Using swarm cells to split a bee hive.

www.studiobeeproductions.com
I can't believe it, today is April 8th and I'm just finishing up our splits. I began at the very beginning of March and now 5 weeks later, and over 150 hives, they are now finished. My favorite way of making my splits, using a swarm cell, was used right up to the end.
On this video I go into detail as to how to do this method of making a split. Granted, this method is not for everyone, and there are easier ways of doing it, but being a bit stubborn, I still resort to using a swarm cell from one of my hives instead of grafting my own queens and sticking them in the hive or buying cells and sticking them in the hive.
With that being said, how about we just jump right into the video and let you see for yourself how I go about making a split using a swarm cell. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@bub1683]

Carpenter you are. Good advice cutting wood.

[@donbearden1953]

Mr Ed, you definitely had some good looking cells in that hive! I hope all of your splits are successful!

[@JeffHorchoff]

I saw a ton of beautiful swarm cells this year and I am looking forward to see how good the bees do this year. Thanks for watching. God's peace Don. Mr. Ed

[@09mouldy]

Its one of the best ways. I just wanted to say that I am that guy that commented a couple years ago that you inspired me to get into bees. Now I have 10 hives and planning to split to 30 this year! I setup a livestream of my bees. I won't post it here on your video though. I respect your space. You do gods work.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Congratulations on your success, you have done VERY well. Send me a link, [e-mail], I want to see. Thanks for watching. God's peace Kyle. Mr. Ed

[@JamesCrouchX]

It's that time a year again in some places. Soon here in Indiana. I must say the fillet knife is a welcome addition to my bee keeping equipment. Tip, just a sliver will do.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Each year, I make sure it's all sharpened up and in it's sheath. A great tool for sure. God's peace James. Mr. Ed

[@rodskopyk2506]

This is great, probably the most friendly description and useful split and descriptions of the queen cells. Much appreciated, god bless

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thank you very much for your kind words and for your blessings, it is greatly appreciated. God's peace Rod. Mr. Ed

[@adamk.1044]

Good job Mr Ed . Happy to see you again Mr Ed God bless 🕇

[@JeffHorchoff]

It's always a joy seeing your name in the comments. Thank you for your blessings and for watching. God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@JJDigitalartStudio]

You are happy in your work and that is a blessing. God bless you Jeff.

[@JeffHorchoff]

The reason I am so happy, Jesus is in me. Thank you for your blessings and for watching. God's peace JJ. Mr. Ed

[@JJDigitalartStudio]

@@JeffHorchoff I KNOW the feeling!

[@lialos]

Mr. Ed, I love the suggestion on how to cut those cells off the wood! Thank you!

[@JeffHorchoff]

You are very welcome, it works great. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@BackyardLaboratory]

Always happy to see one of your videos pop up in my Subscription feed.

[@JeffHorchoff]

And I'm ever so grateful that you take the time to watch, thank you for that and your kind words. God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@mehchocolate1257]

@@JeffHorchoff are there any male bees in the hive or they all female?

[@bcjoey9944]

In the queen world, if you aren't first, you're not going to last. Nature sure is tough. In humans its no longer survival of the fittest, its survival of the loudest. Thanks for the video Jeff.

[@lewiemcneely9143]

Look up about the doctor, wife, 2 grans and a worker killed in Rock Hill SC. Shot by a football player. You won't hear about that on the suck-egg news.

[@highlandhoneybee]

@@lewiemcneely9143 Your post is the first I'd heard of it, so I had to look it up. Took two pages of searching Rock Hill SC before it came up. It was well after RH's most recent C-19 report. Heartbreaking. 💔😢

[@lewiemcneely9143]

@@highlandhoneybee I think the ONLY reason it was covered nationally at all was it was spreading through the public channels so FAST and preple were so frosted because it wasn't being covered, the national goons figured they better make a showing before folks started putting 2+2 together more than they already had. The only truth I can find in this country is in the Bible. Thanks, Highland. The rest of the family can sure use our prayers right about now. God Bless ALL yall!

[@JeffHorchoff]

Great comment Joey, all of it is so true. Thanks for watching. God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@BeesBikinis]

Omg that’s so true. Squeaky wheel gets the grease!

[@carlland9024]

As always: I look forward to your videos and enthusiasm every week. Really liked the tip of cutting off the swarm cells near the end. Thanks again and God bless. Carl

[@JeffHorchoff]

Glad to hear you enjoyed watching. I hope the tip on removing a swarm cell works for you, it works very well for me. Thank you for your blessing and for watching. God's peace Carl. Mr. Ed

[@rodneymiddleton9624]

Those cells makes your liver quiver!!!! I get excited to see them in my hives too! Looks like a grafting bar full of cells!! Once you make a woman mad it takes something really sweet to calm them down. Thanks Mr. Ed!!!

