The Queen Escaped! | How to catch a swarm in a Cone Trap [Beekeeping 101 Tutorial]
Don't miss this! John finds that his Cone Swarm Trap has successfully caught a swarm. As he investigates, he discovers that the Queen is playing hard-to-find, so he takes a bit to look for her. After "almost" catching her, she decides to bounce, absconding to the nearby tree limb she originated from. The queen escaped, and it's up to John to put her back into her new home.
You don't want to miss this cone swarm trap catch! Once the queen escaped, John had only minutes to find her, or he may have lost her for good. Catching a swarm in a cone trap is a lot of fun, and this video proves it!
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I love the slowness and gentleness of your removal, every tiny life matters, no bee is expendable, and you treat every bee with great value. I also love that there are no added effects, loud music, just you, your voice, your bees and the beautiful sounds of all the nature around you. THe key to being successful with your bees is being slow and gentle - there's no need to be rough, and you are a pleasure to watch. THANK YOU.
Very kind words, and I want you to know that I appreciate them. Thank you #RTBBF!
71 years ago when I was six four of us kids spent the summer at the family farm. There was a swarm hanging from a tree limb. My uncle brought a hive box and ladder. He tried to saw the branch off but the bees attacked. He went to the trunk of his car and pulled out a 12 gauge double barreled shotgun and blew the branch off . The recovery was a success.
lol, my daddy was a fan of the shotgun method as well ! Thank you for sharing.
As a fellow beekeeper, you are one of the most gentle keepers ive seen
Everyone is commenting on the trap and the bee’s and your slow gentle approach. Am I the only one who saw that rickety ladder and screamed at the screen, “Dont you dare climb on that POS, get another ladder!!!”
we all want to get him a better 🪜 ladder 💜
I’m like you and notice safety issues. BUT, let’s try to focus on the bees and the trap. The purpose of the video. It’s so easy to be trapped in life by being the critical eye… Yes safety matters, but so does seeing the positive!!
5th year keeper here. Your videos are a great reminder that we don’t need to be fast or rough but slow and gentile when working bees . Love it.
Gentle
Not a Beekeeper but interested in good filming and content, very enjoyable! No unwanted music but spoken words and sounds of nature. Thank You
Glad you enjoyed it!
I very much appreciate and admire Bee Keepers ! I love Bees (probably my most favorite insect)and I love Honey. They pollinate our farms and gardens and are indispensable to the environment and the foods we eat. People who raise Bees deserve our respect and appreciation.🐝
So nice of you!
Spray them down with sugar water and DUMP EM > Don't drown them! Just a good coating of sugar water. THIS KEEP THEM FROM JUMPING UP, AND FLYING OFF
Great job. Have you ever thought about putting the bee traps on a pulley system so you don’t have to climb a ladder?
that woul make a lotta sense
I catch swarms for a living. It showed from the outset that the queen had not accepted the trap. All you had to do was to knock the swarm straight into the brood box & close it. Done. ps, it you can, have a frame of old comb & a frame of last years capped honey as a welcoming gift, works everytime
How interesting that orphaned bees are accepted into other hives. We could learn a lot fromm these little creatures.
So true!
As if orphaned humans weren't taken in? We even made the word orphan up
@@CentralBeekeepersSupply check out AUSSIE MIKES BEES BEST TOOL FOR SWARMS POP UP CLOTH CLOTHES BASKET BLOODY BRILLIANT.
They also kick out all of the males lol
@@kambercraighead6948 Then it's no wonder why the world's bee population has been failing then.
Best drama reality show I've ever seen! Swarming bees, wayward queen, rickety ladder, vines taking over, overgrown land, "new" type of swarm trap, great explanations, terrific Southern accent, handsome narrator, dedicated keeper of the bees, great learning experience, nice spring green, all on Mom's land. Way to go, John. I hope Mom was happy!
