Swarm Trapping Complete Overview - How to Catch Swarms of Honeybees - Our Method 2021- Tips & Tricks

[@robertwegner2567]

Why do you use frames with nothing on them and not ones with the backing on them?

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

If you use frames with foundation, the scout bees have a much harder time accurately determining the size of the cavity. They don't consider the foundation space they can build on, whereas with foundationless frames they can easily tell the size of the cavity and know they can build comb in it. Also, our entire operation uses foundationless frames in the brood boxes, so we have plenty of them on hand.

[@DerekCampbellIS]

Super simple, super clear...thank you for sharing this. Just ordered our hive and expect to catch a swarm next spring. Thanks guys!

[@kdzetmeir]

Trying to trap for the first time. Set out two traps in mid-March. Today (April 15th) I saw 5-6 bees checking out the trap, going inside and moving about the box. Hope they are the “scouts!” Great vid. Thanks guys!

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Most swarms scout 2 days and move on the 3rd - maybe soon!

[@kdzetmeir]

@@HiddenSpringApiaries I think you’re right! I just went out, many bees going in and out, so I lifted the lid a lid and the frames are COVERED in bees! Last night we had thunderstorms all night so I guess I missed how they “beard up” on the outside of the trap. Do some swarms just move right in quickly?? YT won’t let me paste a pic..

[@robertshorthill6836]

I have put a swing down screened gate attached with a screw. At night, with a swarm inside, all one needs to do is swing the entrance gate closed. No hammer or stapler needed. Take the box home, open the gate for morning flights and transfer the swarm to its permanent location. What fun watching the ladies find a decent new place to live.

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Smart idea. Might need to steal it

[@TickyTack23]

10:45 That is the cutiest scene, a bunch of bees shoving their heads out all like "GET ME OUTTA HERE"

[@markw9281]

leaving them in for three days is something I never thought of, but it makes perfect sense. That will be my new procedure from now on. Thanks for posting this; very helpful !

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Works great for most. Depending on weather we'll do 1 or 2 days sometimes, rain keeps them in too. The very large swarms (6+ frames of bees) need to be opened immediately or they'll suffocate themselves

[@Kathybova]

FINALLY there is someone who has EASY common sense advice for hanging swarm traps that even a 62 year old woman can do safely by herself-Lol!!!

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Doesn't get much easier than this, especially on smaller trees

[@johnkillen588]

i always use some used comb to get them to start as it saves much time and anchors the bees more quick into the box.

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Valid, but we like the swarms to draw comb for us.

[@meadowmade]

Awesome. Thank you!

[@randallmuir5570]

Thanks for the video and info gent’s. You mentioned you never treat your colonies to reduce the varroa mite load. How many colonies were you managing as of last Fall, and what percentage survived until the Spring flow started?

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

We lose a few to mites each year, but it's rarely our biggest killer. 2019-2020 into winter with 31, 9 survived 2020-2021 in with 52, 32 survived 2021-2022 in with 78, 6 survived. This year's die off was from malnutrition - we didn't recognize a terrible fall flow and the winter bees didn't get fed enough.

[@ordinaryguy6869]

Excellent information. Thanks for posting this.

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Glad you found it useful

[@f1x1tright]

awesome job guys!

[@papaguy2001]

Hey there! I just recently discovered your channel and as a longtime city boy with no experience with wildlife, I have a very basic question. How do you keep the bees from attacking you as a threat when you move the frames or service the hives? I notice you use the typical beekeeper's smoke can and move the frames and hives around very gently, but is there any other reason? I had always thought bees would defend their hives against any perceived threat, and perhaps the answer is in the techniques I just mentioned. Looking forward to watching more of your videos, I've really enjoyed the ones I've watched so far, and I've noted your website for natural honey sales when available. Looking forward to the fall when the honey starts flowing again!

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Hello Peter, thank you for the great comment! The smoke and the good management techniques are a large part of the battle - moving slowly, not crushing bees, and not taking longer than necessary all keep the bees from getting agitated. The smoke interferes with their alarm pheremone and prevents one mad bee from setting off the whole colony, and has other benefits as well. The other big part of the bees not getting mad is their genetics - we breed for gentle, calm bees and after not too many generations you can have very gentle bees. If we go in on an overcast day, we can expect the bees to be feisty, but on a warm sunny day, you could go in without any protective gear and be perfectly fine. The honey flow is just ramping up - honeysuckle and black locust are blooming over the next two weeks and should let the colonies gain weight very quickly if the weather holds - hopefully you can snag a jar when it goes on sale!

[@papaguy2001]

@@HiddenSpringApiaries thanks for the reply! On a related note, what steps do you take if for some reason the hive does become agitated despite your best efforts? I notice your protective equipment just covers the face and torso and your hands are uncovered. Do you just take a few stings and run away and take the L? LOL

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Most of the year we just wear veils that only cover the face, it's too hot in the summer to wear a coat. If a hive gets agitated for some reason, they mostly bombard your face, or your hands possibly if you move them. Hasn't been an issue yet, at most I've taken 2 stings at once from a colony. Most of the stings I get are in my hands from moving too quickly near a bee, crushing a bee, etc or on my calf from bees crawling up my pantleg. Stings seem like a big deal when you first start out beekeeping, but very quickly you learn to a) avoid them and b) deal with the stings you do get.

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

And yes, sometimes you take the L, smoke them heavily, then vacate for a bit so they settle down

[@KD9ZHF]

Don’t be too sweet.

