Feeding fumagillin medicated syrup to newly installed packages is highly recommended. About one and a half to two months after installation, when the package bee colony requires additional space, you should place a super of frames on top of the brood chamber. Top of page Collecting Swarms Collecting honey bee swarms in the spring is an excellent way to replace winter losses, strengthen weak colonies, or start new ones. In comparison, a 3-pound package will give you approximately ten thousand five hundred bees. Three considerations to keep in mind before attempting to collect a swarm are how long the swarm has been there, where the swarm is located, and how big it is.
Swarms normally cluster on a tree limb, shrub, fence post, or on the side of a building.
When possible, cut down the swarm gently and put it directly into a hive or enclosed container to transport it to a new hive or location. If the swarm cannot be cut down, either shake or scrape the bees into a lightweight box. When a swarm settles in a very high tree, or on any other inaccessible structure, it is best to leave it there since it is often an after swarm with a virgin queen. Sometimes you can knock these high swarms into a bucket at the end of a long pole. The success rate, however, is very low.