bee question

i was reading my new copy of Mother Earth news that came today..

and i wasn't sure if some of the information was true or not so i am asking for info

they said basically if you build it they will come..and it was on an article about building a hive..i have also seen similar information about straw skeps..

we have had swarms around here in the past and had no means of housing them..so i was just wondering if you believe it is true.

in the article..someone said that they set up an empty hive and within a few days there was a swarm that moved in.

sure you can buy  bees..but i was wondering if this  is really true..and likely that they would only be swarming in the spring ..am i correct?

i would like to try it but was just wondering if any of you believe that this is a good idea..true..whateveer..??

I think I've read similar things. I imagine there are times & places where bees rarely swarm, but it sounds like you're in a place that would catch bees fairly easily.

It might also increase your chances if your neighborhood works with local beekeepers, to seal up gaps in construction that would otherwise be tempting.

Some have told me that placing bees wax in the hive helps.
Also to tie a white cloth over the hive.
They think it is a flower.

Swarming bees are not likely to sting.
Just put the word out you want a swarm.
Come with a cardboard box, duct tape and clippers and shake them in.

Youtube has lots of videos on swarm catching.

wow thanks..that is the kind of responses i was hoping to hear.

i'm going to consider buildinng the hives shown in a former issue of Mother EArth..and then setting it out over the winter..so when they swarm in the spring there will be a place for them to go to..

i could do the white cloth..but i also could plant a lot of flowers..i have a lot of flowers here..and the beeswax sounds like a cool idea..could i put in a piece of comb honey??? that would even give them a little food?

Brenda Groth wrote:
wow thanks..that is the kind of responses i was hoping to hear.

i'm going to consider buildinng the hives shown in a former issue of Mother EArth..and then setting it out over the winter..so when they swarm in the spring there will be a place for them to go to..

i could do the white cloth..but i also could plant a lot of flowers..i have a lot of flowers here..and the beeswax sounds like a cool idea..could i put in a piece of comb honey??? that would even give them a little food?

If I understand correctly, adding comb honey too early might just draw honey-eating pests. If bees are around, comb honey and even brood comb (little ones to adopt) will make a place a lot more inviting. Extra brood comb is not common, except where bees are being removed from a structure; making contact with a local beekeeper who does "cut-outs" is the only way I can think to get some. But bees apparently also eat hard candy in the hive, strophyria mushroom mycelia near it...there are lots of ways to prepare food for them.

there are hives 3/4 of a mile east and 3/4 of a mile west of us..not sure about north or south, but think there might be some to the south as well..i have met the beekeeper and he said i wouldn't need a hive here cause the ones 3/4 a mile away would come..however..i would rather have them right here on my HEALTHY property rather than near areas where there are a lot of agricultural areas where they are using "farming" methods..rather than the more wild areas like where i am.

there are so many things said about mites and diseases..i would like to have a hive isolated from all of that nasty stuff out there in the world that could hurt them..if you know what i mean.

this is just an idea right now..but i have talked about it with my husband and he also thinks it would be a good idea..

i saw one of our neighbors between us and the hives west using chemicals on their lawn just last week..so i know they are being used close to us..but not on our property