Norm wrote:As long as you got the queen with your first lot you should be fine! Don't fret about it. By all means try to collect as many stragglers as you can but the ones that you don't get should return to their original hive so all should be good.
The first lot I got in the pot seem to have settled down nice and quick once I got them back to my garden. They were initially making a loud buzzing roar and now seem to be making more of a contented hum. There seems to be a fair number of them going round my garden on the big flower beds and then going back to the pot. so, I'm guessing they are just getting on with business!
On the other hand, the one's left at the other garden I got them from are continuing to make a right racket. They are starting to cluster on a section of the hedge, but are still in sort of separate clumps around and about that corner of the garden. I'm guessing they are nosier cos they haven't got a queen now and are confused/pissed off.
Whatever the case, I have to clear them up for the woman since she was good enough to let me come and get the swarm for my new hive.
so, to clarify here, as I need all the advice I can get;
assuming the remaining bes are "queenless" what are they likely to do over the next few hours and into this evening?:
* stay put and form a new swarm cluster? In which case I could employ the same method as before this evening and bring them back and amalgamate them with the others?
* not form a proper coherent swarm due to incoherence due to lack of queen, in turn making it very difficult to capture them as a clean lump of bees? In which case, how do I get them to bugger off from this woman’s garden so she doesn't (quite understandably) give me hassle
* finding themselves queenless, they bugger off themselves, possibly back to the original hive? In which case, how soon would they be likely to do this? Tonight or sometime over the next few days?
Naturally, I'm hoping the answer is the last of these and it's tonight....
In any event, any advice gratefully received.