[@JeffHorchoff]

Beautiful cells for sure, and I get all excited when I see them myself. God's peace Rodney. Mr. Ed

[@rodneyhaymon3092]

Always learning from you.

[@JeffHorchoff]

So great to hear that, thank you and thank you for watching. It is a real joy for me to share my experience. God's peace Rodney. Mr. Ed

[@rays718]

Thank you Mr. Ed for the videos! God bless.

[@JeffHorchoff]

You are very welcome. Thank you for your blessings and for watching. God's peace Ray. Mr. Ed

[@richardgrumpywelsh2485]

Thus was another great video, thanks for showing. Next week we are going to have nights above freezing for the first time this year. God bless you and all of the bees.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thank you for your blessings and for watching. I know you are looking forward to warmer weather. God's peace Richard. Mr. Ed

[@Lsmith-ly2cm]

Good trick Mr. Ed

[@JeffHorchoff]

And one that works VERY well. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@brthehimalayanbeeman]

Good work 👍

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thank you, and thank you for watching as well. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@brthehimalayanbeeman]

@@JeffHorchoff visit my home

[@chrishumphreys9363]

Yet another great video Me Ed. Chris UK.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Glad to hear you enjoyed the video Chris, thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@richardhulse9328]

Mr Ed - Thanks so much for your passion, and sharing your bee adventures - they are are a joy to watch.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thank you very much for your kind words and for taking the time to follow along with my channel. It is a real joy for me to share my experiences. Until the next one, God's peace Richard. Mr. Ed

[@mikeries8549]

Thanks you validate my methods. I break up a hive in "about to swarm mode" and it really is the way. This big brute turns into 6 kittens that manage themselves leaving me time to focus on the honey makers. A sustainable apiary is like that. Perpetually rebuilding from the swarm cells.

[@JeffHorchoff]

It's great to hear when we share a common philosophy. Thanks for watching. God's peace Mike. Mr. Ed

[@mullenlogan20]

Not gonna lie I found you Mr. Ed through the rooster, I don’t know what made me wanna watch bee videos but I am hooked. You’re such a charismatic and charming man. I love the content and your work I hope you keep it up.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Regardless of how you discovered my bee wrangling channel, I'm ever grateful you have and that you left a comment letting me know. Thank you for your kind words and for taking the time to watch. Until the next one, God's peace Logan. Mr. Ed

[@mullenlogan20]

@@JeffHorchoff until the next wrangling Mr. Ed and I can’t wait for it

[@JOSIANGREENVLOGS]

Very clearly explained.

[@kp5106]

Luv yur vids Jeff. Without bees there’s no telling what kind of shape this world would be in.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Without bees, humans would not bee either. So glad to hear you enjoy watching, thank you for that. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@GoneWildKennels]

Well i just put this super cell retrieval in my bag of tricks. Pretty cool Mr.Ed ! Keep on trucking buddy

[@JeffHorchoff]

Glad to hear you can use the method, I'm happy to share it. Thanks for watching. God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@MrJim5280]

Hi Jeff, love your videos. You have taught me a lot!! I split one of my hives this week afternoon checking for queen cells after I watched the video. Thank you for sharing your knowledge!!

[@JeffHorchoff]

What a delight to hear you find my videos informative and entertaining, it is a real joy for me to share my experiences. Thank you for your kind words and for watching. God's peace Jim. Mr. Ed

[@teddycrenshaw223]

Lots of new queen cells. Great job Mr Ed God bless

[@JeffHorchoff]

You just got to love it when you come across a mess of queen cells in your box. Thanks for watching. God's peace Teddy. Mr. Ed

[@anthonyappleyard5688]

I read a book by a beekeeper, & he wrote that he was watching bees taking rubbish out of a hive when the hive woke after winter, & he was surprised when he saw a bee come out carrying a large pin, then he remembered that in the year before he had used the pin to fasten a transplanted queen cell onto a comb.

[@JeffHorchoff]

I have always considered it a very good genetic trait to have bees that keep a clean house. Heck, even bees think Spring cleaning is a good thing. Thanks for watching. God's peace Anthony. Mr. Ed

[@jonathanswoboda]

The first queen to emerge may not always kill the others. In many cases the workers will keep those other queens confined in their cells. Workers can make a small hole in the cells and even feed the new queens. Once the first queen is ready to fly the hive can then issue a virgin swarm and then release the other queens from their cells.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Good stuff Jonathan, thanks for sharing and for watching. God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@-UE-PR0]

You know a lot about hives and bees, Queen bees in particular. This was a pretty relaxing and calming video! Glad I came across this channel

[@JeffHorchoff]

