A break from our alphabet games to mention that it is swarm season in Virginia. I put a swarm trap up on a grape trellis. This past Saturday a swarm came to visit. I took this photo as they were moving into the hive. There are lot of bees, but without a home yet they are not at all aggressive.

The box is about the size of a deep, turned on its side and with deep frames at the top. It is up off the ground and tucked between some trees, so apparently the bees liked it.

A couple hours later the bees had settled into the hive. You can see in the first photo the screen cover that I rotated over the entrance hole. The bees were nicely tucked inside, and I drove them to a friend’s apiary a bit over 5 miles away. The second photo shows the resulting nuc with a feeder on top. I left the swarm box upside down and next to the hive so the last few bees would make their way into their new home. I’ll check on them this weekend to see how they are doing.

May you prosper and find honey.