Mama loves having bees on her land for sure. Thanks for watching
This is like watching 'Suspense theater' !! haha
😅
Lmao as your lifting that cone up through the bracket I wondered why I was having trouble seeing what you were doing only to realize that as you were lifting I was moving my tablet back to where it was almost laying on my lap!!! I was trying to help you to not knock the bee's off as you were coming through that bracket!! Once I raised the tablet back up I could see just fine!! Lol
My friend, that made us laugh very heartily. Been there, done that. Thanks for sharing. 😂 🐝
Take a frame with drawn comb and lay it directly against the swarm. They will soon move onto it and they will spread the word and set them moving, then turn it with the other side against the swarm/cast to let them walk on. Move the frame with the bees inside the hive and put a cover over the occupied frame to shade it. Check to see if the queen is on the frame and if she is, catch her in a clip and put her in between the top bars of the hive/ nuke. Put the hive top back on and shake the rest of the bees onto a cloth or flat board close to the hive entrance and sit back while enjoying the spectacle of watching them start the stampede to get inside under the cover. Bees have a strong tendency to walk upwards so they will soon congregate on the frames near the caged queen. If they have been hanging out in cold weather for a day or two give them some sugar syrup at one and a half sugar to water mix in a feeder on top the frames since they get irritable if their honey reserves have been exhausted while trying to keep warm.
Love how gentle you were here. I appreciate this upload, thanks for sharing!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks Tony.
The bee whisperer. Nicely done!
Thanks
I'm glad you demonstrated the process because these cones are still being sold and used. I still believe that the swarm trap that's best is hung in the tree along with frames. Easier than the process you demonstrated
We usually catch in a box with frames. Check out the deer stand video! 🐝
Folks around the world make fun of Southern men. Blasphemy. As a NY'er, they are the most sensitive and kind folk I've ever known. This shows it.
As a damn yankee who now lives in the south I agree. It’s the media and things like their propaganda around Jan 6 that makes folks believe the wrong things. That’s how they keep us divided… so they can continue to control us.
Great to see how you take care of the hives. They provide you with a living but more importantly to me is the work that they do in pollenating the flowers and crops in the surrounding area providing a really essential service to all farmers in the area.
We love the bees. They keep our planet in operation, and we're just doing our part to help them. Happy and humbled that it helps us in return.
I’m amazed that they don’t sting his unprotected hands. Of course I’m totally unfamiliar to beekeeping so I guess this man knows what he can and can’t do. Thank you for your educational content. I learned a lot with just this one video
Bees will definitely sting, but I've been doing this for so long, it's second nature. I still get stung, but rarely. I've raised many hives, so I guess it's in their DNA to trust me? Who knows.
Seems like they are more prone to sting hands wearing latex gloves.
You have some happy bees and birds! Love watching you
Thanks so much! They are definitely happy on the farm.
No bees were harmed in the making of this movie. 😂
I’m from the city so what I’m most impressed with is the sound of so many birds in the background. Amazing!
We are fortunate to have an exceptional array of bird species in Arkansas. Over 300 species live in our area alone!
Nowhere is it written that a swarm trap has to be so dang high. Six feet will do.
You have a gentle way of swarm catching…. I’m usually pressed for time and thump them right in the box, close up the box and walk away! Good luck!
Thanks! We like to go slow for two reasons - We respect the bees, AND we want beginners to understand what's going on. If we rush through it, somebody might miss something. If the camera wasn't a factor, we'd have been done quite quickly as well. 😉
Ameny Amen 🙏💞🙏🙏
Damn Good Video Your no rush method is Brilliant Sir Once the trap is Down I would take two or three Supers / Boxes , put frames in the bottom one , put the trap in the top one without frames , cover as much as possible , depending on the size of the circumference of the top of the trap and how much of the hive lid will cover it etc Let them be for a couple of hours , a day just raising the lid to see if the hive has moved on in Patience works Thank you for reading
Great advice! Thanks for the comment.