I have been doing beekeeping for over 30 years and bee rescues for more than 12, it is one of my biggest joys, and I love sharing my experiences. If you liked this video, I have over 400 more you could take a look at, and if that was not enough for you, I post a new one every Friday. Thanks for taking the time to watch, and I look forward to hearing from you again soon. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@cheripierre9029]

Wow Jeff! Those queen cells are amazing. I love your videos and how you explain everything and I dont even keep bees, yet. Lol

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thank you so much for your kind words and for watching. When you do have bees for yourself, you will bee ready for them. God's peace Cheri. Mr. Ed

[@lewiemcneely9143]

Haven't seen you get put on the road in a long time. The best one was when you were weedeating under the hives and ended up doing the quarter mile in about 1/2 second. Glad Charlie was there for a witness. Glad yall are doing fine. Life on this swamp is still goofy and happy. Thanks, you 2 and GBWYall and have another Jesus weekend!

[@JeffHorchoff]

Say tuned for a road trip, me and the Rooster are doing one together next week. Thanks for your blessings and for watching Lewie. Mr. Ed

[@lewiemcneely9143]

@@JeffHorchoff Still praying for you and Rooster and his Dad. It'll be interesting who foots the feed bill on that trip GBWYall, Buddy!

[@corrodedsanity4648]

A lot of beekeepers out here on KZbin you're probably my favorite I like your attitude and I like your knowledge I just did my first split I had five hives three made it through the winter I did the method where you put a frame of brood and an empty box with the nurse bees it seems to be working out so far

[@JeffHorchoff]

Congratulations on your splits, you and your bees are on the way to a great honey harvest. Thank you for your kind words and for watching, they are greatly appreciated. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@SweetButDeadly101]

I'm a really big fan of your channel Mr Ed but I really, really want to grab your bee keeper's jacket and give it a wash! GT Charlie's jacket is blindingly white when he stands next to you. God Bless.

[@JeffHorchoff]

My jackets always get the most abuse. True, I have not washed my jacket in 2 months, but the amount of honey that I get on them from removals and the stain that it makes does not bode well for me looking like the dashing and debonaire Good Time Charlie The good news, I just received my brand new Guardian Bee Apparel jacket and I will be breaking it in real soon. By the way, do you think there is a chance I could auction it off to help pay for some of this equipment? Thank you for your blessings and for watching. God's peace Sharon. Mr. Ed

[@lgalardi]

Great, great, great presentation!! Just in time for my splits. Then You

[@JeffHorchoff]

So happy to hear you found the information useful, delighted to share what I know. Good luck with your splits, God's peace Luke. Mr. Ed

[@omeadpooladzandi3366]

i learn so much from watching your videos! thank you for these great videos

[@JeffHorchoff]

You are very welcome, thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@amylarson3958]

Good timing. I have a monster, healthy hive that must be split.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Great to bee here for you. Best wishes for your successful split and for taking the time to watch. God's peace Amy. Mr. Ed

[@richdaly7411]

MR. E Thank you again ALWAYS in joy your videos a lot of info God Bless

[@snarky_user]

Thanks so much for this. All this time I thought woodworking tricks were exclusive to carpenter bees.

[@JeffHorchoff]

I always like watching the carpenter bees work a table saw. Glad you enjoyed the video, thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@egparis18]

Hello Jeff. I hope all's going well for you and your family. I enjoyed your video very much. Real feelgood stuff and very interesting. Thank you for uploading it. God bless and see you soon.

[@JeffHorchoff]

All is well here, thank you for asking and for your blessings, always a joy to receive them. Until the next one, God's peace Elaine. Mr. Ed

[@richardpraeger6357]

Awesome Video! I have ruined so many swarm cells trying to move them. Thank you for the tip on cutting out swarm cells.

[@JeffHorchoff]

The trick works almost every time, who would have thought of cutting a bit int the frame would amount to so much success. Happy to pass along the tip, and thanks for watching. God's peace Richard. Mr. Ed

[@MikeB0001]

Looking good Jeff!..our bees here are ahead of schedule this year..weather has been nice for a change!😃👍🏻👍🏻

[@JeffHorchoff]

What a blessing to catch a break like that. Best wishes for your successes. God's peace Mike. Mr. Ed

[@Doxymeister]

Good to see you, Mr. Ed and Goodtime Charlie! Yep, I also think that super-cold snap many of us in the middle of the country put an awful dent in their bees, it was very hard on them. I bet there will be a lot of splitting going on soon! Always love your out-takes, makes me laugh--and laughter is God's medicine for so many of our ills! Lord's blessings on you and yours, see ya next time!

