How do I get rid of swarming bees in my yard?

15 years ago

Hello. I'm new to these forums and hope someone can help solve my problem. I have a small swarm of bees in a tree in the front yard. We noticed them about 25 hrs prior to this writing. They are hanging in a clump on a branch in small oak tree, about 10 ft up. I would like to get rid of them without killing them. I know nothing about bees, except that they are important to nature, are major pollinators, and are on the decline worldwide.

I have already called the county agent and several beekeepers in my area. None of them seem interested in coming to capture the bees, and I have no experience, knowledge, or equipment to deal with these bees. I do not want to kill them, but they are less than 20 yds from my front door. I would appreciate any advice anyone can give to help me encourage these bees to move on. Will they move on eventually?

Featured Answer

thisbud4u

15 years ago

Generally, swarming bees do not attack, because they have nothing to defend (no honey, no children). However, I wouldn't try to remove them without a beesuit. I am really surprised that none of the local beekeepers want to help you. Geez, that's a real drag--certatinly wouldn't happen in our neighborhood. The bees won't stay in a clump on a branch for very long--they will try to find a real home within a day or two, so you can just wait until they leave. Unfortunately, they may decide to move from the tree to somewhere in your house, which would make the problem go from bad to worse. So, what's to do? Well, by any chance do you have a bee supply place locally? If so, you could purchase a standard beehive box, and put them in there. Or, you could put them in a box of some sort, and take them out of town. To move them at all, however, you'll need to either buy a beesuit, or figure out some way to cover yourself completely. Some form of netting over the head is essential--if bees are going to attack (not likely in this case, but there's no sense taking a chance), plus long overalls, leather gloves, workboots and trousers with the cuffs taped shut. That ought to keep you save. Hope this helps.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (6)

