My bees and where they came from…
My bees are Italian, for the most part. I have three different hives the blue hive, the green hive, and the newest addition the orange hive. I bought the blue and the green hives last may after I graduated from beeschool. I bought them from another local beekeeper and mentor Tommy. The orange hive was part of a swarm I caught with my dad. The swarm was about 12 feet up in a tree. My dad and I took the bees from the branches and put the bees in the box. The queen bee lays more eggs so the population begins to increase and we start giving the bees more boxes to expand into. The orange hive has expanded so much in fact, we might actually get a second harvest later this fall.
About swarming and what to do
Swarming is something honey bees do to create more hives in the world. Generally, you’ll see swarms more often in early spring. The bees swarm if they are getting too crowded in the box or if they have certain genetics that make them prone to swarming. Anyway, swarming is when 1/2 the bees leave the hive with the old queen. The bees that stay will raise a new queen for their hive. The bees that go will find a tree or a bush and they will “set up camp”. The bees will send out scouts that will look for a cozy home in a tree. If you happen to find a swarm please don’t hesitate to call someone from the Mecklenburg Beekeepers Association. Here is a link to see the available beekeepers https://meckbeekeepers.org/swarm-list/ . Make sure that the person you are going to call has the right requirements.