# Worried...



## KQ6AR (May 13, 2008)

All I can think of is reducing the entrance as much as possible, which it sounds like you already did.
You might want to screen over the other ones so there is good ventilation.

A robbing screen might help, a screen in front of the entrance about 5" high. You're bees have to climb up that 5" to exit the hive. Robber bees try to enter at the old location where the scent is. It works for honey bee robber, maybe it will for yellow jackets.


----------



## tommyt (Aug 7, 2010)

Use a small piece of fish ,hang it near the hive watch the direction they (yellow Jackets) come from
move the fish in that direction 50 ft.at a time 
you will find the nest Light it up 
No more Yellow Jackets 

Tommyt


----------



## Adam Foster Collins (Nov 4, 2009)

Screen over the holes as KQ6AR said, then reduce your last entrance hole down so that just a couple of bees can make it through at a time. use a piece of a shingle or something and staple it on to cover most of that last hole.

If you've got that few bees, then the restriction of traffic is only going to help. Robber screen is a good idea if you can make one.

I really don't like yellow jackets...


Adam


----------



## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

Now that you're there:

http://www.bushfarms.com/beesrobbing.htm

But the whole "chop and crop" thing really sets a hive back. I don't recommend it. Just put a swarm or a package in.

I really recommend buying packages if you want bees in some other equipment or cell size (small cell, mediums, tbh etc.). Otherwise you're just buying problems.


----------



## kjohnson5488 (Jun 26, 2011)

I paid for the queen, but the nuc was given to me. Unfortunately there weren't as many bees as I would have liked but oh well. If this colony doesn't make it, I will buy a package next spring. Are package bees available year round? 

Anyway, its 11:30 PM, I went out and plugged the last entrance hole and gave them food and water. There is screening along the whole bottom of the tbh so ventilation shouldn't be a problem. In a couple days I will open it back up but reduce one of entrance holes to allow a couple bees at a time. 

There were quite a few yellow jackets in the hive with the bees, just waiting. I managed to squish the ones I did see before sealing it up. Do you think the yellow jackets will just give up?


----------



## Adam Foster Collins (Nov 4, 2009)

I don't see them giving up. The only way to stop them is to get the hive set up so that the bees can defend the entrance. Even if you find and destroy the wasp's nest - there will always be more. Yellow jackets are good at the things they do, and stealing honey is one of them. You've got to give the bees a chance by drastically reducing the entrance area they have to defend.

Adam


----------



## kjohnson5488 (Jun 26, 2011)

Well I opened the hive back up after 1 day. I reduced the entrance to half of a 1" hole. I squished probably 50 yellow jackets. Weird that they are not stinging me. Other than the colony being smaller, they look like they are all busy building comb and chasing yellow jackets so I guess I'll leave them to fight them off. 
Fingers crossed...


----------



## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

I would reduce it to one bee. Which is 1/4" by 1/4".


----------



## kjohnson5488 (Jun 26, 2011)

Ok, I reduced it down to a 1/4" hole. I will check in the morning to make sure they are exiting ok. The yellow jacket numbers were smaller today. And tonight I only saw 8 or so. Thats a good thing!


----------



## kjohnson5488 (Jun 26, 2011)

4 days and still a lot of yellow jackets entering and leaving the hive. I have resorted to killing them with a fly swatter. I need more bees.


----------



## rtoney (Apr 20, 2011)

Do you have a friend that you could move your hive to for a few months?(few miles away) Don't know if it would work but if you killed the current YJ's in the hive and moved it maybe they could build enough to move it back and defend themselves


----------



## kjohnson5488 (Jun 26, 2011)

No way to move them anywhere. 

I have been going out in the afternoon and killing yellow jacket. I removed the sugar water mix as I thought it might be contributing to the robbing. All I saw eating it was the YJ. I saw the queen a yesterday and the bees have capped honey, and brood (I think). The numbers are just low.


----------



## kjohnson5488 (Jun 26, 2011)

Yellow jacket activity has seemed to of stopped. I got 2 frames of brood and nurse bees and added it to my hive. Plenty of capped brood and larva. They are feeding again. It's raining today so they are inside working away and attaching the cut wedges of comb to the bars. My hive is much more productive now.


----------



## DeeAnna (Nov 5, 2010)

Thanks for the update -- I have been wondering how you and your bees were doing. It's really good to hear they are doing better!


----------