Nice work! ... how about having the trap on a pulley, other end of the rope on the lower trunk? Just lower them to your box without risking your necks or having us hold our breath for so long! Cheers, Farmer John, Ontario, Canada
Great idea!
That cone looks like a good idea. I think that I would make a deep super that would suspend the cone over the super with the frames and then just let them drift down in their own time. After 24 hours I'd go back, lift the cone lid and smoke em down if they were a little reluctant to go down.
I was thinking the same thing.
We call that a "Good Enough"-ladder, which means it will probably kill you one of these days! :D Glad you caught her.
My ER Dr friend always tells me old people and ladders of any kind dont mix.
@@togo3624 Oh, not just old people! The most common kind of building site accident that requires medical attention is falling from an unsupported ladder. The most common near-accident is tripping over loose cables. :)
@@graydanerasmussen4071 Youth can heal from falls better than older adults. Thus his advice about mature adults. Being an older person I’m very cautious about using ladders.
@@togo3624 Agree...I'm.75.years.old.and.haven't.been.up.a.ladder.in.25.years.or.more...I.have.a.hard.enough.time.walking.on.level.ground.as.it.is.and.I.get.worse.every.year...
@@togo3624 Roger that. I have a hard time keeping my balance on the level floor of my home.
Very, very interesting 'bee' video...thank you. Please change the ladder for a higher, more sturdy ladder please.
Noted!
Already captured and re-homed two swarms this spring. There are three more bearded and ready to be captured.
All five swarms were re homed before the temps dropped and we were snowed on. Now that swarm season is over and the flowers are in bloom it’s time to tend to the hive, cleaning out the winter trash, scraping the gypsy comb and putting in the supers
Never a shortage of work this of year. Stay on top of them, and good luck this season!
You could put simply the swarm with the cone on the top of opened hive and go for the long break or shake off bees between frames. The result will be the same but the movie dramatically shorter.
I agree.His task was to put minutes onto the video.He just wanted to capture her.He did not even mark her
Alternatively you could take a frame of brood from a nearby hive ,put it in the catch box and shake the swarm cluster onto the catch box . Done it many times , rarely failed to anchor the swarm.
I really like to see your peaceful gentle demeanor w the bees
Thanks much!
“I foresee some yard maintenance…” - lol
😂 🐝
This was extremely fun, I do my best to show my grandkids they are only out for food for there queen. I have a massive amount of there favorite flowers so I get a great garden. With all the home's I feel there taking down there's I don't mind a hive for a jar from it but don't want the expensive project of having everything. I do my best to keep water for them with sugar in high heat and cool . There so interesting to watch.
11:00 The whole time I was waiting for a large wad of bees to fall on the camera.
The camera dude says "That would be simultaneously the best and worst thing that could've happened." 😂
Nice catch!!! I've caught 6 this year so far. Thanks!
Very cool! Congrats!
Queen bees are very easy to recognize
You certainly are patient and gentle:-) I've seen some beekeepers they just shake them off and a big gentle Shake.😊
Everyone has their own way. I just prefer to treat the bees like I want them to treat me. Nice and gentle!
Try and hang the cone trap with a rope you can untie from the ground and lower it instead of using the ladder. Like people hang up food packs in bear country. Safer
John seems to be the sort of fellow it would be fun to have a beer with. Interesting bee footage.
Bees are like "don't move he won't see us don't move..."
hahahaha!
When you said “herding cats” I lost it. Trying to sweep bees down a little hole. You should have backed that nice new Toyota under that tree and climbed on top. The top of my old van is all dented from catching swarms. Great video again. Keep them coming. Stay off the tops of ladders.
Next time, for sure! Great idea. Thanks for the comment.