[@JeffHorchoff]

And it's very good to hear from you as well, missed your comments. I love the Spring with all the new growth and promise of a bright tomorrow. Of course, the Lord's resurrection confirms that promise. Thank you for your blessings and for watching. Until the next one, God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@yasminnilima2366]

50 degrees... right now that would be a warm nice weather here in the middle of Sweden. We still have deep snow and around 0f° in the nights. Yeasterday was the first clensing flight for my bees. Daytime might be warm if the sun is shining. Lot's of love from Sweden!

[@birdnest5814]

You’re a good teacher. 👍💕😊

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thank you for your kind words and for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@BlanchardsBees]

I think my bees are just getting started. A little slow going here in SW Iowa. Low numbers and little brood but I think things will pick up soon I hope God willing. Thanks for sharing Mr. Ed you always brighten my day.

[@JeffHorchoff]

What a joy to see bees growing, enjoy the Spring and all it brings. Thanks for watching. God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@lynsmith2698]

Hey Jeff....what a great video. I learnt something tonight. I was always told about 2 types of queen cells. Swarm and supercedure. People told me swarm cells were better quality than supercedure queens. I had to google what emergency cells were or at least looked like. I am excited now that i can use both types for splits. I live off the beaten path (in the boonies) and only get mail 3x a week so people don't want to send queens thru the mail....so i have a hard time getting queens unless i drive a few hours to get them. My hives will need to do splits for sure this year and have been fretting about the whole queen situation. Now i know that i will be able to use supercedure ones for my splits if i find some. Every time i watch you, i learn something new. Thanks so much.

[@JeffHorchoff]

So glad to hear you found the info useful, and I also hope entertaining. It's always a pleasure for me to share what I know, and I'm ever grateful that you took the time to watch. God's peace Lyn. Mr. Ed

[@lynsmith2698]

@@JeffHorchoff I have a question. I hear people talking about doing walk a way splits....so in a situation like that....would the bees make a emergency queen cell? Thank you

[@mwarmbier33]

In part because of your channel, I'm putting a few hives up on my parish's property. Wrangling bees will give me something to do between visiting shutins and office visits. Maybe free altar candles will be a nice perk.

[@JeffHorchoff]

I am a firm believer in volunteering, it gives meaning to life. I congratulate you on your choice, and wish there were many more like you out there. Continue with your ministries, you are only building up treasures for yourself in heaven. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@OmasaRed]

I love this video 1st I hope you got subs 1M

[@JeffHorchoff]

So glad you enjoyed the video. Thank you for your well wishes and for subbing. Until the next one, God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@terrik38]

Hello 👋 smiling 😁 Mr. Ed & Charlie 🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝

[@JeffHorchoff]

And hello to you as well Teri, thanks so much for taking the time to watch. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@terrik38]

@@JeffHorchoff I really enjoy your videos and the happy mood you always seem to be in 😁 God Bless you in all you do

[@rickhermann7639]

got my first hive a few weeks ago, after not doing bees for almost twenty years. they looked like they would swarm. so I did a split. 2 frames of covered brood 1 frame eggs one frame of pollen and nectar 8 days later there is a beautiful queen cell in the new split

[@JeffHorchoff]

Congratulations! Not only for the successful split, but for returning after such a long absence. So glad to have you back with us. God's peace Rick. Mr. Ed

[@grounded7362]

Hey Jeff, I let a couple of my colonies build there own queens after the original queens went missing without a swarm. I now have a couple small totally black queens that are laying like crazy. One of them is small enough she can go through a queen excluder. Not sure if the other one can also or not. Only reason I found out the one could, is I tried isolating her to better monitor her. Well she turned up back in the other box above the excluder. Houdini will now be a brood builder for building up a honey colony since I can't keep her away from honey frames. That's okay though as long as she gives me lots of brood for other colonies and splits or cell builders. I have another colony that the queen just up an stopped laying but the bees did not try to replace her. She must have decided to take an in-house vacation. So I figured I would put her in a smaller box and feed her colony sugar syrup to build comb for my half frame queen mating boxes and see if she will start laying again. If she does I will just keep using her to build comb and shake her and the colony out every so often and harvest the brood for another box. Forced swarming I guess you could call it. If not, no major loss I guess.

