Hello from Lafayette, LA

[CaptMorganism]

Hello everyone, another newbie who has been reading and watching videos on the subject. We have a feral colony in a column on our front porch and I hope to one day transfer them to a top bar hive. They are not in the attic but are limited to the column itself and seem to be filling it up completely. We have had no issues with them even though I am in close proximity very often. They do not seem to mind lawnmowers, weadeaters, chainsaws or anything really. I have had them land on me occasionally but only one at a time and never any stings.

Anyway, have a great day. I look forward to stalking and reading and generally pestering for information.

Thanks

[Joe D]

Welcome to the forum.  Good luck to you and your bees, Capt.



Joe

[AllenF]

Welcome to the forum.   If you want to remove those bees and box them, You should get some help the first time for a bee removal if you are not experienced with bees.   But that should not be hard to find here.  Also, there is a a lot of info on the forum on how to do it.   But you might just want to leave them bee.   

[CaptMorganism]

Thanks for the welcome. Allen, I would like to remove and box them. My plan was to study up quite a bit over the winter, build a couple of boxes and see if they will swarm next year sometime. Perhaps I would get lucky and lure a swarm into a box then I could take the column down and box the remainder. I believe the column has been there home for quite are while. The slats are expanding I assume due to growth of the hive. When the crack opens the bees plunge their bodies into the void and they seal it up.

I have talked to some people locally and it was suggested I poison them but that is not a valid option for me. The column can be replaced with little fuss and they seem like pretty good neighbors so far. Of course my opinion might be different if they were in the attic or wall.

[Lazy W]

Welcome to the forum. Don't be intimidated by doing your cut out. There is nothing like getting in there and interacting with your bees. If you can find a mentor, that would be great. If not, sometimes you just have to go it alone. Keep us informed.