tonybeeguy
15 years ago
When bees swarm they usually don't go far from the nest when they first leave the hive. They find a nearby spot like the limb of your tree and may stay for 20 minutes or so up to days. I had a swarm from one of my hives that hung out way up in a pine for around 6 days. As mentioned above, you should at least wear a veil for protection and light colored loose clothing. You can also use rubber bands on you pant cuffs. One way of getting the swarm involves putting a box underneath, on a tall step ladder or you can cut the branch and carry it down. Hold the swarm over the box and give the branch a sharp rap and the cluster should fall into the box, hopefully with the queen. If the queen isn't in they won't stay. I can't believe that no one in your area is willing to help. There's a good chance that by the time you read these replies, the bees will have moved on. You may be able to find some online videos of swarm removals. Good luck and let us know how you make out
Related Discussions
How do i get rid of mice in my compost bin?
Q
Comments (3)
I agree. Frequent turning and ample amounts of water will deter mice getting in there to have a little snackie and they will not make nests in it if it is too wet for a nice cozy mouse house . If your compost is already "cooked to perfection and done", then bag it up and store it in a trash can with a tight fitting lid for future use, or spread it around in your growing areas and containers. This is what I do.
...See More
how do I get rid of my baptisia?
Q
Comments (12)
Well, my husband got the baptisia out and said it did not have a tap root but many smaller roots that he just cut through. We shall see what happens next year. Before I read your last 3 comments, we went and bought some russian sage. Now I wonder. It is in a bed surrounded by rudbeckia, echinacea, robert poole phlox, moonbeam coreopsis and shasta daisy. It will have a space that will allow it to branch out to 3-4 ft. and it would be okay to be 4- 4 1/2 ft. tall as the phox is very tall. We live in Pennsylvania and have fairly rich soil, so now I am concerned that we have a plant that will be uncontrollable and that flops. Any consolation? jnfr, when you say it is "killing everything around them", do you mean by the creeping roots? Flopping we can deal with by staking, but killing surrounding plants would be terrible.
...See More
Fire Ants: How do I know I have them and how do I get rid of them
Q
Comments (2)
Fire ants make mounds and not holes. The mounds start out small and become larger as the colony population increases. These mounds look rather innocent until you disturb them, and ALL of the ants boil out of the mound all at once. Again, there is never a discernible hole. I never worry about ants in my yard and garden, other than fire ants. Fire ants can be a problem for humans, pets, bird nests, beneficial insect eggs and larvae, and such.
...See More
How do I get rid of my newly seeded Bermuda grass lawn
Q
Comments (6)
It is unfortunate that misinformation continues to be repeated about glyphosate. Denmark has not banned glyphosate, nor have "many European countries". Denmark at one point thought that some of the monitoring they were doing showed that glyphosate could move into agricultural field drainage water in autumn but once they looked at their data and related it to the methodology they used, they enacted no ban whatsoever. As the Danish Environmental Protection Agency specifically stated: http://www.egeis.org/home/main/Evaluation-GlyphosateDEPA.PDF "Against this background, the Danish Environmental Protection Agency believes that no unacceptable risk of pollution of the groundwater is associated with the currently approved agricultural use of glyphosate. The Agency thus does not consider that the updated state of our knowledge provides any technical grounds for the imposition of restrictions on the autumn application of glyphosate." Used properly, glyphosate will not pollute drinking water nor will it have adverse effects on humans. Once applied, it binds tightly to soil particles and is not herbicidally active. If it is applied to hard surfaces such as sidewalks it can move offsite of course. It can also move if there is active soil erosion carrying soil off site. It is of very low toxicity, and breaks down completely into natural constituents over time. It is of equal or lower toxicity than most household products such as detergent, soaps, shampoos, cleaners etc. and far less toxic than some of the "alternatives" often discussed such as bleach, kerosene, high strength vinegars and so on. There is so much misinformation being repeated on the web that it is difficult to get reliable information. This link provides an published overview of the available literature. Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology Volume 31, Issue 2, April 2000, Pages 117-165 Safety Evaluation and Risk Assessment of the Herbicide Roundup and Its Active Ingredient, Glyphosate, for Humans http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=1401479
...See More
bandit_tx
15 years ago
Leave them alone and they'll move on. A swarm may hang for a day or three, but they will eventually find a hive and move in. Until then, they aren't hurting anything and they aren't aggressive.
vlcek79
14 years ago
Hi, I need help my neighbor got 12 hives of bees right next to my fence. We live in Kansas and we have homeowners association which will not allow me to have 6 foot fence. I cannot move around my fence and now I cannot go out to my back yard at all. IÂm highly allergic to sting from bees or wasps. I got stung already once and had to get shots to stop the reaction. I talked to my neighbor and ask him if he could move his bees because his 12 hives are setting 24 inches next to the fence. His response was that I need to get netting over my head and heavy clothing if I want move or to set outside. Right now his bees are swarming around my patio and me and my wife cannot leave the house.
I tried to give water closer to his hives as I learn from Internet. I found a lot of information about bee keeping and I know it can be done right. My neighbor is not willing to do anything and my wife is getting really upset. PLEASE HELP!!! What do I need to do to have peace and not be scared?
tonybeeguy
14 years ago
How long has your neighbor had bees. Had you already been living there when he got them. or were you aware of them when you moved in? There are a lot of variables. It sounds like your neighbor is obviously not one to compromise, but I don't know the details of the situation. You can check with the city or town hall and see if there is an existing bee-keeping ordinance. If there is, it usually states a limit to the number of hives you can have and their location according to the size of your property. Also there is usually a minimum distance that you have to keep them from neighbor's property line. Being a beekeeper, I am pretty much opposed to ordinances against or controlling bees, but I also believe that any decent beekeeper should respect the neighbors around him and work out a reasonable solution for all involved. Also, common sense should play a big part.
Mylovelybees_gmail_com
11 years ago
If your looking to get rid of your bees or swarm, google bee rescue in your local area! They will save the bees for a competitive price to the exterminators! In orange county contact http://www.guerillabeekeepers.com or www.backyardbees.net
Save the bees!!!

Here is a link that might be useful: Lovely Bees

How do I get rid of swarming bees in my yard?

thisbud4u

Comments (6)

tonybeeguy

Related Discussions

bandit_tx

vlcek79

tonybeeguy

Mylovelybees_gmail_com

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US