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bees also tend to favor natural materials, but sometimes they will make their home in an object such as an old plastic or metal trashcan. There’s really no accounting for taste.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How To Attract Bees To Your Bee Box<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
https:\/\/youtu.be\/SmueJfuju9w<\/a>