Shouldn't have worried about being so gentle that you lost the Queen and should have given a good rap on the top of the frames in the box, and then looked for her on and in the cone trap. If she was in the bucket you should have been able to see if she went down into the frames or not, but keep tapping the bees out of the trap until there are few enough bees left in the trap to see that she is not in the trap and then quit trying to use an inner cover if she's in the box with the frames, then the rest of the stray bees will follow the smell of her hormones, but the Queen will most generally set up shop on one of the frames of comb, just make sure that you have some frames of new foundation for them to start drawing comb on the new foundation, ( make sure that you put syrup on both, the comb and the new foundation ), once they start drawing out comb on the new foundation, it's usually a done deal! Leave them alone for a couple of days and then check them to see if the Queen stayed put, if not give the swarm a new Queen in a box with some foundation and comb in it with a Queen excluder inbetween the top and bottom boxes, just in case you missed seeing the original Queen and if the bottom box is Queenless, you will know it immediately, as the bees will flock to the caged Queen that you placed in the top box!
This is great. Friend of mine has been saying I’m going to put a trap out your farm. Now I know what he’s talking about . just enough to get stung. Lol. No. Thanks enjoyed it.
Thanks for watching, Ron!
Thank you. Enjoying the series!
Glad you enjoy it!
If you set that trap inside a second box with the lid on they would just use the hive entrance and move down onto the comb provided
Great video. I learned a lot, thanks.
Beekeepers don't always have to wear gloves if the bees are calm.
Years ago I caught a swarm that had 12 queens in it. That will make you up your game just to keep up with their needs on top of the other hives you have.
many years ago I saw a large swarm clinging to a fence post and got my swarm catching gear ready to collect them. Almost immediately a Virgin came round the mass of bees and went striding about on top of them. What luck. I took out a small match box which I used for introducing Queens and it had been well ventilated to clear the sulphur fumes. It had several small holes in the top for ventilation I confirmed it was a Virgin and put it in the box in my tool kit. No sooner had I done that than I spotted two clusters of bees on the ground and retrieved a mated marked queen in one and another. Virgin in the other, just as well I had a good store of matchboxes to put them into. I was bemused at finding so many queens and continued in our aging the swarm up into the straw skep on top of the post, but more small clusters appeared on the bramble bush entwined into the fence.this was becoming a rare situation where several of my 25 colonies decided to swarm at the same time. As the bulk. Of the swarm were moving up into the skep a lot of groups of bees were settling on the long grass and tall weeds. In the long run there was a total of 16 queens that I found including 1 which had lost a fight to the death with another Virgin. Then the real work began as I had 6 miniature queen mating boxes ready and went through a very strong colony shaking off young nurse bees into a bucket and spraying them with sugar syrup. I took a cupful of bees and put them in each of the mating boxes with a matchbox containing a Virgin and left them in the garage with a cupful of sugar slightly dampened to help them draw comb? That evening there was quite a roar coming from them and I left them for two more nights by which they had chewed the cardboard matchboxes to free the Virgins. Inside the mating boxes was a glass window so I could see their progress in building comb. They were put out on top of some unused hives and left for two weeks before opening their access holes to let them orientate and forage. Some of the other queens I used to replace older ones and gave the rest to members of our association.
I usef a clean ,white sheet ,on the ground with the new hive in the middle of the sheet. shake bees onto sheet ,in front of hive and watch them march into the hive. no smoke ! hived a many swarms that way. and pine needles make excellent smoke !
That's a great idea!
Don't you just love docile bees. Good job. Great video. I love to watch you work the bees.
Yes, thanks
Im petrified of bees 🐝. Great how you handle them 😊
Helpful info. Thanks
Glad it was helpful!
Beautiful Merci pour les Abeilles il en faut❤😊🎉❤
Brilliant video, love how you handle bees. Question:how do you manage not to get stung when handling a swarm of bees with bare hands?
Honestly, we advise that everyone wear full protective gear when handling bees. John has been around these bees for many generations, and they've always been pretty agreeable. There are definitely situations where the bees get angry or protective, but we're just fortunate to have good bees.
