Beekeeping Question

[ozzydom]

We have a swarm of bees which has taken up residence in a 40 litre plastic drum,they only arrived last evening and spent the night under a bench on the farm .

I noticed a few bees going and coming out the bung hole of the drum this morning and by mid morning the whole swarm had moved in.

Now the question , Is there any way I can entice the swarm to move into a proper hive ?

I can move the drum to a better location near the garden and fruit trees where they will be greatly appreciated but it would be a bonus if I could get them into a hive where I could Harvest the honey.

The only entrance in the drum is the 2 inch bung hole .

dom

[Dag]

You could try.....but no need to move closer to the garden for a better job, they fly miles for flowers....better to move to a quite and protected area from rain.....also ants and wasps.

Put the whole drum in the hive with a couple of frames and let them do their own thing....stay or go will be up to them.

To move the drum make a smoky fire nearby....only small and all smoke no heat.......then when they settled cover the whole and move them into the hive.....keep the smoke going for a little while to keep them settled....not to much smoke, just a light covering and leave them to settle for a few hours before opening the vents and see what happens.

[Dag]

Just saw the 40 litre bit....not sure if that would fit inside a normal hive.

If not, cut a hole in the back of the hive, fill it with frames, do the same things and secure the drum in tight so it opens into the hive but keep it locked up for awhile and let them settle....then they can do as they wish and maybe make use of the nice new home and frames.

[Foreverford]

Where do you get the frames for the hives here in Thailand? If you can get your drum and or hives eventually on an island of sorts with a litlle moat of water around it then it will keep the ants away. as you just saw, the bees will swarm and be gone to a new location at times. I think you ought to leave that barrel alone and let them establish themselves and create a strong colony. You could get a regu;lar hive and place it right next to the barrel and they may migrate to it. If in a year or two if they are doing well then try to move them into a different abode if you wish. Honey bees in the US have been decimated by mites and are, I think, well below 50% of historical norms (Ag Fruit meltdown with no pollinator?). I'd recommend buying some of your local honey and count your good luck that your, and the neighbors fruit trees and all flowering plants are being well tended by the great little beasts. ol Dag

[Dag]

We bought our hives from a farmer near Saraburi...he has frames and everything you need....mind you dont wanna spend to much in case they take flight again....but if they do you could then get a bag a bees from the farm to populate it.