[@benjaminwalker6247]

I may be mistaken, but I've always seen supercedure cells later in the year, but yes, almost always on the face of the comb, not at the bottom. I was taught that all cells in the spring are swarm cells if the hive s healthy, crowded, and bringing in forage. I don't know if it matters or not, but your viewers definitely need to know what a supercedure cell looks like for later in the year. I used swarm cells to split one hive into three 3 weeks ago today. As of today, the two hives that I left swarm cells in have cast off 4 swarms that I know of. I found one last night on a tree 15 ft from the hives, put it in a nuc this morning, and as I finished, they original hive cast another swarm. I got down and watched them pouring out of the entrance, they flew all around, but instead of lighting on the tree as swarms have done for the last 10 years we've had bees here, they bearded up the front of the hive, and all of a sudden, the pitch of their buzzing changed, and they started marching back in. I could have swarn I heard the queen piping, but I never saw her. First time i have got to see a swarm come out and got back in. I've heard about it, but witnessed it today. And of course, my camera was charging so i didn't get a video. I have been using OTS the last 3 years with great success, but this year the weather got the best of me, and I was afraid to chill brood. Between swarms out of trees and bait hives, and OTS, we've taken 10 over wintered hives to 25 in the last 3 weeks.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Bees are just so cool! Their life, what they do, and what they do for us. It's always a joy for me to hear other beekeepers experiences. Keep on enjoying what the bees give you. Thanks for watching. God's peace Benjamin. Mr. Ed

[@chelsealeonardbaum23]

Thank you Jeff

[@JeffHorchoff]

You are always welcome Chelsea, and thank you for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@candidethirtythree4324]

Looking good Mr. Ed...that beard is bodacious!

[@JeffHorchoff]

I'm trying to make the cover of the GQ Beekeeper magazine. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@dianemoon829]

This has nothing to do with bee keeping, but It says Jeff Horchoff Bees but you always say Mr. Ed??? I have really enjoyed watching your bee keeping videos and I love that you are always thankful to Jesus!

[@JeffHorchoff]

I go by the nick name "Mr. Ed," because it was a name I was given when I started working at the Post Office back in '82. Then, for the next 27 years, I was called that. When I retired, because I liked the name so much, and I started my KZbin channel, I continued calling myself that name. Thanks for watching. God's peace Diane. Mr. Ed

[@MikeChamplin]

Another fantastic video Mr Ed.....but I'm confused on 1) where is the old Queen, and 2) what did you do with her? I'm used to splitting off the old queen into a new hive, but unless I missed it you didn't find her nor did you even really look.... so just putting cells into both splits and letting nature take care of the old Queen? Thx

[@JeffHorchoff]

I do look for the queen, but if I don't find her I just drop cells in both boxes. That way, I know I will get a queen right box regardless. It's always great when and if I find her, but I really don't sweat it, it always seems to work itself out by putting cells in the boxes. Thanks for watching. God's peace Mike. Mr. Ed

[@BeesBikinis]

I love making splits! I prefer that over my bees swarming any day. Nice trick, thank you.

[@JeffHorchoff]

We both think the same. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@3Beehivesto300]

You need some nuc boxes. Drop a frame with a cell into each box?

[@JeffHorchoff]

That would work, but I'm not interested in making nucs, I want honey. God's peace Justin. Mr. Ed

[@hamonryechinaski180]

This was such an informative video. Incredible. Why doesn't the old queen attack a rival in a superceding cell rather than waiting for her own demise? Is it an age thing? Or allies in hive? Fascinating. Great upload, God bless Mr Ed👍

[@JeffHorchoff]

It is hard for us to fathom why an old queen would simply allow a new queen to replace her, but that is the nature of bees, they know what's best for their own colony. Thank you for your blessing and for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@ericmanwiller6279]

Great Video Mr. Ed!!

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thank you Eric, and thank you for watching it as well. God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@robinfrazier9763]

Well Mr. Ed I have been feeding one to one sugar water and my bees are going like gangbusters . Rob.

[@JeffHorchoff]

Feed on and get them girls growing. God's peace Rob. Mr. Ed

[@NolaSpiersMitchell-gu5iu]

Charlie nice jacket and it’s nice and white

[@stevenmayhew3944]

The Irish Spring soap style of carving.

[@JeffHorchoff]

I remember that commercial! Thanks for watching, and I hope you will check out more of my bee wrangling/ bee rescues adventures and let me know what you think of them. By the way, I post a new video every Friday morning, and I look forward to hearing from you again soon. God's peace Steven. Mr. Ed

[@yungmomentum]

Good video Mr. Ed !💯💯

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thank you so much, glad to hear you enjoyed it, thanks for watching. Until the next one, God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@marilyncapehart663]

Hi Mr. ED, Thanks For Sharing 10-11-2021

[@anjelcruzquelindacancionpa2837]

Saludos amigo feliz tarde

[@JeffHorchoff]

E um dia muito bom pra você também meu amigo. Muito obrigado por dedicar seu tempo para assistir o vídeo e deixar seu comentário. Até a próxima vez, irmão da paz de Deus. Sr. Ed

[@jasonerb2577]

Nice job as usual!

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thanks Jason, and thanks for taking the time to watch. God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@jonclemons1421]

I know this will be an ignorant question, but.... If you put a section of queen excluder across the entrance will it keep them from swarming? Just in case nobody is around to catch them??