[@slavkochepasov8134]

10:17 How do you feed the bees in these 3 days of "waiting undisturbed"?

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

We don't. They bring plenty with them when they swarm

[@theplanelife4097]

I just bought a Flow Hive that I am excited to get started with as a hobby backyard beekeeper. Do you think I will have any luck just placing my brood box in the location I plan to keep it and luring them into it the same way? I live in a rural area with lots of wildlife around and have a large garden with a fair amount of bee activity. I can elevate it to higher than the height I plan to keep it.

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Probably not, but I don't have any experience with that. You'd need to remove the frames with foundation from the brood box until a swarm moved in since they don't treat foundation as room to grow when scouting, which will likely make a large mess to clean up when they begin building comb without frames in there.

[@theplanelife4097]

@@HiddenSpringApiaries Thanks for your input. All of my frames are foundationless. If I make sure it is level, hopefully they will keep the comb straight.

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

We use foundationless as well, and have almost no trouble with them. With a bit of swarm commander and some luck you might be in business then.

[@wadewoehrmann2835]

How about a feeder in hive when you screen them in? Give them something to build comb with..?

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

The problem is getting it in there - they wouldn't be too happy about that commotion after dark when we move them. Also they gorge on honey before leaving the parent colony, so they pretty much have all they can use for a few days.

[@offshoot1008]

When you sprayed the swarm command you closed up the bag before putting it down in the box . Why didnt you leave it open . Would it not be more of a scent for the bees to find if you left it open?

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

The swarm commander can slowly permeate the bag, letting it slow release the bait over several weeks. This method allows us to only bait the traps twice per swarm season

[@arronbwabw504]

would you not consider feeding them sugar water to help get them started on building comb?

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

That's not a bad idea, but we choose not to do it. They have no trouble producing comb with the resources they brought with them. If you want to maximize their growth, feeding thin syrup would probably help.

[@cinepost]

Swarm Commander or Lemon Grass oil?

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Lemongrass oil is to swarm commander as a airsoft gun is to a bazooka. Swarm commander all the way

[@Flatfoot2282]

How do you prevent or control cross-comb with no foundation? BTW, great video !

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

As long as they have one comb to copy off of, they almost always build perfect comb. Other than that, keeping the hive level.

[@RegrenativeBeekeeping]

Did you remove the entrance screen stapled up the night you caught them?

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

No, we leave them trapped for 2 or 3 days. Gives them time to feed the queen enough that she can't fly away

[@RegrenativeBeekeeping]

Saw it thanks! Still watching your videos.

[@jamescraig8601]

Guys love your videos. Your volume is to low. I have to hold my phone to my ear to hear. I can't watch and listen at the same time. Congratulations on catching swarms.

[@jesshowe4591]

Is there a an advantage to having the hole on one side. What size is the hole.👏

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

The location doesn't matter, as long as it's at the bottom of the box. Size and construction covered here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/d5fbd2loqLebjsU

[@stevefarms7494]

How does one person hang the swarm trap alone ????

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

It's a bit tricky. I run the strap around the tree first, loosely, with the ratchet easily accessible. Then pick the trap up and thread it under the strap and ratchet it down

[@dilidili7544]

Thank you, guys. I moved my swarm to permanent spot (like 40yards distance), left it closed for 2 and half days. When I opened the box, bunch of bees still went back to their old spot. Does that happen to you?

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

If you move the swarm less than 2 miles or so, you are going to have some bees that return to the old trap spot. You can lessen this issue by keeping them trapped in the box for 2-3 days and forcing reorientations when you do open the box. You can effectively force them to reorient by placing an obstruction in front of the entrance, like a leafy branch.

[@jamesbarron1202]

@@HiddenSpringApiaries one guy who’s a bee expert said move the trap ASAP before they get locked in on that old location to prevent that. True or not, I can’t say.

[@jamescraig8601]

Personally when I move a trap a short distance. I put a box in the original location. Any bees that return, move them to the new box in the morning. Once or twice and they stay in the new location.

[@dilidili7544]

Also I moved them to the permanent box the same day. Could it be because of that? Wish I saw your video before I did it. Thank you.

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

This likely made the issue worse, but wasn't the sole cause of it. Next time try to force reorientations and you should be better off.

[@dilidili7544]

@@HiddenSpringApiaries Thank you for responding. That's what I'll do next time. After all, the hive seems doing good now. I see the girls bringing pollens. As to those confused ones, I think, they've been redirected by the rest to their new place. Hopefully.

[@joshbridges7699]

Hello Right at the end of the video when the hive was all set. when do you build the hive up and up with more boxes and how many frames do you take out of a box when full of honey 🍯

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/n2nSc5tsmtaMq5I This video covers adding additional boxes. We also have videos on honey harvest on our channel - we harvest entire boxes, not frame by frame.

[@charlesbrown3648]

Thank you for not puttin a nail into that tree.

[@noahriding5780]

Is there any reason someone couldn't just hide these boxes somewhere bandit style? It could take months asking around people I don't know to get permission to put these down. By then the season would be over. I'm not implying you guys would do it this way. But do people actually it this way?

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Better to have an uncomfortable conversation up front than a REALLY uncomfortable conversation when they catch you trespassing

[@TheBaconWizard]

BEE-NAPPING!

[@joseluisgonzalez-ef6nb]

Hello

[@jesseolivarez704]

Surprised you never look for a queen

[@HiddenSpringApiaries]

Queens in swarms are tricky. Not finding a queen doesn't tell you much, as it could be a virgin on a mating flight, so looking for her isn't a good use of time