# Hogan style swarm trap went laying worker on me!



## Paul McCarty (Mar 30, 2011)

If it's not one thing it's another. My trap-out I have been working on for nearly a month appears to have failed in raising a queen from their cells I gave. She should have gotten mated and started laying about a day ago. I noticed multiple eggs in a large majority of the cells. This trap-out is about 12 feet up on a platform, and is JAMMED with bees. I really hate to take it down to shake it out. I do have a queen caged up and ready - I have her banked in the trap - hopefully they take care of her. It was too far to drive her back to my place and too late to put her in another hive.

I guess I will take it down and consider the trap done for now and deal with the Laying Workers. Pretty sure I have the large majority of the bees out of the hive, and if I seal it, the others will be sure to be history. May have to get them straightened out again and bring them back to the site to rob out the old.

Has anyone ever shook laying workers into a "shook swarm" (swarm box) and had good queen acceptance? I have shook them out and let them return to an empty hive body with a frame of brood and a new queen before, and that seemed to work - or to a queen-right hive (in place of the laying worker hive), but a fair bit of fighting ensued.

How does everyone else here deal with a trap-out gone laying worker?


----------



## Beregondo (Jun 21, 2011)

I got pretty aggressive making splits for increase this year and in in the Southern Tier of New York, many have had a problem with virgin queens not returning this year.
As a consequence, I've had to deal with laying workers a couple of times.
On advice of a life long beek, I tried simply doing a newspaper combine, and ithas worked well each time. 
The laying workers didn't harm the queens, and stopped laying whan exposed to the pheromones in the hive.

I think sometimes we make thing a lot more complicated due to concern about what *could* happen, but doesn't present a very big risk.


----------



## Paul McCarty (Mar 30, 2011)

I understand... This was a late season trap-out and I think it got too cold to raise queen cells at night. I lost several batches of queens due to chilled cells. I have always had good luck with shaking them out and jamming a new queen in the middle of the chaos.


----------



## bamindy (Apr 14, 2009)

Paul,
I am sure Cleo will chime in but my experience with this type of trap out is to run the original queen back into the tree unless you have to remove the whole colony. Most likely with this type of set up you aren't trying to permanently remove them. This way you can keep "harvesting" bees. I use hose fittings and hose to save the cost of the "official" trap. Works just as well and only costs about $5. Drill a 1 1/2" hole in the box and another in the tree. Insert hose fittings. Seal off all other exits to original hive and connect the hose. Come back a few weeks later and check for eggs in your box. If they are there, put those frames in a new box and reload the trap box with new frames. The bees will make their own queen and you keep the wild genetics. Make sure to leave the queen though if you plan on coming back for more. Otherwise it is going to be a while before you can harvest again. I use nuc boxes and harvested a few trees this year. The queens are still in the trees and if they make it through winter, I will start the process again in the spring.


----------



## Paul McCarty (Mar 30, 2011)

Too cold to grow a new one here, no drones anyway. I already tried the standard route with a queen cell like I normally do with this trap. And this is a permanent removal. The trap was the only alternative as the homeowner would not agree to a cut-out. Vicious bees anyway.

I will have to try the hose fitting route someday. I normally seal the tunnel with wire screen covered with black plastic wrap.

I can usually keep a closer eye on it, but this is pretty far from home.


----------



## Cleo C. Hogan Jr (Feb 27, 2010)

bamindy has it right. Good Info.

cchoganjr


----------