He.has.gentile.bees...I.have.never.seen.any.of.his.hives.get.agressive...
Greetings from the BIG SKY.
Greetings Roger! Great to have you around.
Be patient! Let the bees go down
Queenie gone?..good luck with making a Hive of that swarm...really...I wish you best
Privet hedge closes my sinus up quickly!
It is very strong when in bloom. Thanks for watching
A lot of people don't realize honeybees are some of the smartest animals on the planet.
Pine straw makes good smoker fuel.
Indeed! Great comment.
Thanks for this just convinced me that those traps aren't worth the money or trouble.
Every scenario is different, Bob. We like to show the reality of what someone can expect, no matter the outcome. All in all, swarm caught. 😊
Love the video. Great job.
Thanks for watching!
That bee trap looks like one of Mom's pressed peat plant pots with a lid on it. Ingenious idea! Mom probably doesn't miss the pot, and I'm hoping she really enjoys the honey. I don't know about the lid, those. It looks like it's made for the top of the pot, so I'm wondering if the trap is commercially made?
Yes it is made and intended for swarm traps
Awesome video Great work!
Thank you very much!
So after using this type of swarm catcher, I wonder if you have come to the same conclusion I have. I think people should just use a single deep box hive with all 10 frames in it. That way you just pick up the hive & put an empty in its place. If they start building, all is well instead of a cut-out situation. And you don't have to transfer them out of the home that they just chose. If one doesn't have empty hives to use as swarm traps..... well then they have no place to put a swarm anyway, do they? LoL. It just makes sense.
Nice one😀
@@pankajmakwana2300 by All of
Thanks for watching, folks! Leave your questions in the comments and I'll answer as many as I can. #RTBBF
Interested to know what you using in the smoker …
Let me suggest you construct your next beer traps to be a simple lid, held on by brackets rather than screws…
Thanks for the suggestion!
Or perhaps some sort of wing nut. Or a swinging latch, something without needing tools to access it again...
Absolutely fascinating 😮😮😮
Thanks for watching!
@@CentralBeekeepersSupply Thank you. I noticed you filmed that video last year. So, have you eaten any of the honey from that hive? I bet it is delicious!!!
Very Professional . . Well Done ! Enjoy your ' enunciation ' : >) and slower speech. Makes it easy for us to follow your activity.
I'd think a better mount for the trap would be to have it suspended from a rope so you could lower it from the ground, and when raised, it docks against a bracket that keeps it from blowing around. The whole rig, dock, pulleys, rope would mount to the underside of a branch. Only need a ladder for the initial install.
That's a great idea.
Great work!
Thanks 😊
Hark, you forgot your gloves!
This is a great video 📹. I can see 👀 the movement of the 🐝 🐝 🐝. I like the way you handle the bees. You are a master 🙌. Good job keep up the good work.
Let's all chip in for an orchard ladder!!
I'd try cutting a slot in your bracket so next time it's easier to remove, the other thing I do is set up my traps on a simple pulley so I can lower them down from ground level
Im sorry... my brain just kept screaming "WHY ARE YOU NOT WEARING GLOVES!?!?!!?"
I've done this for so long, I get reckless sometimes. Definitely should have been wearing gloves! The bees are usually gentle around here, and I know not to step into a situation where the bees are hostile. I absolutely keep a full set of gear in the truck at all times. Sometimes I feel like I don't really need it. As in this video.
thank you for this beautiful video, love the sound of all the birds too. I see a lot of people marking their queen with a dot of paint, why don't you do it too? just wondering.
23:00 I think the hole needs to be in the corner of the bucket, bees like conners like in a bee escape box.
You're probably correct. The bees love corners.
It's too bad they don't make burlap no more That used to work great as a material for smoking inside of that canister I remember my dad telling me that was the best thing in the world for bee smoke
Was there comb in the box to start them off?