[@JeffHorchoff]

The queen excluder may trap the queen inside the hive or not. In order for the queen to fly, she needs to slim down so she stops laying for a while before the hive splits. It is possible that she is so thin she simply goes through the excluder and flies off. Or, she is trapped inside with all the other bees on the outside of the hive ready to take off. Good question, thanks for asking and for watching. God's peace Jon. Mr. Ed

[@kennystandridge58]

Mr. Ed, can you take a swarm cell like you just showed in your video, and place it in a laying worker hive, will that work to try to get that hive queen right?

[@JeffHorchoff]

Sorry to say, no it will not, the worker queen will kill it. God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@davemusgrave1619]

Hi Mr. Ed, so with this method you don't worry about the old queen? Try and put in new hive?

[@JeffHorchoff]

It's always a relief to find the old queen, but it is not essential. If I don't see her, I simply drop in a few cells in her box as well. All is good! Thanks for watching. God's peace Dave. Mr. Ed

[@gerardjohnson2106]

Good morning Jeff

[@JeffHorchoff]

Good morning Gerald, congratulations on being the first! God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@lkmary1]

This is a great video. So you split the hive and kept it from swarming and you're going to end up with two new queens, is that correct?

[@JeffHorchoff]

That is exactly what will happen. I just prevented my bees from swarming AND I have queens in both boxes. Sometimes, the old queen will remain, but often she will be superseded and that hive will have a new queen as well. Thanks for watching. God's peace Mary. Mr. Ed

[@noahriding5780]

In nature when the beekeeper isn't there in time for a 'split', when the colony/hive is swarming...does the natural swarm actually leave before the queen cells hatch? or after they are sure a virgin queen is already alive? When is the exact timing when the natural split would occur in regards to queen cell timing?

[@JeffHorchoff]

Generally, the swarm leaves with the old queen a day or two before the new queen hatches. I can not account for an "exact timing," but rest assured, the bees know. Thanks for watching. God's peace Noah. Mr. Ed

[@noahriding5780]

Thank you! Sorry I hope I didn't put you on the spot. This stuff is so wonderful. Its a really peaceful life.

[@josephrawls]

One of the last cell removal was already open.

[@JeffHorchoff]

For an old guy, you have very good eye sight. God's peace brother. Mr. Ed

[@neilgarfield2831]

Hi Jeff. Neil UK here. Thanks for a very practical view of making splits...Thing is, I've been bee keeping for about 3 years and started out with 1 colony. I've done splits as per the established wisom and now have 6 colonies. That's great, but I can't afford the cost of an exponential growth of my colonies! I've run out of kit, what options do I have?

[@JeffHorchoff]

There are a few ways that I can think of but most are options that involve killing your queen which many beekeepers can't bring themselves around to do. There is the option of just letting them swarm and leave, or my favorite, make splits and give them to friends allowing them to buy the equipment. Heck, the world needs as many beekeepers as it can get. God's peace bother. Mr. Ed

[@badassbees3680]

Very nice!

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thanks, some fun bee wrangling for sure. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@user-adiluk]

Like and greetings from St. Petersburg!

[@JeffHorchoff]

Thank you very much for taking the time to watch and leave your comment. Looking forward to hearing from you again soon. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@user-adiluk]

@@JeffHorchoff Our bees are still sitting in the hives and have not really flown around yet. We just have to sit and watch how other beekeepers are engaged in reproduction of colonies and selection of bees. Good luck in this field!

[@loko7914]

The bee at 9:05 is like, “holddddddd up. We didn’t approve filming this morning... we’re in the middle of moving and stressed enough as it is”

[@JeffHorchoff]

The bees were a bit testy during most of the process of splitting, but we all got through it pretty well. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@brucewest4862]

I understand the wisdom of leaving supercedure cells in a box with a queen that hasn't been located (she'll be replaced anyway) but is it not a risk to put or leave any swarm cells in a hive when the queen hasn't been located? Is there a danger of that inferior queen (that the bees had begun to replace) swarming when the swarm cells get close to emerging?

[@knifeblanksaustralia]

Ii see you don't paint some boxes, do they end up rotting or do you have some treatment on them? thanks

[@JeffHorchoff]

The boxes that appear to be unpainted are in fact coated in paraffin wax, and in my opinion, it is a much better protection for the boxes than simply painting them. The video link below shows how we went about "hot wax dipping" the boxes.Thanks for watching, and I hope you will check out more of my bee wrangling/ bee rescues adventures and let me know what you think of them. By the way, I post a new video every Friday morning, and I look forward to hearing from you again soon. God's peace. Mr. Ed kzbin.info/www/bejne/iKjNhKCQntKYorM

[@mkirkland616]

Always hear that you shouldnt shake a frame with capped queen cells because you could damage/kill the queen in that cell.

