Swarm in bin

Panrich

I have a black bin at the bottom of the garden with a clipped lid that contains some electric fencing tape and poles.

Yesterday I noticed a swarm of bees on the side of it and within twenty minutes they were all gone inside.

We have a young guy who is a friend of our son who has completed a beekeeping course and has hives (or they are on the way) so he is coming on Sunday to collect them,

In the meantime I have a dog and cat who I am afraid will be attacked. The dog is extremely nosy and the bin is right beside my cats escape route out of the garden. Has anyone any advice on how to keep us all safe until our little friends are relocated?

Danzy

Swarm bees are nearly always very docile, fit to burst with eaten honey.

In reality all one can do given your circumstances is wait till Sunday.

yosemitesam1

They'll be fine. The worst thing that would happen is that a bee could get stuck in dogs hair, they avoid them after that!Takes a good while for them to get active as they'd be building wax for the first few days.

Panrich

Thank you.

Update:

The cat seems totally unperturbed and has not gone near the hive even though the top of the black plastic bin was a favourite spot. The dog also seems to be instinctively cautious once initial curiosity has waned. They are extremely docile and my wife who loves bees was able of get within a couple of feet to investigate. They seem to be used to humans as they were totally relaxed.

I'm not sure if this resonates with anyone here but my wife who is a Terry Pratchett fan and wants to save all the bees wants to keep them (not going to happen as we know that she needs to complete a course) based on one of his novels where a swarm of bees arrive on midsummers day (as these did). They are extremely docile but I can't think that a back plastic bin with no ventilation in a south facing garden is a good place for building a hive. The temperature in there must be huge during the day. In any case, they will hopefully be due for a new home tomorrow. I'll update once they have been relocated.

Panrich

Well they’re in a new hive in the same spot as the bin and seem to have accepted this change quite happily.

The tricky step will take place later when we are moving them the mile and a bit to their new home.

We’re going to seal the entrance and bring them to their new home in the boot of the car. I have a fear that the 48 hours they spent in my garden may mean that they will come back again once they leave the hive though.

Panrich

By the way any tips or advice welcome

Danzy

Panrich wrote: »

By the way any tips or advice welcome

Leave it till after 9 or as late as possible so that foraging bees are gone home for night.

That said given conditions today very few bees will be out, even now, looking at my own hives there is little going on with the rain.

If you put something in front of their hive door, it is said to help them reorient to new spot.

Though that isn't certain but can't hurt.

Tie up the hive well and take it cushy.

Panrich

Danzy wrote: »

Leave it till after 9 or as late as possible so that foraging bees are gone home for night.

That said given conditions today very few bees will be out, even now, looking at my own hives there is little going on with the rain.

If you put something in front of their hive door, it is said to help them reorient to new spot.

Though that isn't certain but can't hurt.

Tie up the hive well and take it cushy.

Thank you. I’ve heard that wired wool in the entrance is a good idea before sealing it up. I have some tape to go over that although the hive is very wet at the minute. I have some ratchet type belts to go round the hive so we should be fine from that angle.

Panrich

Well I want to thank everyone who posted advice and reassurance.

The hive is gone since about 9:45 last night. The lad was like a dog with two tails and he clearly loves his new colony. The bees amazed me with how placid they were during the move from the bin. The queen and quite a chunk of the colony were in an old empty molasses tub.

To ensure that they accept their new location he’s going to keep them locked up in a cool place and feed them for a few days before letting them out.

I don’t think they would have survived very long in the bin given the lack of ventilation and its position in direct sunlight for most of the day so am delighted with the outcome all round.