Thank you for a very interesting and informative video and for being kind to the bees .New sub here
Thanks for the sub.and you're welcome. #RTBBF!
That realy looks good to the young useing that ladder. Rob.
Maybe you can show us your way to use a ladder? Let us know when you get that video up and we'll be the first to subscribe. 😊
So kind and gentle with bees. This is a true southern gentleman beekeeper! Can we set up a go fund me for a ladder! B
Much appreciated! 😂🤣 RTBBF !
Just putting a comment to help your channel
We appreciate it!
Does all this happen on your own property and SWARMS of Bees just Come to you????!! They fly in like Squatters??? "HI there!! looking for a home!! Got one??" LOL I've Seen Some Bee Keepers Color Code their Queens with a dot of something that looks like paint. How come you don't ? And I LOVE The Bird Song in the background! You have AN "A TEAM" of a Bee Team--Sorry couldn't resist! LOL
🤣 yes this all goes down at our farm. Some strays show, but mostly our swarms. We rarely mark queens do to risk of injury.
Extraction at night or evening is safer!
Hello my fellow beekeeper. I have a question about flows. When do summer flow end? Is it around July 1st? I ask because I'm not certain whether or not to add a super to a new hive. They have about 75% of the hive built out but believe the flow is ending here in NY so not sure if I should add it this year. What are your thoughts? Thank you
Depends what's growing and flowering in your Area, and the Weather there .... 👍 See what local Beeks are experiencing, to get an idea...
I would agree with the other commenter. The rough date can be different based on where you're located. Are you a member of any local beek groups on Facebook? I'd say go ahead and add the super, but since I'm late to respond to this comment you may have already done so. Let us know how it's going!
I have to admit, I would not have been that patient. Especially when it’s cold like that they would not be eager to fly. I would have pulled four frames from the box to make room. Then dump them all at once, with a jolt, and gently dropped in the frames again put the lid on, and left the box for everyone to settle in. If you do it fairly smooth the queen can’t fly. She has 1000 bees on top of her.😂
Great job❤
Keep doin god's work 👍
👍 🐝 ❤️
Bee herding 101...yeeehaw....
Very nice.
Thank you
8:28 you've have done this before haven't ya
Once or twice. Lol
Thanks very helpfull
Glad to hear!
Like swarm trap be nice to know where they came from out of purchase them if you want to be able to use the trap 8 year plus in beekeeping enjoy watching different people throughout the world Central beekeeping I know it never identified where you is from a month date time group to how you was working them I heard 50°. Thanks for the show was good
I am from Southern Illinois 21 BIs too Long lives four five nukes zone
Thanks so much for watching. We're located in Central Arkansas, in the Arkansas River Valley. The cone trap can be found here: www.centralbeekeeperssupply.com/onlinestore/Cone-Swarm-Trap-p91719717
Good show bud....
hahaha thanks for watching 😉 🐝
Played with them. The queen was almost ready to leave. Besides the trap is to small. Only small sawrms.
Thanks for watching, WIlliam!
Could you just have a matched swarm trap that fits inside a box that fits over your hive? Take down the trap, sit it on the frames, cover with the over box, and the bees just go down by themselves, with minimal need for handling?
🤣 Yeah I could have but what fun would that have been?? Haha! Good question. That really would have worked for that catch since they hadn't built any comb. Probably would have taken a deep box and a medium to cover trap. They're pretty big on that one end.#RTBBF
@@CentralBeekeepersSupply sorry. Wasn’t complaining about your video. Was sorta just asking a complete newbie question in a dumb way😃
I would even go as far as building a super box that would surround the trap and that it would sit on top of a super box ...... To act as the transfer Box Slopping sides ..... ? ? Take swarm trap down Place inside " slopping box " Slopping box is on top of super box with Frames inside Queen moves on Down and into Hive Thanks for reading Damn Good Video Sir
@@boboften9952 that was my thoughts, good sir.