[@JeffHorchoff]

It's best not to do it, but one shake should be OK. Thanks for watching. God's peace Matt. Mr. Ed

[@SparkieDog1]

Mr. Ed, sir, How do you place those swarm cells in a new colony? Please make a video.

[@JeffHorchoff]

I should have shown that trick as well. I use my hive tool and scrape the comb to the plastic foundation the width of the hive by a bout 3/4 of an inch. In the space created, I place one cell and using wax, I secure the cell to the foundation. When done, the cell looks like a superseding cell on the frame. Thanks for watching. God's peace Troy. Mr. Ed

[@beewize9982]

Hey Jeff good luck with your splits hopefully everything will pick up soon for you... saying hi from New Jersey I will be probably doing split soon out of my only hive

[@JeffHorchoff]

Just finished splitting all of our hives today and now have over 150 of them, way to many. Good luck splitting yours and thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@chirenshoots]

If you remove all the swarm cells do you still need to split the original colony or can you just add another super for room

[@JeffHorchoff]

After removing ALL the swarm cells from the hive and then adding another super to give more room may prevent the bees from swarming, but it is not a 100% guarantee, the natural inclination to swarm is still present. Thanks for watching. God's peace Chiren. Mr. Ed

[@DRz754]

Mr. Ed, Love your videos! Watched your vertical split series twice. I'm located in Colorado where season is short and temps fluctuate drastically. I'm planning to do a vertical split because the heat idea gives me more confidence it will be successful. Question: is there any reason I should not use a Cloake board instead of a double screened split board? I'm thinking that the nurse bees would quickly migrate through the queen excluder to the brood frame before I add the divider tray. Thus there'd be ample nurse bees for the split and I could accomplish the task without finding the queen or shaking a nurse bees into the box - just have to take care that the queen is not on the frames moved above the cloake board. Your thougths?

[@JeffHorchoff]

The Cloake board will work just fine. I alway say, do what you feel you are comfortable doing, for some reason the results are always better. I hope all goes well for your splits, and your bees. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@DRz754]

@@JeffHorchoff thank you for all you do! I'll be getting some help and we'll be wranglin' bees next week :)

[@WilliamTMusil]

Hiya Jeff

[@bradgoliphant]

You call them superseding and swarm cells but aren't they all to replace a queen? I don't understand that difference?

[@JeffHorchoff]

Simply stated, superseding cells replace a queen. Emergency cells are constructed when a hive is queen less. Swarm cells are created when hive is ready to split. Thanks for watching and asking, God's peace Brad. Mr. Ed

[@jameskittrell4970]

Great informative video as always got a quick maybe dumb question to ask do queen bees have stingers and also do you sell your honey online or will ship it out of state

[@JeffHorchoff]

Queens do have stingers, but because they are curved, it's very difficult for them to sting people. If you'd like to buy some of our Abbey Honey, I'd be more than happy to send you some. The cost is $10.00 for a one pound, plastic bottle, and $9.00 for shipping. If you want more than one bottle, the shipping cost is still $9.00 for up to 2 bottles, but each bottle is still $10.00. As soon as I get your check, I will send it out. Make the check out to St. Joseph Abbey but send the letter to: Mr. Ed 75376 River Rd. St. Benedict, La. 70457 If you'd like, I'll even sign the bottle. Looking forward to hearing from you. Thanks for watching. God's peace James. Mr. Ed

[@Brewmaster721]

Can I use a frame that has emergency queen cells from a hive that was queenless to start another hive. I bought a queen to give to the queenless hive. She is not released yet. In cage put in hive today. I added two frames of larva, brood and eggs two days ago to verify hive was queenless. They made some queen cells. I want to pull those frames and start another hive and let them raise a queen. Is that possible? I will pull a couple frames from another hive to go with them.

[@JeffHorchoff]

I use frames with queen cells on them to start new hives all the time, I love that practice. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@wildlifeview]

How many queen cell do you allow? What the difference between superceding cell and swarm cell. I just the once the old queen leaves it is a swarm.

[@CiCiirishkitty]

I've heard someone talk about bee bread. What is it? What is royal jelly, and what's the difference between honey comb, bee brood, and drone colonies?

[@CiCiirishkitty]

How does someone new know when to harvest honey and when to leave it for the bees during winter?

