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Shut in bees6/7/2023 You do risk being fined if you don't register beforehand. It is not as simple as not cutting your grass in May. Many baby birds feed on insects in the spring. Reduced mowing can result in higher bee abundance and diversity in yards, which benefits the ecosystem. They facilitate the reproduction of more than 75% of flowering plants and two-thirds of all agricultural crops, according the Integrated Pest Management Institute of North America. Letting the flowers grow for the month help protect the pollinators, who in some cases are in danger of extinction, particularly bees.Īll ecosystems rely on pollinators. If the cluster is on the ground, place lemongrass oil in the box as a lure, and tilt the box sideways to encourage them to move there on their own.No Mow May is a campaign that encourages people to refrain from mowing their lawns during the month of May in order to provide a stable habitat for pollinators, like bees, butterflies and other insects, early in the growing season.Ĭutting grass destroys the many wildflowers that are in bloom, which provide a vital source of nectar and pollen for the insects. Try not to break up the cluster as much as possible.ĭ. Use your bee brush to brush them into the box with a quick downward motion. If the cluster is on a fence, wall, mailbox, or other similar structure you will first mist them with a simple solution of sugar water or plain water from a spray bottle. This tends to be very gentle, though you will need to remove the vegetation as you transfer your bees into their new hive.Ĭ. If the cluster is hanging from small branches or vegetation, you can use pruning shears to cut the vegetation and place it with the bees in the box. If the cluster is on a branch, shake the bees into the box. If that is the case, try again until they stay in the box.Ī. If the queen did not make it into the box, you will know within minutes, as the workers will move out of the box and back onto the branch. The queen will be near the center of the cluster. Move as much of the swarm cluster into the box as you can. Lay a light colored sheet out under the swarm and place your box on top of it.Ĥ. We recommend at least a hat-veil and gloves for beginners.ģ. There are other swarms out there, and risking your life to catch a swarm isn't worth it!Ģ. *CAUTIONARY TIP: the allure of free bees can easily influence you to push your limits in ways you otherwise wouldn't. If the cluster is within arm's reach from ground level, don’t hesitate! If the cluster is positioned high-up, use your best judgment to determine if you are able to catch the bees in the box and come back down a ladder. Determine whether it's safe to get the bees. We have had the greatest success with bees caught from swarms in our own apiary, and have found that swarms generally fare much better than bees shipped across the country in packages.ġ. This method of obtaining bees aids in the goal of propagating strong genetics for local honeybee populations. They are guaranteed to have survived the winter in that climate, and were strong enough to split in early spring. Swarms are local to the areas they are found in. Swarms are immediately ready to start building comb within their new home. It's in this stage that swarms can be captured and used to populate an empty hive. Swarms land on a structure near their original hive location, cluster themselves, while scout bees leave in search of a new hive location. The original colony replaces the old queen, who leaves the hive with about half of the worker bees and as much honey as they can carry. Swarming is the natural method honeybee colonies use for reproduction. Catching and transferring swarms is our preferred method of populating hives. "Swarm" is not plural for many honeybees, like a “herd of buffalo” or a “school of fish,” it's a term used to describe a grouping of honeybees that recently split-off from a strong “mother colony” to start a new hive.
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