SHB in abandoned bees

[CVBees]

Never look a gift horse in the mouth right?

So I was contacted to perform a cut out in a civil war era farm home a few miles from the Battlefield's in Gettysburg, PA.  Most excellent news.  The house is a bit dangerous I will be taking video.  Now where did the bees come from?

There were 5 abandoned hives on the property not 500 yards away.  Two of the 5 had 2 deeps and one was had survived the winter.  Lots of bees as I took the top cover off a mere 30 minutes before dusk and only 45 degrees.  You can imagine what might of happened next.  Zap right under the eye.  No real swelling just a reminder that the girls can be defensive.


Now the reason I am posting.  SHB everywhere in the surviving hive on the ground.  The hive bodies are barely salvagable but he frames look good.  What would be the best course of action?  I have some traps I can put them in but I don't want to contaminate my beeyard be bringing them back there.  I am hoping the cutout between floors of the house do not have them I am going in this weekend to retrieve.

Is the best way just to install the SHB traps I have and once the numbers are down just hope the bees do the rest?  I have never had SHB in my hives before.

[Joe D]

Hi,

Can't say it was correct, but I got a hive about like those and what I did was.  Carried new boxes, would take a frame out of old box, brush it off, and put in new box.  Did hive that way and put traps in new boxes, leaving most of SHB there and not bringing home with the bees.  Hope this helps.  Some of the guys with more experiences may know something better.

Joe

[yockey5]

I'm thinking Joe D has your solution here.

[sawdstmakr]

I agree. Bee glad you don't have any. I kill hundreds, probably thousands of them every year, SBB with oil tray. They love moist sandy soil. When I open a hive that has drawn frames with nothing in them they usually have beetles. I clean them out one frame at a time and usually the next time I look at those frames they are pretty clear of beetles. Just give the beetles time to craw out of the holes in the bottom of the frame. I use a small stick or a pine needle to knock them out of the cells.
Good luck.
Jim

[CVBees]

Joe D - Thanks I will do that this weekend and just leave them on site until I can get the numbers down a bit. I have half dozen of the oil filled beetle traps ( *tiphat* to Sawdstmakr )  I will insert and watch em for awhile.  I know there is a ground treatment too and might consider a prophylactic of this at my beeyard once I bring them home.  Thanks again all.

[nietssemaj]

Why not capture the queen and the bees and treat them like a package.

All new frames nothing from the infested hive.

[Anybrew]

I like that idea of capturing the queen and caging her up in a new hive with some of your drawn comb etc, might work on a warm day.

Cheers
Anybrew

[beek1951]

Save the bees, burn the hive!