[@JeffHorchoff]

Bee bread is another name for pollen. Royal jelly is a mixture of honey and other things, a quick google check should give you that info, that is feed to all developing bees. However, queen bees are feed a strict diet of only royal jelly where as other bees are fed only a very small amount. Honey comb is comb with honey stored in it, brood comb is comb with larva in it, and drone comb is comb that has drone brood laid in it. Thanks for asking and for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@JeffHorchoff]

It's always best to check with local bee keepers to find out how much stores, honey, should be left in the hive to make it through winter. Every area is different. I harvest our honey at the end of the first major nectar flow, around the end of June, and the second one around the end of October. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@billmclaughlin8438]

In a recent video where you did a cut out you had 21 queen cells that you kept to take to the Abby. In this video your making splits using the swarm cells. Since queen cells come in different sizes as well as different shapes at times, do the larger, straighter queen cells make better queens? Do you have a preference?

[@JeffHorchoff]

In my opinion, the bigger the cell the better the queen is. However, I have seen some beautiful queens come out of small cells. Thanks for watching. God's peace Bill. Mr. Ed

[@alanbrown1184]

I have noticed some of the bees are the Abby are under shed roofs. My question is how do you deal with wasp that like to build nest in those types of structures and do they impact the bees?

[@JeffHorchoff]

I have had those building up for 3 years now and have never had a wasp build a nest in there. Maybe with so many bees in the neighborhood the wasps don't want in. Thanks for watching. God's peace Alan. Mr. Ed

[@smittysbees6860]

Hey Edd, If you aready have capped swarm cells doesnt that usually mean that they have already have swarmed? love your videos.

[@JeffHorchoff]

The swarm will not leave until a few days before the new queens emerge so not necessarily. Glad you enjoy the videos, thanks so much for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@joaorodrigues5463]

Ok mr Jeff..mais um bélo trabalho com as abelhas valeu..

[@JeffHorchoff]

Muito obrigado por suas palavras gentis e por dedicar seu tempo para assistir. Até a próxima vez, a paz de Deus. Sr. Ed

[@khalidkhs7292]

اللهم بارك

[@JeffHorchoff]

سلام الله اخي شكرا على المشاهدة. السيد إد

[@khalidkhs7292]

@@JeffHorchoff الله ينورك بنوره

[@davidktd]

If a hive swarms will all the bees leave? Or do some go with a new queen and some stay with an existing queen?

[@JeffHorchoff]

Generally, about half the hive leaves with the old queen, the rest stay behind with the new queen. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@davidktd]

@@JeffHorchoff thanks Mr Ed. Peace be with you too

[@freelancestudio9130]

Hi there sir, I have a question if you could kindly answer, I have a really aggressive hive, and I was thinking to requeen her with a more friendly queen from another of my beehive. So can I scrape a swarm cell or a superseding queen cell from the donor hive and plant it inside that aggressive hive. Will it take, like the queen bee would hatch and possibly replace that previous queen. or the residing queen would chew off the planted cell. I tried to find the queen twice, but she is unmarked and benefits from my amateurish eye for finding her. Thank you

[@roden70]

If the hive is really agressive you might have to take it out completely. There is a very real possability that the bees with agressive dna don't accept a more gentle queen. You can try that first but if they simply don't accept a more docile queen the only option is to take out the whole hive.

[@freelancestudio9130]

@@roden70 Thank you Roden70, I shall certainly try to do that, and about the idea of euthanizing them, I am quite hesitant about that, I'd probably feel very bad, but yeah, if it's to be done, I guess I'd have to. BTW, how soon can I expect to see the change in temperament of the bees? as that'd tell me the new queen has taken or not. thanks again.

[@JeffHorchoff]

The problem with putting a cell from a different box into a box with a laying queen in it is the old queen will more than likely kill the queen while she is in the cell. You can do as you suggest if the old queen is removed and it should work very well. You could also, after removing the old queen, drop in a frame of new brood into the hive and let he bees draw out an emergency cell and re queen it that way. Thanks for watching. God's peace. Mr. Ed

[@emmatonoose]

Other than location on the frame, is there any difference between the superceding [sp?] cell vs the swarm cell? Also if you successfully harvest either extra types of queen cells, could you use either to incorporate into a new hive?

[@JeffHorchoff]

The main difference between the two, other than where they are located on a frame, is a superseding cell is built when the hive wants to replace their old queen, and swarm cells are built when a hive is ready to swarm/leave the hive do to lack of space, primarily. Either one could be used to make a new hive given there was enough bees and stores inside of it. Thanks for watching. God's peace Marsha. Mr. Ed

[@GingerNinja1]

Where do you place them in the box? Do you attach them somehow & with what?

[@JeffHorchoff]

I'm very sorry I did not show how I attach them, I will next time. I use my hive tool and scrape some old wax away from the plastic foundation the width of the hive tool. It's just the right distance for a cell. Then I lay the cel in the cleaned area and put wax around it to hold it in place. When I finish, it looks like a superseding cell. Thanks for watching. God's peace Ginger. Mr. Ed

[@GingerNinja1]

@@JeffHorchoff Genius idea! Thanks for sharing that!