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Bees & Beekeeping

New hive swarmed HELP

14 years ago

We installed two packages of bees at the end of April, added an extra deep hive body at the end of May, and had to start adding shallow supers at the end of June, which they are still drawing out the new comb. One of the hives swarmed today. Fortunately, they clustered in a nearby tree and we put them in a new hive. Why did a new hive swarm so soon when they had plenty of room? Should I order a new queen right away for the former hive or just let them make their own?

Comments (2)

cpp6318
14 years ago
What kind of foundation are you using? some bees would rather swarm than draw out new foundation.
I would let them build thier own queen as they must have some close to emerging or they wouldn't have swarmed. By the time you order a new queen and have her shipped, they'll have made their own.
kchendershott
Original Author
14 years ago
The only thing I had to put the swarm in was a couple shallow supers with wired wax foundation. I didn't expect to need more deeps the first year, but ordered some foundation and a deep that won't get here until early next week that I can put on top of them. By then, I'm sure they'll already be filling the two shallow supers with eggs and brood. (It was a big swarm.) It's not ideal, but I'm not sure what to do about it - I sure didn't expect a new hive to swarm before it was 3 months old! If I hadn't seen the swarm leave the old hive, I wouldn't guess it had happened - everything seems business as usual there. I checked yesterday and found fresh eggs, so the queen must have laid plenty before she left. ALSO - can I move the new hive back by the other two soon, or should I leave it alone for awhile?

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